Wolverhampton Wanderers v Liverpool – Match Preview

Liverpool’s untimely elimination from the EFL Cup by Manchester City could turn out to be blessing in disguise as their involvement in the mid-week meeting was off. Pepijn Lijnders wrote in his book: “Training is our transfer” – having said so, the Reds were handed a six-day break between the matches that could be used as a road to reinventing themselves.

At the weekend, they will be required to step up their game and battle for every inch as they travel to the relegation threatened side. Liverpool return to Premier League duties on Saturday afternoon as they head over to Molineux Stadium to take on Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Overview

Liverpool endured a tough start to the New Year. They are already out of the domestic cup competitions and off the pace in the Premier League. Jürgen Klopp’s side are sitting ninth in the league standing and are 10 points off fourth-placed Manchester United. Champions League qualification dreams seem to be in tatters.

Liverpool have suffered five defeats away from home, winning twice and sharing the spoils twice. Their latest visit to away ground ended in a loss. Having been dismantled by Brighton, Klopp admitted: “I cannot remember a worse game” for Liverpool.

Jurgen Klopp on Brighton loss [via @RealKevinPalmer] #LFC

🗣️"Bad. Really bad. I can't remember a worse game. I cannot stand here and say it didn't happen. Of course, we have to be very concerned about it."

— Empire of the Kop (@empireofthekop) January 14, 2023

Julen Lopetegui’s outfit will resume their Premier League battle after a 13-day gap from competitive football. They had enough time to recover from a heartbreaking defeat to Manchester City. They’ve become the latest victims of Erling Haaland hat-trick who completed his fourth treble of the season. However, few will hammer them for the result against the reigning champions.

Wolves sit 17th and are currently on a run of just one win from their last seven matches in all competitions. Molineux Stadium isn’t an impregnable fortress this season, it’s rather fragile. Lopetegui’s team rate 17th for home wins. However, there’s a glimmer of hope for Wolves. Their most recent Premier League home victory came against West Ham United that ended a run of four consecutive defeats at their home ground.

Head-to-Head

Liverpool have won all but one of the last five meetings against Wolves at Molineux Stadium in all competitions. The most recent defeat came in the early days of 2019 when these two locked horns in the third round of the FA Cup.

Team News

Ibrahima Konate is the latest to have picked up a muscle injury this season. Media reports suggests that the centre-back could be out for up to three weeks. He will join Virgil van Dijk (hamstring), Arthur (thigh), Diogo Jota (calf), Luis Diaz (knee) and Roberto Firmino (calf) on the sidelines.

In the wake of the Frenchman’s injury, Joel Matip will surely step up to form a partnership with Joe Gomez at the back.

The Reds could be boosted by a return of Fabio Carvalho and Nathaniel Phillips but I wouldn’t expect either of them to start from the very first whistle.

Jurgen Klopp has also confirmed Firmino, Van Dijk are 'closer' and should be part of training next week.
Luis Diaz is back running but will still take a few weeks. Konaté is still out. Finally some good news with players returning from injury 💪🔴 #LFC #LFCInjuries #YNWA pic.twitter.com/5gzKLhprzl

— Tee 🔴 (@Tee025s) February 3, 2023

Meanwhile, the home side will be without Chiquinho, Pedro Neto, Boubacar Traore and Sasa Kalajdzic who continue their recovery in the treatment room.

Wolves had their hands busy in the winter transfer window. They brought in attacking duo Matheus Cunha and Pablo Sarabia, midfielder Mario Lemina and Joao Gomez, experienced defender Craig Dawson, and goalkeeper Daniel Bentley. We can expect some of the newcomers to get nod in the starting XI.

Summary

It’s fair to say that both teams are underperforming this campaign. The Reds are in a transition period and plenty of changes are expected to happen come the summer. Last year, it was confirmed that Liverpool sporting director Julian Ward would step down after the current campaign. Other than that, summer is going to be busy in terms of brining in new faces to the squad.

I believe it will be a tight game with a narrow scoreline. Wolves are struggling to find the net at home, they’ve hit home just six times in 10 games there. Comparatively, Liverpool have scored 11 goals in nine away encounters. Both teams need to work on their end product on the training ground should they fancy be more effective.

I’m struggling to predict the scoreline of this game. My heart says the Reds will edge out Julen Lopetegui’s outfit 2:1, but my mind refutes it saying the game will end up in a draw. I really hope my heart will win over my mind.