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Wolves Aim For Revenge Against Liverpool

As the weekend draws to a close, many fans are already looking ahead to the fourth round draw which will take place tomorrow night. Everyone knows that this is where things start to get a little bit more serious, even if some people don’t want to admit that. Winning in the fourth round will allow you to get into the final 16, and at that stage, the dream of Wembley becomes a little bit more real. Of course, before we get to all of that, there’s still one more third round tie for us to enjoy between two of the most noteworthy teams in English football this year.

That tie will be contested between Wolverhampton Wanderers and Liverpool, and bizarrely enough, there are still many, many tickets available for this one. It kind of showcases how far the FA Cup has fallen in the eyes of many, and particularly in the eyes of Wolves fans. They’ll be taking on arguably the best team in the country for the right to progress in the cup, and it hasn’t sold out. That may be due to a variety of factors, but in the end, it’s still a little bit disheartening to hear for fans of the competition.

Wolves have been one of the most fascinating sides to watch in the Premier League this season, if only because you never know what side of them you’re going to get. Some days they’ll beat a top tier side, and then they’ll go and lose to a relegation contender. Under the guidance of Nuno Espirito Santo they’ve certainly been able to build some momentum for themselves, but how long will it last? They’ll probably survive this year, but second season syndrome is an issue that many clubs have had to deal with over the years.

One team who haven’t had to deal with that kind of stress, though, is Liverpool. The Reds are top of the Premier League, and despite their setback against City, they’re still on track to win the PL title for the first time since the rebranding back in 1992. They’ve got an absolutely incredible squad that is capable of beating anyone on their day, and we aren’t just saying that for the sake of it. When they play to their full potential then we’d argue there’s nobody that they cannot defeat, and we get the feeling that the players are starting to believe that too.

Wolves’ last six game stretch certainly stays true to the ‘inconsistent’ label that many have given them. They kicked it off with a 2-1 win over Newcastle United before overcoming Bournemouth 2-0, before coming face to face with Liverpool in the Premier League. They lost 2-0, and they also struggled against Fulham by only managing a draw. Then, out of nowhere, they managed to defeat Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 in one of the shock results of the season. It’s good, then, that they managed those three points, considering that they went on to lose 2-0 to Crystal Palace. Football is a funny game, isn’t it?

Liverpool, on the other hand, are always making the headlines for one reason or another. They kicked off their six game stretch with a narrow 1-0 win over Napoli that confirmed their place in the knockout stages of the Champions League, before convincingly seeing off the challenge of bitter rivals Manchester United. They went on to beat Wolves before demolishing Newcastle, which was followed up by a 5-1 triumph over Arsenal that confirmed their status as title favourites. Of course, there’s still plenty of work to be done, especially after they lost 2-1 to reigning champions Manchester City who are right on their tail.

The overall head to head standings between the two sides showcases just how long they’ve been hanging around for in English football, with Liverpool leading 50-35 with 17 draws. Their first meeting took place all the way back in 1894, but as we’ve noted a few times now, their latest encounter went down just a matter of weeks ago. While the starting XI for both teams may be slightly different tomorrow night, you can bet that Nuno won’t let his players forget just how well they fought against the Reds the last time out.

Diogo Jota has officially returned to training, and he’ll look towards this game as the perfect opportunity to announce his comeback on one of the biggest stages possible. Romain Saiss will also be available despite limping off against Crystal Palace, but above that, there’s one man who is dying to get a start in this one above all others: Morgan Gibbs-White. The midfield maestro has been a nightmare to deal with for many teams in the Premier League this season, and it’s not unreasonable to suggest that he could be the difference between victory and defeat for Wolves at Molineux.

Rotation is to be expected for Liverpool, given that they’re also trying to mastermind their way towards lifting the Premier League title as well as the Champions League title. A few star names will likely feature with a few more being present on the bench, just in case they need a goal or two late in the game. Daniel Sturridge is expected to make a start as he attempts to make his case for more playing time, with Xherdan Shaqiri also being tipped to feature on some level. Alberto Moreno is also likely to play some kind of role, in what should be a fascinating encounter when it comes to the team selections.

Wolves vs Liverpool Betting Prediction

On a cold Monday night in Wolverhampton, it feels like there’s going to be something of a subdued atmosphere due to ticket sales and that’s a shame. Even so, though, Wolves are probably going to give the Reds a good game, but with some rotation expected, we aren’t anticipating a classic any stretch of the imagination. Both teams will be trigger friendly but won’t quite be able to take the lead, and we truly believe that it’ll be goalless heading into half time. That sounds disappointing to some, but we’d respectfully disagree.

0-0 games can be entertaining provided both teams are giving it their all, which we think will happen as fringe players attempt to make their case for a consistent place in the first team. As the game approaches the final twenty minutes we can see the Reds starting to put their foot down a bit, and rightly so. After all a replay would be nothing more than a distraction for them and while the same would be true of Wolves, their schedule isn’t quite as busy. Klopp’s side will score late on to progress into the next round, but it certainly isn’t going to be easy.