Wolves go into their final match of 2024 at Tottenham Hotspur in a positive frame of mind after back-to-back wins, and below is everything you need to know ahead of kick-off.
1 | Roll Call
Vitor Pereira confirmed that Mario Lemina could return from injury for the trip to the capital. The midfielder has missed the new head coach’s first two games with a calf injury but could be back in contention. Pablo Sarabia is expected to miss out once more, however. Should Rayan Ait-Nouri and Toti avoid a fifth yellow card of the season at Spurs, they’ll avoid a one-match ban. Yerson Mosquera, Boubacar Traore, Enso Gonzalez and Sasa Kalajdzic remain out long-term.
Tottenham have problems at the back. Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario is out until March with an ankle injury and his regular two centre backs Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven are both out through injury. Radu Dragusin has deputised recently, but also left the pitch on Boxing Day with an ankle injury and he’ll be assessed before Sunday. Djed Spence was sent off in the same game at Nottingham Forest for two yellows, so is suspended. Richarlison is out until the new year with a thigh injury and Wilson Odobert is absent with a hamstring injury. Defender Ben Davies has had a setback in his recovery so will not face the Old Gold.
2 | The Stat Pack
Goals
- Matheus Cunha | 10
- James Maddison | 8
Assist
- Goncalo Guedes | 4
- Heung-min Son | 6
Biggest win
- Fulham 1-4 Wolves | November 2024
- Southampton 0-5 Tottenham | December 2024
Yellow cards
- Joao Gomes | 6
- Yves Bissouma | 5
Clean sheets
- Jose Sa | 3
- Guglielmo Vicario | 3
Magic from Matheus 🪄 pic.twitter.com/gL4iwCgOuh
— Wolves (@Wolves) December 27, 2024
3 | The journey to Sunday
It’s two wins from two under Vitor Pereira and Wolves go into a matchday outside of the relegation zone for the first time in a month. The Boxing Day win over Manchester United brought Molineux its mojo back, with Matheus Cunha and Hee Chan Hwang scoring in the second half to continue the positivity from the new head coach’s first week. Previously, he’d began to turn the wheel in the other direction with a 3-0 success at Leicester City – the Old Gold’s last away game. Five goals and zero conceded from his first two games has been a positive start for Pereira.
Tottenham’s Christmas has been the opposite to Wolves so far. Ange Postecoglou’s side have lost both of their festive fixtures, going down 1-0 at Nottingham Forest on Boxing Day. Previously, they’d lost out in a nine-goal thriller with Liverpool, losing 6-3 to the league leaders. Their form has been inconsistent throughout December, with defeats to Bournemouth and Chelsea coming before wins over Southampton and Manchester United in the Carabao Cup.
4 | Happy hunting ground
Wolves have a decent record at Tottenham’s new home, having won on three of their five visits. The first of those came in March 2020, weeks before the Covid-19 pandemic, and Nuno Espirito Santo’s side recorded a memorable win. The hosts twice led through Steven Bergwijn and Serge Aurier, but, as they so often did during that memorable campaign, fought back through Matt Doherty and then Diogo Jota. Raul Jimenez won it with a moment of brilliance, turning and firing home after a trademark Adama Traore run.
Spurs | Gazzaniga, Aurier (Fernandes 82), Sanchez, Dier, Tanganga (Ndombele 76), Davies (Parrott 89), Winks, Lo Celso, Alli, Moura, Bengwijn.
Wolves | Patricio, Doherty, Boly, Coady, Saiss, Vinagre, Neves, Moutinho, Adama (Neto 74), Jota (Denconcker 79), Jimenez (Podence 89).
