Wolves v Chelsea – Preview, Predictions, and Best Bets

Wolves face Chelsea The hosts have lost eight of their last 11 fixtures in the league whilst the Blues have only been beaten in two of their last 16. Wolves have won the last three clashes between these sides. 

Wolves Form

After four wins in six at one-point last season, Wolves lost seven of their final 10 matches of last season. Their only win in that streak was 2-1 at home to Luton. A 5-1 defeat at Man City and a 3-1 home loss to Crystal Palace followed.

On the final day, they lost 2-0 at Liverpool with ten men. This campaign began with a 2-0 loss at Arsenal. Wolves produced just 0.47 Expected Goals and allowed 18 shots to the Gunners.

Wolves Team News

Coach Gary O’Neil has seen captain Max Kilman sold and may recall Craig Dawson to shore up the defence. Yerson Mosquera had a tough debut in defence and could lose out. Nelson Semedo remains suspended at right back.

Mario Lemina is available after an injury and is expected to start. Matheus Cunha is also tipped to return in the number nine role for this match. Young winger Enso Gonzalez is a doubt.

Wolves Motivation

Wolves won’t fear Chelsea and will believe they can take all three points from this match.

Gary O’Neil may play largely on the counter-attack but his side will attack and look to hurt a fragile Chelsea defence.

Chelsea Form

Chelsea lost their opening match 2-0 at home to Man City after creating a fair number of chances. That followed a poor preseason with lots of goals conceded and squad disruptions. New coach Enzo Maresca inherited a team with just one loss in the final 15 league matches.

The Blues won their final five EPL fixtures and the last 13 league matches saw them score two or more goals on 12 occasions. A 2-0 win over Tottenham preceded a 5-0 home win over West Ham and a 3-2 victory at Nottingham Forest. The final two matches of last term saw 2-1 wins vs Brighton and Bournemouth.

Chelsea Team News

Some regulars from last season Conor Gallagher and Thiago Silva have departed the club. Joao Felix has arrived this week and may make his second Chelsea debut from the bench. Pedro Neto is in line to start against his former club.

Reece James is suspended with Malo Gusto set to start. Romeo Lavia may drop to the bench to allow an extra attacker in Neto, with Christopher Nkunku moving to the number ten role. Raheem Sterling has been frozen out.

Chelsea Motivation

Enzo Maresca will be desperate for a win after losing last weekend. A draw is of little use to the coach or the club.

Expect Chelsea to try to dominate possession with their inverted fullback system.

Key Stats

Wolves have lost 8 of their last 11 EPL matches

Wolves have won their last 3 matches vs Chelsea

Chelsea have lost just 1 of their last 16 league matches

Chelsea have scored 2+ goals in 12 of their last 14 league matches

Chelsea’s Cole Palmer scored 27 goals last season

Verdict

The Blues are very hard to trust on the betting front. They should have too much firepower for a weak Wolves defence but there’s real risk in backing Chelsea right now.