#1 Aiming for the fourth round
Those of a gold and black persuasion feel they should already be in this season’s fourth round with a clash away at Brighton and Hove Albion to come a week on Sunday. This was after VAR were somehow unable to overturn an incorrect offside decision which cancelled out Toti’s perfectly legitimate goal the last time Wolves and Liverpool went head-to-head just nine days ago. But having to accept a 2-2 draw at Anfield, the teams return for another 90 minutes – which could turn into 120 and penalties if a winner cannot be found in regulation time – under the Molineux lights.
And if the game last weekend is anything to go by, we’re in for another treat. A four-goal thriller at Anfield saw Wolves open the scoring after a mix-up in defence saw Alisson give the ball straight to Goncalo Guedes, who made no mistake to place the ball into an empty net. But Liverpool fought back with a neat volleyed finish from Darwin Nunez, before Mohamed Salah scored a controversial goal after gaining an advantage by being in an offside position, before guiding the ball past Matija Sarkic. Wolves equalised when substitutes Hee Chan Hwang and Matheus Cunha combined to see the South Korean force the ball home, but the game ended under shady circumstances as Toti’s clever backheel was ruled out.
#2 Differing levels of form
After the initial third round tie, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said a replay would favour Wolves, despite his side not being the one who have had to play five games in 14 days. However, the tight schedule of 2023 has not hindered Julen Lopetegui’s men, who are yet to taste defeat (inside 90 minutes) in the opening month of the year. Wolves come into Tuesday night’s game off the back of a 1-0 win over West Ham United in the Premier League which pushed them up to 16th in the table and out of the relegation zone for the first time since the middle of October following a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest under interim boss Steve Davis.
On the other hand, Klopp’s side have played just three times so far this year and have had plenty more rest and recovery time than their opponents. Yet, they are still without a win in 2023, as Liverpool started with a 3-1 loss at Brentford before a 3-0 defeat to Brighton on their travels just two days ago. With a crucial clash with Chelsea at Anfield for the Reds to look ahead to on Saturday lunchtime, Klopp might take the chance to rotate his squad at Molineux, but those changes could also turn around Liverpool’s poor run of form.
Winning weekends 😍 pic.twitter.com/t72jDFW8td
— Wolves (@Wolves) January 15, 2023
#3 Live on the BBC
After the initial third round tie was broadcast live on ITV4 and ITVX last weekend, the replay has moved across the channels and will be shown live on BBC One, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website on Tuesday evening. Coverage will start on the BBC’s flagship channel from 7.30pm. The last time Wolves and Liverpool faced off in an FA Cup third round fixture at Molineux, that game was also shown live on BBC One, as Raul Jimenez and Ruben Neves found the net to earn Wolves’ place in the fourth round. A Nuno-led Wolves side went all the way to the semi-final of the competition that season, so Lopetegui will hope for a similar experience this time.
The other third round replay selected for live broadcast coverage this week will see Leeds United and Cardiff City go head-to-head at Elland Road from 7.45pm on Wednesday evening and will be shown on ITV4 and ITVX. Whoever gets through from Wolves and Liverpool tomorrow night will face Brighton away at the Amex from 1.30pm on Sunday 29th January. That match is also set to be shown live on terrestrial TV, with ITV1 selecting that fixture for coverage.
#4 Making Molineux a fortress
Although the first-half against West Ham on Saturday was a tense affair, with three points vitally important for two sides who were both looking at moving themselves away from danger, after Daniel Podence opened the scoring, the Molineux atmosphere for the final 40 minutes was reminiscent of what the golden palace has been like during the best moments of the past six years. In their post-match interviews, Lopetegui, Neves and Maximilian Kilman all mentioned how much the support of the Molineux crowd was able to provide the players the boost they needed to earn all three points.
Neves even liked the atmosphere to ‘old times’, adding, ‘A fantastic atmosphere, with everyone pushing for us.’ However, the captain and the head coach both urged the fans to continue to build on what they gave the players on Saturday if they are to make Molineux the fortress everyone needs it to be if we are to go one better than the 2018/19 FA Cup run. In his programme notes for Tuesday evening, Lopetegui said: “The fans helped us a lot and because of that, we gained an important win and an important three points, so I thank them all for their support. An atmosphere inside the stadium like Saturday helps all the players in the difficult moments we will face this season. As I’ve said before, if we are to achieve our aims, we all need to work together – the players, the fans and the club. It’s going to be a hard task, so we need to so this if we are to have the best chance at succeeding.”
"It felt like the old times at Molineux today. That’s what we want to feel every time we play here."
— Wolves (@Wolves) January 14, 2023
©🗣 pic.twitter.com/4xe6hno051
