Wolves will be looking to bounce back from their defeat against Arsenal when they host rivals Aston Villa on Saturday evening.
Wolves’ 1-0 loss to Arsenal was the fourth Premier League game they’d lost on the bounce, scoring just once in that run and conceding 10 goals.
It’s a result that saw Vitor Pereira’s men drop into the relegation zone after Leicester City clinched a surprise 2-1 victory over Tottenham.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 18 |  WolvesWolves | 23 | 4 | 4 | 15 | 32 | 52 | -20 | 16 |
Pereira has a huge job on his hands to keep the Old Gold in the top flight and for their upcoming clash with Aston Villa he will be without star midfielder Joao Gomes, who was sent off against Arsenal for a reckless challenge.
Now, in the build-up to their derby showdown against Villa, the officials have been named for the match.
Andy Madley will referee Wolves clash against Aston Villa
Following the drama that unfolded in Wolves’ last match, supporters will be hoping for less controversial decisions this weekend in a big face-off.
It’s a fixture with huge stakes, as while Pereira’s side are aiming to escape the bottom three, Villa are chasing down a European place.
The man who will take charge of this clash is experienced official Andy Madley, who has refereed more Wolves games than any other club in his career – 24 (joint with Brighton).
In those matches, the Wanderers have tasted just six wins and lost 12 times with the other six games ending in draws.
Unsurprisingly, at least a couple of those games have seen Madley make some controversial decisions, including in an FA Cup third-round tie in 2023.
- READ MORE: Dave Edwards wowed by ‘brilliant’ Wolves talent who was Vitor Pereira’s ‘best player’ vs Arsenal
Andy Madley wrongly disallowed Toti Gomes’ goal vs Liverpool – Julen Lopetegui wasn’t happy
Wolves clashed against Liverpool in an FA Cup third-round tie two years ago. The fixture ended in an entertaining 2-2 draw but the visitors came away from Anfield with a bitter taste left in their mouth.
Toti Gomes felt he had scored the winning goal with 10 minutes remaining only to see his celebrations cut short by an offside flag.
VAR reviewed the decision and opted against overturning it, leaving Wolves manager at the time Julen Lopetegui frustrated by the call.
This was because footage on Wolves’ ‘tactical camera’ proved Toti’s goal should have stood, with Lopetegui voicing his anger towards Madley in a conversation at full-time.
“He tried to explain it to me but it was very clear,” the Spaniard said via Birmingham Live. “More or less I showed him that we think this goal was valid. Today we are unlucky with the decision and unlucky because we had a lot of chances to win this match.
“I am a little disappointed. In one way I am proud of the players, they deserved more today. Against a fantastic team we created a lot of chances and didn’t concede a lot of chances. It was a pity because we scored a third goal.
“I have seen it, I have to accept, but I’m sorry it’s not offside. We can’t do anything now. We have talked with the referee. He was very polite. It was a pity because today we have VAR. I have seen replays. He was polite to hear us. They can have a mistake, I have a mistake every day.”
Lopetegui would have felt even more hard done by as Liverpool secured a 1-0 victory in the replay thanks to a first-half strike from Harvey Elliott.