Wolves vs Crystal Palace verdict, predicted score, key stats and suggested bets
Wolverhampton Wanderers celebrate goal
Wolverhampton have a chance to effectively seal their Premier League survival when they welcome Crystal Palace to Molineux on Tuesday evening.
Date, KO time and TV coverage
Premier League, Tuesday, April 25, Kick-off 7:30pm, live on BT Sport 3.
Predicted score
Suggested bets
Key stats
Wolves have made big improvements under Julien Lopetegui and a third successive home win would put an end to any lingering relegation fears.
The home side have beaten the last five visiting teams that sit above them in the table, keeping a clean sheet in all five of those matches.
Crystal Palace are undefeated since Roy Hodgson's return, winning three and drawing one of his four matches in charge.
Palace have struggled to score in the first half of games, with eight of their nine goals under Hodgson coming after the break.
Team news
Chiquinho (knee) and Sasa Kalajdzic (knee) are unavailable for Wolves as they continue their recovery from season-ending injuries. Francisco Tavares Oliveira (knee) is also a long-term absentee.
Boubacar Traore will face a late fitness test to prove he's ready, while Mario Lemina will also be assessed after picking up an injury in the defeat to Leicester.
Wilfried Zaha (hip/groin) is still unavailable for Crystal Palace. He could make a return this month, but Tuesday may come too soon. Nathaniel Clyne (knee) and Nathan Ferguson (muscle tear) are definitely out.
Verdict
Wolves will be disappointed at the nature of their weekend defeat to Leicester City. Matheus Cunha gave them a 13th-minute lead, but the hosts were level by half-time due to sloppy defending.
Lopetegui's men controlled the majority of possession but weren't able to trouble Leicester often enough. Their 16 shots at goal were worth a combined xG of 0.90, which reflects their inability to get into dangerous positions.
Visitors Crystal Palace dropped their first points under returning boss Roy Hodgson on Saturday. They were held 0-0 by visitors Everton, despite the Toffees playing the final 10 minutes with 10 men.
Despite Palace controlling the majority of possession, they produced no goalscoring chances of note in a dull encounter that deserved to finish 0-0. Palace may just be regressing from their all-action new manager bounce.
Palace can only be applauded for the results they have achieved in recent weeks. After all, the name of the game is putting points on the board and retaining their Premier League status, which they look like doing.
From a betting point of view, there are metrics that make you wonder if the initial boost given by Hodgson's arrival is not something they'll be able to keep up. Palace have outperformed their xG by a comfortable margin in their last four matches.
Against Leicester and Leeds, Palace took aim 47 times, scoring seven goals and winning both matches. When you break down the quality of chances they had against Leicester, a third were from outside the box.
It wasn't until Jean-Phillipe Mateta's late winner that Palace fashioned a clear sight of goal inside the 18-yard box.
As impressive as the Leeds result was, Palace were a team in the right place at the right time. Leeds' collapse has been remarkable and any Premier League side would have put them to the sword that day.
Wolves are a far more organised bunch. Despite allowing their visitors more shots at goal than before Lopetegui, they are giving up considerably fewer big chances than earlier in the season at home.
We can expect the home side to control possession throughout the game. Palace allowed Southampton 59% of the ball at St Mary's and picked their moments, but Wolves should be more rigid than their previous opponents.
Palace have been held to one or fewer goals on 11 occasions on their travels, making it hard to pick up all three points. Wilfried Zaha's absence is usually a big factor in Palace losing and we could see a return to form here with the lack of an out ball.
