With a full week to rest up and prepare for this one, I’m expecting a performance.
You can never dismiss the idea that a top side will just turn up and take you to the cleaners but I’ll be annoyed if that’s the case this time.
Arsenal have had a rough week and expended plenty of energy, which is to our advantage if Gary can extract the right response from the group.
The longer we stay in the game, the more uncomfortable it’s going to become for them so I hope Wolves come out ready to go the distance.
Arsenal
Villa did a number on the Gunners last week. It was a super performance from them and showed why Arsenal still aren’t quite at the Man City level, even if the league table suggests otherwise.
It’s unimaginative to say they need a number 9 but it’s true. In those clutch moments there’s no focal point to their attack. Shut them down out wide (easier said than done admittedly) and you restrict much of their effectiveness.
Arteta was taking some grief for moving Havertz out of that position for the Villa match after his recent good run, but having put him back there against Bayern in the week, the end result was the same – no goals in a crunch game.
Experience probably comes into it too. They’re a young side and however good many of their players are, not many of them have gone the distance in a big competition. That often makes the difference.
None of this is to say they’re not a highly formidable opponent. They exert a lot of control in games, have a couple of top class players in nearly every position and clearly know what they’re trying to do at all times.
They could still easily go on and win the title, but at the same time, it’s clear that a couple of additions would take them to a different level. I expect they’ll do that business in the summer and be right in there against next season.
This season, I think they’re going to finish second.
Wolves
I haven’t heard Gary’s update on the walking wounded but I assume he’ll be dealing from a similar deck to last weekend.
We could do with getting Ait-Nouri back because without him I think we’re lacking a ball carrier to prevent teams stepping onto us without the fear of being exposed with the space they leave in behind.
If we’ve got Cunha and Ait-Nouri and possibly even Hwang for some of the game, it changes the dynamic. The likes of Sarabia, Doyle and Doherty have done well for us this season but they’re very static players. We’ve been at our best when we’ve had more mobility in the XI.
Predictions
Well done to shrewdsimon, Aquilador, Marin wolf, Matt Cook, Steady Eddie and Pete Dunbar for all correctly predicting the 2-2 scoreline at the City Ground.
This is a tough one because I think Arsenal are feeling the pinch and it wouldn’t surprise me if Arteta rotated a few players to keep them fresh after a relatively short turnaround from Wednesday night.
They’ve got quality to come into the side but I just wonder if the pressure, recent results and a bit of uncertainty might tip it in our favour. I’ll say a draw, as I’m not quite bold enough to go all out – 1-1.
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Up The Wolves!
The questIon could be which Arsenal team will turn up? Is it the one that is devastated by their recent CL and PL loss, tired and drained, and vulnerable. Or one that is gunning to put things right and back on track and determined to slaughter whoever is in front of them — us!
But the question could also be which Wolves team will turn up? Such is our lack of consistency that this question is an important as the first.
More so in this game than most, the first goal will be crucial. If Wolves take the lead Arsenal may very well panic, but if they score first I don’t see any way back in this game.
Still very annoyed from a couple of years ago when Arsenal’s time wasting was taken to another level which would have made a relegation team very proud! At the final whistle you would have thought they won the Cup!
Cunha has made a big difference and Hwang will play a part and hopefully Ait-Nouri too so we are a bit stronger now.
Make no mistake Arsenal are very weary of this Wolves team, and the damage our team can inflict. They will very worried and deep down inside, just hoping to win by any score!
Look out for a lot more time wasting late in the game!!
Cunha ,Neto ,Semedo out .
10 outfield players to choose from .
It has all become rather laughable .
3-0 to the Arsenal is my prediction .
I sense a long evening. However bad Arsenal’s week has been they will come out needing a response to stay in the title race. City aren’t playing this weekend so the Gunners could go back to the top momentarily at least.
I just don’t think we’ve looked that good lately, having been hampered by injuries. A good first half against West Ham but we lost, and a decent showing at Forest, even if we were hanging on at times.
It was only really because of Cunha’s brilliance last week that we managed to get a point at Forest. He will be pivotal and let’s hope we can get him into the game.
Arsenal haven’t become a bad team overnight, far from it and I think we could be made to pay for their last couple of results. Let’s just hope we can give them a game and push them all the way but I expect them to get the job done.
Villa and midweek defeat have made it a tough game for us
Hope Ait Nouri and Hwang share left wing duty’s if fit so that we can get back to Mario and Gomes on midfield
Always raise our game and under lights should be a good game
Sorry but can’t see us gettinf anything out of Arsenal – but would love to be proved wrong.
The next 2 home matches are winnable. After all we have been through and the hand GO’N has been dealt 50pts would represent an excellent season.
Then it is upto Fosun to give him the replacements he needs for a genuine Europe push.
A real striker perhaps?
With the return of Hwang last week, we upped our game and Cunha was just magical. If those boys can do their stuff again, l feel they could be there for the taking, irrespective of their league position.
Let’s hope the lads can give us a Saturday evening to savour.
3 go out in Europe in the week (well 4 if you want to talk West Ham ) and we face one of them wounded animals at WV1 the next game
Bring them on …..they apparently bottled the run in last year and the accusations will no doubt be flying around again if we get a result Saturday evening and on paper I fear the worst …..they are not suddenly crap overnight after 2 setbacks
However on our day are we as good as that Brummie lot who spanked them last Saturday at going forward ?
Is their back 2,who have been so good all season starting to doubt themselves?
Is Saka knackered ?……and will they all be mentally drained after the midweek disaster?
Possibly
COYW
This could well be the ideal time (if there is any) to be playing the Gooners.
They are looking decidedly shaky and it’s great to see that arrogant, blind when it suits him and eagle eyed when it doesn’t, Arteta, having to eat a bit of humble pie recently.
There are two managers who REALLY annoy me. Arteta for constantly ignoring the technical area and being generally… well.. annoying, and Pep Guardiola for his VERY annoying spitting of little white gobbets of sputum every minute.
But I digress.
I would just love to see us beat them tomorrow.
Let’s conjure up the ghosts of Waggy, The Doog, Frankie Munro and the rest, and relive that snowy afternoon, November 20th 1971 if I remember it correctly. Me in the enclosure cheering them on as we tonked them 5-1.
Wolves ay we!!!!!!!!
Remember hitch hiking from London for that game got past the Watford gap and thought by the lord Harry it’s cold up here ,as a mate and I looked for wind cover in the back of a ute ,in need of thermal gear instead of my Jean jacket
Well the way I see is if AV and Bayern Munich can beat Arsenal so can Wolves not a problem play are best football for ninety minutes we will win.
Having been dumped out of the Champions League, I think Arsenal are going to come out fighting – especially with City not playing. Realistically, they just have too much firepower for us. But, with a family stuffed full of Gooners, I would love nothing more than for us to spring a surprise and get a result. UTW
Given our ever-worsening injury record, it will be incredible of we’re remotely competitive tomorrow. I just hope that it’s not embarrassing.
just heard Semedo and Cunha unlikely to start
RAN/Hwang could do a 1/2 so its back to square 1
might get a bit of luck ,
Going for a win but having heard thar Cuhnas out and Nelson too ….Well itsjust the heart talkng
Word of caution people !
I have had Sky Sports News on (albeit with the sound down) all afternoon and I am not entirely convinced that the Wolves team will be participating.
I’m thinking it might just be Arsenal v Arsenal now.
Hmmm…
I expect VAR will come to Arsenal’s rescue and keep them in the title race.
I just caught up on the injury news .. and it’s dreadful..
No Cunha, Semedo or Dawson.. and no news of Bellegarde..
and still unsure about getting many minutes out of Hwang and Ait Nouri .. what a mess..
Even with the highest optimism in the world it isn’t going to fill me with much hope tomorrow…
As much as I detest Arteta it will pain me even more to see his smug , swarthy face wittering on about his prospective title winning goooners..
I’ll be absolutely delighted with a lucky draw tomorrow… not expecting one though ..
Before O’neils press conference I was relatively confident we’d get something out of this….not anymore.
Arsenal can’t lose this game if they still want to be in contention and I don’t think they will….just hope it’s not a cricket score!
With the caveat that we often raise our game against “the BIG” teams, and many of us have written the team off before some matches, only to end up pleasantly shocked, I just can’t see us getting anything from Saturday’s game.
My heart says we will lose. My head says that a game against Arsenal is probably one of the best to have so many players out, as we were unlikely to get a positive result anyway.
Usually optimistic, with the presser revealing GON has only 10 first teamers to pick from, the best that can be said is some younger players will get a chance to play.
You could put a strong nucleus of a team together with our injuries.
Dawson, out for the rest of the season, Bellegarde, Neto, Cunha, and Semedo not in the squad, Ait-Nouri only featuring on the bench, and Hwang maybe fit for 45 minutes.
It’s grim.
Yes, we’ve been unlucky with injuries, but that is in part a result of too small a squad being overstretched, nearing the end of the season.
Let’s hope Jeff will fix it in the upcoming transfer window.
Only 1 or at the most, 2 first team departures and a number of prudent, value for money, bang for buck quality additions please.
We’re an increasingly attractive proposition for prospective up and coming players and experienced Premier league players alike. Thanks to the gaffer and his team.
All that remains is to steer us through the last half dozen games, try to squeeze as many points and good performances out as possible, give chances to some of the squad players, have no more serious injuries, then kick back and enjoy the Euros, looking forward to next season.
UTW
Wise words Muttleigh.
Let’s hope our predictions are wrong, but I just can’t see us getting anything from this game given the injuries.
UTW!
I’m not brave enough to make such a positive prediction for this one, but there’s a lot of positivity in the predictions made so far, and I can see why. The Gunners have started to look wobbly in the last few games finally, and we are starting to get a few key players back. Boy did Cunha look sharp last week !!
My gunners mate is fearing this match
But if the injury reports above are correct then I fear it too
Even with the Mol rocking this could be a long evening
Hope we have enough left to deal with Seasiders on Wednesday
Having heard the latest injury news I’m beginning to fear the worst.
It could be a difficult evening.
So it’s:
Sa
Doc, kilman, S.Bueno, Toti, H.Bueno
Gomes, Doyle, Lemina, Traore
Sarabia
+Whang, Ait Nouri bench
Arse choking again
Without our best boys this is a bridge too far I think.
The Gooners will now be pulling all the stops out to win the league, now there’s nothing else for them in the trophy cabinet.
They’ll win by a brace I fear.
But, all the same… COYW!!
Was going with 3-1 to Arsenal but with Semedo and Cunha out goibg 5-0.
A club in turmoil and a manager who will be at West Ham for the 24/25 campaign. Time to put pressure on Fosun Not going tomorrow was watching on Sky but now I am going out instead.
Fosun need to show me their committment before they get mine for next season. It is no longer enjoyable.
Hard to see any sort of positive outcome from this one. Our own goal scoring prowess is pretty weak at the best of times and it’s now at its weakest given our injury list.
Meanwhile, Arsenal are going well and so I expect them to continue in the same vein here.
Sorry again y’all, but I can’t see us being successful either going forward or defending.
Arsenal do love to put 5 past us ,they’ll be fired up and we’ll be parking the bus, if your going to the game take your boots you’ve got a good chance of playing
I was a little bit optimistic about Saturday with some players returning and Arsenal possibly on a down but then I heard O’Neils press conference!!! Bloody hell I suspect they are not major injuries and if really necessary I suspect Cunha and Semedo would play if we realistically had something to play
for, no need to risk a long term injury
Pressure is all on Arsenal. We are on the beach. Let’s see how they handle it. It’s all gone a bit wibbly wobbly in North London. Doesn’t mean anything to us . I am just going to have a few beers and see what unfolds. You only have to look at the wobble going on at the top of the Championship and inexplicable results to know football is a ‘funny old game’. We will see. Tracey the Basking Sharks best mate Gerald reckons this will be a draw. I will go 1-1.
With us wipe out with injuries and others playing on with slight injuries this is just the game the Gooners would have wanted to get back to winning ways.
If we’re down to the walking wounded and the kids that Gon saids he has to pick from then I fear the worst.
Unless GON the magnificent conjures up another miracle performance.
Before the announcement that we have some more injured players, I was thinking of a 1-0 loss. However, now it seems a lot worse. Maybe GON is trying to bluff the opposing manager to play his youngsters and then we come out with the full team and hammer them. Or maybe that is just my wishful thinking. Bad loss, I’m afraid.
With both cunha and semedo now out along with the rest we’ve got no hope. Just hope it’s not a rout
Wolves can match any team with our midfield trio.
The defense is competent and will play out of their skins.
The greatest challenge, obviously, is to find those incisive forward passes
to any advanced player who can become a hero.
So, I am not writing off today’s team .
Our twelfth player, the great Molineux crowd , will have a key role in this
potentially exciting and supportive evening game.
utw.
UTW
Injuries have really cruelled the back end of the season – and today might get very cruel.
Score didn’t register…
.
.
Only an absolute idiot or a raving optimist would back us to win this.
Stand down the big guns Gary and save them for the battles to come later in the week.
Raving optimist is fine by me, Steve. Fraser to score.
I’d like to see a gutsy, disciplined performance, whatever the result. I’m hoping will be their flaky “best”.
We’ll be smashed…
Without the injured payers I can only see us struggling, but you never know with this game, hopefully.
2-1 to Arsenal, I would think…
Usually live in hope but have no hope today given the injury list. Can only hope Arsenal are down after their recent results and our kids come out all guns blazing.
C’mon you Wolf cubs. It’s Arsenal for supper.
A brace from Fraser and a late, late penalty from Hwang.
Just seen the Citeh Grealish handball. That’s a penalty. VAR ? Fuck all. Wait till the same thing happens in the Wolves wall later. Fuckin VAR will spend 8 minutes analysing it. And give Arsenal a penalty. You heard it here first.
First half Lads are giving a good account of themselves unlucky to be 1-0 down ,but a Miss hit goal saves VAR getting involved for the arse
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