Wolves and Crystal Palace have a date in the Premier League on match day 10 at the Molineux
The Eagles are looking to reach great heights in the elite division after numerous seasons as one of the mid-table teams. On the other hand, the home side are yet to get going this term as compared to last season and they will be hoping they can get it done.
As of the time of writing, Wolves are bottom of the log with just a point after six games, while Palace are 18th after drawing three of their opening six games of the season. The two sides are winless at the moment.
During the transfer window, Wolves made some personnel changes. Rodrigo Gomes arrived from Braga, André from Fluminense, Sam Johnstone from Crystal Palace, Pedro Lima from Sport Recife, Tommy Doyle from Manchester City, and Jørgen Strand Larsen arrived on a loan deal from Celta de Vigo. Meanwhile, Max Kilman made a big-money move to West Ham United as well as Pedro Neto who left for Chelsea, and Daniel Podence moved to Saudi Arabia.
Gary O’Neill has done a good job at Wolves and the club’s management must be pleased with their output so far. Based on that, he got a new deal with the club before the start of the season.
Chairman Jeff Shi said: “I think Gary is a key member of the team, maybe even the most important member, so we are very happy to have him here for the long term. The team together – me, Gary, [sporting director] Matt Hobbs, and all the staff – we are working very closely to prepare for the new season. Gary is key and we are happy to have a very young, talented, capable, and outstanding manager here,” Shi said.
However, six games into the new season, they have struggled to a great length with just a point to their name and five defeats. The owners will not be pleased with what they have seen so far, but the lack of quality players in attack has left them in a tight corner weeks into the new season. Although they had a couple of surprising results last season including a famous home win over Manchester City, things look very thin for them right now and a good run will be needed to avoid a relegation dogfight.
On the other hand, Crystal Palace manager Oliver Glasner was handed the job in the second half of the previous season and the Europa League winner worked his magic to ensure the side beat the drop and secure their top-flight status for another season. The Eagles defeated Manchester United, Aston Villa, Newcastle, West Ham United and Liverpool under the Austrian. Palace finished 10th in the 2023-24 Premier League season, winning six and drawing one of their last seven games of the season under Glasner, who replaced Roy Hodgson in February.
Following those strides, everyone looked forward to what they will achieve in the Premier League this season, but they have been disappointing so far.
Palace lost star forward Michael Olise, Jordan Ayew, Joachim Andersen, goalkeeper Sam Johnstone, and Odsonne Édouard in the summer transfer window. Other departures include the following players who were released by the club at the end of the season; James Tomkins, Jairo Riedewald and Nathan Ferguson.
In terms of the new signings, the London club made a couple of signings. Defender Chadi Riad from Real Betis for €15m, Eddie Nketiah (Arsenal), Maxence Lacroix (Wolfsburg), and Ismaïla Sarr (Marseille) while Daichi Kamada arrived on a free transfer. The team also went ahead to promote David Ozoh to the first team ahead of the new season, while Trevoh Chalobah came in on loan from Chelsea on deadline day.
Just like Wolves, they are without a win after six games in the Premier League this season. They have drawn three games and lost the remaining three – not the start many of their fans expected after the way they finished the season last term.
In terms of the head-to-head, Wolves and Crystal Palace have played 26 games since 2005. Among them, Wolves won 9 games, Crystal Palace have won 12, and the remaining 5 games of their past meetings have ended as a draw.
Match tickets
This match at Molineux Stadium in Wolverhampton kicks off on Saturday 2nd November 2024, at 18:30 UK time.
The 31,750-capacity stadium is the place to be for this clash between two struggling sides.
Getting Wolves v Crystal Palace tickets could take a lot of work given the standard of this game. Hence, you are advised to search ticket reselling sites should they be expectedly sold out on each club’s channels.
Team news
Line-ups
Wolves do have several players out injured like Boubacar Traore (knee), Yerson Mosquera (knee), Leon Chiwome, and a host of others. Others with minor injuries are all expected to make a return to the team. However, the manager will be banking on the players he has at the moment to help his side get on a winning run.
Wolves XI: Johnstone; Semedo, Bueno, Toti, Ait-Nouri; Andre, Cunha, Lemina, Gomes, Bellegarde; Larsen.
Crystal also have a couple of players missing due to injuries and lack of match fitness on their roster. Regardless, Glasner should be able to call upon a strong team for this trip to Wolves. Eberechi Eze is expected to play a part in the attack, while the likes of Mateta and Nketiah will contribute their own quota as well.
Crystal Palace XI: Henderson, Lacroix, Guehi, Lerma, Munoz, Wharton, Kamada, Mitchell, Nketiah, Eze, Mateta
Prediction
Wolves will need to wake up and games like this – a relegation six-pointer – can be the perfect occasion to get them going.
On the other hand, Crystal Palace became a different side towards the end of last season after Glasner became the club’s new manager. They racked up some impressive performances that time, but the same cannot be said of their performance in the league this season.
The last time Palace visited Wolves, they won 3-1. They won both Premier League fixtures last season. So, there is much to be done for Wolves if they want revenge.
Wolves 2-2 Crystal Palace