Wolves are back in action this weekend as they travel to Newcastle United in the Premier League.
Wolves are fresh from securing their place in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup on Wednesday night as Mario Lemina’s goal in the third minute was enough to see them past Brighton.
Gary O’Neil’s attention now turns back to the Premier League where the Wanderers are poised to make a charge towards Europe.
Currently in ninth place, one point adrift of seventh-place Brighton, the Molineux side will be looking to strengthen their chances of qualifying for the Europa Conference League while pulling clear of Newcastle United.
The Magpies find themselves one point and one place behind the Old Gold in 10th but are winless at St James Park in their last four matches.
Despite the unrelenting levels of joy circulating Wolverhampton, it isn’t all positive news for O’Neil as Hwang Hee-Chan joined Matheus Cunha on the injury table after picking up a hamstring injury on Wednesday night.
The South Korean started the match but was forced off in the first half, giving the Wolves boss a decision to make ahead of this clash.
Considering the likes of Pedro Neto and Pablo Sarabia dropped to the bench, perhaps it is a relatively simple one.
Here’s our predicted lineup for the match…
Wolves predicted XI v Newcastle United
O’Neil may have rotated his team heavily for the visit of the Seagulls, although one man who kept his place in the side was Jose Sa. The Portuguese shot-stopper has been ever-present throughout this season and will be against Newcastle.
Craig Dawson dropped out of the side in midweek to give Santiago Bueno an opportunity and while he didn’t put a foot wrong, the 33-year-old will return to the back three to form his usual partnership with Max Kilman and Toti Gomes.
Matt Doherty had arguably his best game in a Wolves shirt since returning in the summer, but it’s just unfortunate that he has Nelson Semedo to compete with at right wing-back. The 30-year-old should return on Saturday with Rayan Ait-Nouri keeping his place on the other flank.
Midfield poses O’Neil’s biggest dilemma as he has to choose between Mario Lemina, Joao Gomes and Tommy Doyle.
Despite starting against Brighton, the “quality” Doyle could drop to the bench with Lemina partnering the incredible Gomes.
That leaves a front three, likely to consist of Jean Ricner-Bellegarde on the left, Pablo Sarabia on the right and Pedro Neto as a striker.
In the absence of Hwang and Cunha, O’Neil has hinted at playing Neto as a striker while £4m man Sarabia will look to continue his fine run of form.
Wolves predicted lineup (3-4-3): Sa; Semedo, Toti, Dawson, Kilman; Semedo, Lemina, Gomes, Ait-Nouri; Sarabia, Bellegarde, Neto