Chelsea – Wolves : Preview & Prediction
The Graham Potter era at Chelsea is well underway after following up their agonizing 2-1 Premier League (PL) victory over Crystal Palace with a much more comfortable 3-0 win over AC Milan in the Champions League in midweek. It wasn’t all good news, however, with the manager likely to be concerned about the injury to defender and goalscorer against Milan, Wesley Fofana.
That win was the perfect way to celebrate Potter’s debut at Stamford Bridge in charge of the Blues and he has another chance to impress the fans against eighteenth-placed Wolverhampton Wanderers. This is a team Chelsea have struggled against recently (E3, P1), but have never lost to in the PL (G5, E3), and the home fans will be hoping for a win here to move at least a few hours ahead of their manager’s previous team, Brighton, who are in fourth place in the table.
Wolves come into this fixture in turbulence after sacking manager Bruno Lage following their 2-0 defeat to West Ham United (October 1), so they will not be approaching this trip to the capital with much enthusiasm. They have been linked with several new coaches, with Sevilla’s Julen Lopetegui emerging as the favorite to take over, but for now Steve Davis and James Collins must try to guide them to a first win since early September (P2).
The interim coaches can take comfort from the fact that the last time the offensively weak Wolves scored more than once in an away league game was here in May (E 2-2), but their big problems in that condition should not be forgotten. With no away wins in the PL since March (E2, P6), the Wolves have struggled to dominate an away game, and two of those defeats came after they opened the scoring in the first ten minutes.
Players to watch: Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has scored in Chelsea’s last two games, on each occasion scoring the second goal of the game between the 35th and 60th minute. Meanwhile, Daniel Podence has been the only Wolves player to open the scoring away from home this season, with his last three PL goals coming before halftime.
Standout Fact: Just two (25%) of Wolves games this campaign have seen both teams score, one of the lowest numbers in the league.
Chelsea – Wolves : Betting Tips
Chelsea – Win Odds: 1.35
