Wolves are into the fifth round of the FA Cup and will be playing Bournemouth next.
Wolves learned they’d be playing Bournemouth when the draw was made last night during BBC’s The One Show.
It is a potentially tricky tie, especially with the game being at the Vitality Stadium.
Wolves lost the last meeting between the two sides at Molineux 4-2, with Justin Kluivert scoring a hat-trick of penalties.
Bournemouth have won three of the last four meetings and Wolves will feel they are due a win.
The performance against Blackburn Rovers in the fourth round was good and one would imagine Vitor Pereira will look to go strong again against the Cherries.
And the Wolves manager has already confirmed one player will be starting the game.
Vitor Pereira says Sam Johnstone will start against Bournemouth
On Sunday, Sam Johnstone started for Wolves with Jose Sa dropping out of the matchday squad altogether.
Sa did not play against Bristol City either.
Johnstone gave a pretty good performance overall against Blackburn.
Aside from getting caught in no man’s land for the Blackburn goal that was ruled out due to offside, the Englishman was solid in everything he did.
He made some decent saves in the game – four in total – and commanded his area well.
And he even almost supplied an assist for Joao Gomes with a long ball forward.
After the game, Pereira praised Johnstone and even went as far as to confirm his starting spot against Bournemouth.
He said (via E&S): “I’m very happy with him.
“In two games, for me he’s played at a high level and it means I am confident for the future.
“He gave me the confidence that I need to have if I need him.
“It’s not easy, after a long time without playing, to come to this pitch and he did very well in my opinion.
“If he’s playing and giving me confidence, why not (start at Bournemouth)?
“He will play the next round, for sure, because he gave me this confidence.”
Johnstone deserves Bournemouth start
We know that Pereira can be fairly ruthless, and he would probably have no qualms about starting Jose Sa in the FA Cup if he wanted to.
But Pereira seems really happy with Johnstone and has committed early to naming him as a starter for Bournemouth.
And he would deserve to start the game, because he was solid against Blackburn.
| Sam Johnstone vs Blackburn |
| Minutes played – 90 |
| Saves – 4 |
| Saves from shots inside the box – 3 |
| Touches – 40 |
| Pass completion – 13/27 (48%) |
Arguably, it was Johnstone’s best performance in a Wolves shirt to date.
Apart from that one moment on the goal that got ruled out, it was a really confident display from the £10 million signing (BBC Sport) and he rightly came in for praise from Pereira.
It hasn’t been a particularly good time for Johnstone since he came to the club. Some Wolves fans feel Johnstone was a bit of a pointless signing in the first place, and he’s struggled for consistency since arriving.
But there is certainly potential for him to help Wolves enjoy a strong run in the FA Cup.