Wolves travel to Newcastle United in the Premier League today aiming to continue their charge towards Europe.
Fresh from securing their place in the FA Cup quarter-finals with a 1-0 victory over Brighton, Gary O’Neil’s men will be full of confidence as they travel up to St James’ Park.
The Old Gold are in ninth position in the table and one point adrift of the seventh-place Seagulls.
Despite losing Matheus Cunha to injury in the 2-0 defeat to Brentford, Wolves have won three consecutive matches, including a dramatic 2-1 victory over Tottenham Hotspur.
It’s a brilliant time to be a Wanderers supporter as they challenge across multiple fronts to win a trophy or qualify for Europe.
And while they are in great form as of late, their trip to Newcastle promises to be a difficult test.
Wolves have only won one of their last nine meetings against the Magpies, a 2-1 success at Molineux in October 2021, while the last time they came away from the North East with all three points was in December 2018.
This tough run against the Toon was probably factored into Chris Sutton’s prediction ahead of the fixture.
Chris Sutton predicts Newcastle to beat Wolves
Newcastle’s form this term has been mixed and they’ve been unable to follow up with the consistency that they showed last season.
With Champions League football perhaps taking its toll on their squad, Eddie Howe’s side sit 15 points adrift of fourth place Aston Villa.
It’s a great time for Wolves to visit St James’ Park as the hosts haven’t won at home in four matches and have drawn against the likes of Luton Town and Bournemouth while losing against Nottingham Forest.
That said, Sutton has still predicted Newcastle to secure all three points this afternoon but did acknowledge the threat that O’Neil’s side carries on the counter.
“The more I see of Wolves, the more I can see why they are doing well,” He wrote in his column for BBC Sport. “They are well organised and carry a threat, although Matheus Cunha’s injury is a blow.
“Like Gary O’Neil’s side, Newcastle also reached the FA Cup quarter-finals in midweek – but they were a bit fortunate to get past my old team, Blackburn, on penalties, and their display underlined how they are not the force they were last season.”
“The more I think about it, the more I think Wolves will nick this but I am actually going to keep backing Newcastle, because the law of averages means they are going to win at St James’ Park again sooner or later.”
Wolves can continue strong form at Newcastle
After a winless run of four matches, the pressure is on Newcastle to put in a strong performance at home, however, they have crumbled in front of their expectant crowd in recent weeks and that can happen again this afternoon.
O’Neil will set up to hit the hosts on the counter with the likes of Pedro Neto and Pablo Sarabia flourishing in transition.
This is where the visitors can seriously hurt a Newcastle side who will be expected to dominate possession and conjure up a repeat of what they did against Tottenham last month.
The hosts also have players who can cause real damage, including Anthony Gordon and Alexander Isak, but this feels like a game that will suit Wolves down to the ground as they aim to prove Sutton wrong.