#1 Putting a run together
It’s been a positive week at Compton Park, with the players being treated to their new tradition of a meal under head coach Lopetegui by earning a clean sheet in Saturday’s win over Tottenham Hotspur at Molineux. But it wasn’t only the players who were treated after the thrilling 1-0 victory, with the gaffer hosting a meal for all of the Wolves staff at Molineux on Wednesday lunchtime, before presenting a trio of pizza’s to the awaiting journalists at Friday’s press conference! With team spirit at a high, the players will head to St James’ Park looking earn a second successive win against a side who will be hoping to earn a top four finish this season in Newcastle United.
But one of the most frustrating parts of Wolves’ 2022/23 Premier League season has been the inconsistency from one result to another. The old gold have only found themselves winning successive matches once – with Lopetegui’s side following up their 3-0 home win over Liverpool with a 2-1 victory on the road at St Mary’s Stadium, while you have to go all the way back to the beginning of September to find Wolves’ only run of three matches without tasting defeat, as a 1-1 draw against Newcastle was followed up by a goalless meeting with Bournemouth and a narrow win against Southampton.
#2 Surely not another 1-1 draw?
When the teams met earlier this season, Wolves looked to be on course for their first win of the campaign in their fourth match after Ruben Neves had put the hosts ahead on 38 minutes at Molineux with a stunning strike. But it was late heartbreak for the 30,000 old gold supporters inside the stadium as Allan Saint-Maximin smashed a volley into the back of the net from the edge of the box to earn himself the Premier League August’s Goal of the Month accolade.
The result should probably not have come as a surprise to anyone as matches between the two sides have ended up finishing as a 1-1 draw on six of the last eight meetings. However, since Wolves were promoted back to the Premier League in 2018, they have had a slightly better record against the Magpies than the side from St James’ have against them, thanks to their two victories compared to Newcastle’s one. But that one came in this fixture last season, as Chris Wood’s second-half penalty saw all three points remain in the northeast. If Wolves are to make it two wins in succession, they will need to succeed in the north east for the first time since December 2018, when Matt Doherty popped up with a late winner.
A lovely @rubendsneves_ strike the last time we faced @NUFC 🎯 pic.twitter.com/O6wsdacuqm
— Wolves (@Wolves) March 10, 2023
#3 An unwanted statistic
Games between Wolves and Newcastle have never lacked goals in the past, with none of their previous meetings ending 0-0 and just one of their Premier League clashes since 2018 ending with a single goal being scored – that of the host’s aforementioned 1-0 win in April 2022. Yet when you look at the conversion rates of both teams in recent weeks, goals have been hard to come by – especially for Newcastle. The Magpies have not found the net in any of their last three matches in all competitions, being shut out by Manchester City, Liverpool and Manchester United, with their last goal coming against Bournemouth in a 1-1 draw last month, with their three goals in 2023 being the fewest of any club in the top five Europeans leagues.
Although Wolves remain the league’s joint bottom scoring club with just 19 goals, 11 of those have come in the 11 games since Lopetegui took over the team, however, that hasn’t stopped them from ridding an unwanted statistic that has hung around their necks during the last fortnight. Yesterday marked a calendar year since a striker scored in a Premier League fixture – Raul Jimenez had that honour of putting his side 1-0 up against Watford at Molineux back on 10th March 2022 before Wolves added another three that evening. The offside flag was all that stopped Jimenez from putting an end to that stat last weekend, and the Mexican will be in confident mood heading to Newcastle, after racking up a goal and two assists in his last three appearances against the Magpies.
#4 Could Hwang and Bouba feature?
Unfortunately for Diego Costa, he will have to wait a few weeks for the opportunity to be the first Wolves striker to score in the Premier League this season after the experienced Spaniard was ruled for the foreseeable future after coming off midway through the first-half on Saturday. With Jimenez and Matheus Cunha linking well in the later stages of that match, Lopetegui has the option of going with both from the start at St James’ Park on Sunday, as well as hoping to have the man who put Newcastle to the sword at Molineux last season back in contention.
After picking up a hamstring injury in the 3-0 win over Liverpool – in which he played a vital role in the opening goal – Hee Chan Hwang could possibly return to the squad this weekend. In his pre-match press conference yesterday, Lopetegui said a decision on the South Korean, as well as Mali midfielder Boubacar Traore will be made today before the squad travel to Newcastle. Traore hasn’t featured since before the World Cup break and has been unlucky with injuries since the head coach arrived, having picked up a groin injury while at the winter training camp in Marbella, before reaggravating the issue a few weeks later. With a return to training this week, both will be hoping they are fit enough to at least make the matchday squad.
