Wolves vs Bournemouth – Analysis, Prediction, Team News

As part of our weekend Premier League predictions, we take a look at Wolves and Bournemouth. Wolves have won 3 of their last 4 games, Bournemouth haven’t won since before the World Cup break. Home win? Read on with our Wolves vs Bournemouth prediction.

Wolves vs Bournemouth Match Preview

Wolves have made an excellent start to life under their decorated new manager Julen Lopetegui, to the extent that they find themselves in fourth place in the Premier League form table over the last five matches with 10 points. This run of improved form has enabled Wolves to pull five points clear of the relegation places, and it appears as though the club is on an upward trajectory. Despite being down to 10 men for almost an hour following Mario Lemina’s first-half dismissal, Wolves were able to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 victory against Southampton late on.

Wolves have become a far more difficult team to play against under their new manager, particularly at home. While it’s simple to look at results and talk about how they’ve won their last two home matches, Wolves played very well against a resurgent Manchester United side and were arguably somewhat unlucky not to have found an equaliser late on as they pushed United back deep into their territory in the second half. It’s this consistent progression that will ensure that Wolves fans can be hopeful of their team avoiding a relegation scrap this season.

Bournemouth are, despite the league and recent form tables, beginning to show signs of improvement. Their 1-1 draw against Newcastle was entirely merited on the balance of play, they kept Brighton out until the 87th minute before eventually succumbing 1-0 to their fellow south coast side, and managed to earn another 1-1 draw against Nottingham Forest.

However, the real issue for Bournemouth is their dreadful away form, which is the worst in the Premier League. Though the 32 goals conceded is skewed a little as a result of their 9-0 humbling at Anfield early in the season, five points from 11 away matches is relegation form and they will surely recognise that an immediate improvement is required. They can take some comfort from keeping out an in-form Brighton side until so late in the game, and they will need to rely on that kind of defensive resilience here.

Team News

Injuries and Suspensions

Wolves:

Might Not Play: Podence

Will Not Play: Chiquinho, Hwang Hee-Chan, Kalajdzic, Lemina, Traore

Bournemouth:

Might Not Play: Stanislas, Zabarnyi

Will Not Play: Brooks, Cook, Kelly

Wolves vs Bournemouth Lineups (Predicted)

Wolves (4-3-3): Sa; Ait-Nouri, Collins, Kilman, Semedo; Neves, Moutinho; Podence, Sarabia, Matheus Nunes; Cunha

Bournemouth (4-4-1-1): Neto; Zemura, Mepham, Senesi, Smith; Anthony, Lerma, Billing, Ouattara; Traore; Solanke

Wolves vs Bournemouth Analysis

Wolves’ Improvement in Attack

In stark contrast to their early season struggles in front of goal, Wolves have now scored in all of their matches following the World Cup break and Lopetegui’s appointment, except against the two Manchester sides. This is a result of the implementation of a more coherent and less reactive style of football. Wolves are now an entirely different proposition, particularly at home where they can control the ball for spells in addition to their well-known counterattacking prowess.

The issue for Wolves seemed to be that they were essentially a one-trick pony. They’d soak up pressure and counterattack into vacated spaces, but most of the league had grown wise to their danger on the counter and as such, they would approach the Midlands side with more emphasis upon keeping their shape at the back and grinding Wolves down. This is reflected in the goals conceded column which, while not particularly impressive, isn’t as high as you would expect for a team flirting with relegation.

Bournemouth’s Ability to Counter

We have seen a major improvement from Bournemouth in this respect over the last few games. This has largely coincided with Bournemouth opting to play without target man Kieffer Moore who has remained firmly planted on the bench for the last two games. That may seem like a rather harsh comment, but the fact remains that Moore isn’t a good fit for a team whose best chance of survival is to operate with a counterattacking setup and rapid transitions.

New record signing Hamed Traore from Sassuolo is still in the process of integrating with his new teammates, but this signing in itself is a recognition of the need to change their attacking approach. Bournemouth have failed to score in their last five away matches in all competitions, and it was clear that a change of direction was required. It may take a few games for their new tactical approach to click, but their improvement against Newcastle was notable.

Our Prediction

Bournemouth have shown improvement over an admittedly small sample size of games, but Wolves have been in consistently good form lately with their outlier being a 3-0 defeat away to Manchester City. Wolves should be able to remain disciplined enough here to limit Bournemouth’s forays forward on the counter while imposing their brand of football on a Bournemouth side that has a tendency to be too passive.

Wolves 2-0 Bournemouth

Wolves vs Bournemouth Betting Tip – Wolves Odds: