Wolves vs Aston Villa Prediction: Team News and Lineups Preview

Ahead of the weekend, here’s Tom Winch’s prediction, team news, lineups, and fixtures preview for Wolves vs Aston Villa. Unai Emery’s side are favourites, but their away record has been far from convincing.

Vitor Pereira’s men are in a Premier League relegation scrap. They must earn points at home if they want to survive the drop. The hosts have had a tricky run of fixtures. Villa were rather disappointing last weekend in their draw with West Ham. It’s a clash where both should be looking to earn maximum points.

Wolves vs Aston Villa Prediction: Goals The Way To Go

England, Premier League, Saturday, February 1st, 17:30 (UK)

Wolves have endured a tricky campaign. They have been a shambles defensively, conceding 52 times in 23 outings. Their xGA figure is 39.0, a significant underperformance. Vitor Pereira’s side has managed three shutouts and has lost four consecutive Premier League matches. They can and will score goals. Despite sitting in 17th, Wolves have scored more than seven sides in the bottom half.

Unai Emery has performed wonders at Villa. A highly respectable fourth-place finish last term earned them Champions League football. Villa are perhaps worse off this term regarding their position in the table. Given the extra curriculum and the intensity, it was likely.

I’m not keen on backing a side who’ve earned four wins in 23 matches. The home side boasts a -0.55xGD/90 at Molineux. West Ham and the three Premier League newcomers have a worse figure. Keeping Matheus Cunha at the club is vital. The Brazilian has 14 goal contributions this term. 

I don’t doubt Wolves’ ability to score in this clash. Forest and Arsenal have come here recently and left with a clean sheet and maximum points. The pair are the second and third-best defensive teams in the division. Pereira’s side have scored in nine of their 11 matches here, and they’ll be confident they can breach a depleted Villa defence.

A lowly 14 of Villa’s 37 points have arrived away from Villa Park. Emery’s men have a -0.51xGD/90 on the road. Four sides have a worse figure. Their only away clean sheet came at Goodison Park. Everton are the second-lowest scorers in the league. With Tyrone Mings and Pau Torres both unavailable, the likelihood of Villa keeping Wolves at bay is slim.

There’s plenty of firepower amongst both teams. Matheus Cunha is Wolves’ biggest threat. The 25-year-old is a talent. Jorgen Strand Larsen has scored seven times in his debut season. Rayan Ait-Nouri is another exciting individual. The Algerian has scored three goals and registered five assists this term. 

Unai Emery has several attacking players available. Ollie Watkins is in decent form. Villa’s talisman has 15 goal contributions. Morgan Rogers can cause damage on his day. He’s one to keep your eye on. Leon Bailey hasn’t impressed this term but could have an enjoyable afternoon against a struggling defence. Donyell Malen is a new addition at Villa. The Dutchman signed from Dortmund. Malen scored 13 Bundesliga goals in 23/24.

Backing goals looks like the best bet. Both defences are weak, and clean sheets have been hard to come by this term. The reverse fixture saw four goals. This clash last term ended 1-1, but it saw a total of 3.29xG.

• Wolves vs Aston Villa Prediction: Over 2.75 Goals (TRACKED BET)
• Best Odds: 1.88
• Bookmaker: bet365
• Stake: 5/10 (TRACKED BET)

Wolves vs Aston Villa Prediction odds via bet365 as at 17:00, January 29th, 2024. Odds may now differ.

Wolves vs Aston Villa Injuries, Team News and Possible Lineups Prediction: Villa Light In Central Defence

Vitor Pereira will be without Joao Gomes this weekend. The Brazilian was shown a red card in Wolves’ defeat against Arsenal. Boubacar Traore is unavailable until the middle of February. Enso Gonzalez, Leon Chiwome, Sasa Kalajdzic and Yerson Mosquera will all miss the Saturday evening encounter.

Amadou Onana picked up an injury in Aston Villa’s 2-2 draw at the Emirates. The Belgian will not play here. Pau Torres and Ross Barkley have foot and calf injuries, respectively. The pair will not feature. Tyrone Mings looked distraught when he pulled up last weekend. It’s another major setback for the English defender. Villa are short for numbers in central defence.

Wolves possible starting lineup:
Sa; Doherty, Bueno, Agbadou, Nouri, Doyle, Andre, Semedo, Hwang, Cunha, Larsen

Aston Villa possible starting lineup:
Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Digne, Maatsen, Tielemans, Kamara, Ramsey, Rogers, McGinn, Watkins

Match OPTA Stats

• Having lost three of their first four Premier League home games against Aston Villa (D1), Wolves have now  lost just one of their last five against them at Molineux (W3 D1). 
• Aston Villa won the reverse fixture 3-1 at Villa Park – they’ve not done the league double over Wolves since  the 2003-04 campaign. 
• Wolves picked up seven points in their first three Premier League games under Vitor Pereira (W2 D1) but  have since lost four in a row. They’ve already lost five consecutively once this season, under previous  manager Gary O’Neil – the only team to have separate runs of 5+ defeats in a row under different  managers in a season and survive relegation was West Ham in 2006-07 (Alan Pardew & Alan Curbishley). 
• Aston Villa are yet to lose a Premier League match under Unai Emery against a side starting the day in the  drop zone (W13 D5), while overall Emery has lost just one out of 29 games against sides in 18th, 19th or  20th, losing 3-2 to Southampton with Arsenal in December 2018. 

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