Premier League: Wolves Salivate for Another Win

Brighton & Hove Albion vs Wolverhampton Wanderers

The depleted Brighton overcame Stoke City in the FA Cup, and now they are fresh and primed to take on the streaking Wolves for a pivotal Premier League clash at Falmer Stadium.

The Seagulls are showcasing just how much heart and grit outfits need to have in order to keep up in the top flight. Despite dealing with an injury-ridden stretch of football, Roberto De Zerbi and his healthy players just won’t seem to budge and show any signs of vulnerability, tallying just one loss in their last five Premier League matches.

Meanwhile, Gary O’Neil’s Wolves are scorching, joining Chelsea and Manchester City as the hottest clubs in the top flight by winning their last three Premier League matches with no signs of slowing down.

Wolves don’t have their leader, Hwang Hee-chan, but they’ve been as potent as they’ve ever been this term. Cunha’s brilliance spearheads their success, and a win against a team in the upper half of the league table would definitely prove that their recent dominance is no fluke.

Talking Points

Can Brighton stay resilient without Mitoma?

The good news for the Seagulls is that one of their key players, Kaoru Mitoma, can come back from international duties earlier than expected. The bad news is that he’s banged up.

The Japanese winger was called up to represent Japan in the AFC Asian Cup despite still tending to an ankle injury he suffered in the 1-1 draw against Crystal Palace on December 21. It wasn’t much of a surprise that the 26-year-old was absent during Japan’s 2-1 defeat against Iraq, and Mitoma would likely miss the entirety of the Group Stages as well.

To have the Brighton star participate in Japan’s camp is quite a headscratcher, given that Mitoma already confirmed his withdrawal from international duty way back in November, even before he suffered his ankle injury against Crystal Palace.

Now, a resilient Roberto De Zerbi is forced to make adjustments to his starting XI every matchday to compensate for the plethora of injuries the Seagulls are dealing with.

Aside from Mitoma, key players such as Joel Veltman, Solly March, Tariq Lamptey, Julio Enciso, Ansu Fati, and Simon Adingra are all out for De Zerbi when they try to fend off the salivating Wolves.

With not many players to work with, De Zerbi is predicted to have a starting lineup featuring Jason Steele, Jack Hinshelwood, Jan Paul van Hecke, Lewis Dunk, Pervis Estupiñán, Pascal Groß, James Milner, Billy Gilmour, Facundo Buonanotte, João Pedro, and Danny Welbeck.

Is this starting XI enough to produce considerable Premier League 2024 results against a charging pack of Wolves?

Cunha holds the line

Over at Wolverhampton, Gary O’Neil and his boys are mounting a threatening charge on the upper half of the league table.

They’ve been cruising through the past few matchdays in the top flight, garnering 10 points in their last five Premier League clashes, and are currently on a three-game winning streak.

Not only that, but they’ve also edged out Brentford in the 3rd Round replays of the FA Cup and are set to face West Brom in the 4th Round of the tournament.

If that didn’t get SBOTOP football fans excited, maybe the fact that they’ve been thrashing the Premier League without their leading scorer, Hwang Hee-chan, would do the trick.

Matheus Cunha is holding down the fort while Hwang Hee-chan is out for international duties with South Korea. The 24-year-old Brazilian has embraced the role of spearheading O’Neil’s offence, especially in the past few weeks.

He was brought in to be the No. 9 for Wolverhampton, but Cunha shines the brightest when he drops a little off the line and synchronizes with his wingers.

“I do think he can play as a No. 9. I prefer him dropping off the top line. I feel he does his best work dragging defenders out and being able to turn.” Gary O’Neil on Cunha’s role.

“He should take great pride in how he’s been able to move on from where he was when I arrived – he was incredibly talented but no one was really sure what you might get – to where he is at the moment. I’m just desperate for the ball to land at his feet so he can do something.” he added.

This vital adjustment has done nothing but wonders for Wolverhampton, and most would expect O’Neil to steamroll the same tactic against a depleted Brighton at Falmer Stadium.

History

These clubs have faced each other 23 times in a span of a decade, so it’s safe to say that these rivals are well acquainted with each other’s playstyle. In those 23 head-to-heads, the majority of 10 have ended in a draw, which just shows how well matched these outfits are.

Meanwhile, Brighton were able to tally eight wins, and Wolves are right there with five of their own.

In terms of goals, they average 2.4 goals per game against one another, which justifies the reason why my betting tip for this bout is total goals under 3.00.

Considering their recent form in the Premier League, Brighton are neck-and-neck with Chelsea in the league standings with 31 points apiece, and a win this matchday could propel them past Manchester United and West Ham to boot.

Wolves on the other hand, are still in the bottom half of the league standings but are currently riding a three-game winning streak. With 28 league points, a win against the Seagulls may catapult them into Europa League contention.

Betting Tip

Despite garnering 10 league points in their last five top-flight matches, the Premier League 2024 betting odds still have Wolves as the underdogs in their upcoming bout against the Seagulls at 4.45, while Brighton are the heavy favourites at 1.62 with a price of 3.80 to draw.

Betting on their 1×2 lines would be pretty exciting for punters, I could imagine. Wolverhampton are currently on a convincing streak, so I wouldn’t be surprised if punters would consider their price of 4.45 as a value pick.

Meanwhile, a safer and equally exciting line, in my opinion, is their total goal offer, specifically their under three goals at 3.00. Wolves seem to have their offence clicking for them, scoring 13 goals in their last five contests across all competitions. But one must consider that they were able to tally this many goals against an Everton squad that are in danger of relegation and thrice against the struggling Brentford.

They were able to just tally one goal against Chelsea, one against Arsenal, and none against West Ham, so expect more of the same when they play Brighton, who are somewhat in the same calibre as the teams in the upper half of the league table.

 

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