Key events
I know O’Neil has gone 3-5-2 to restrict space for City, but I wonder if a tight defensive block might also be a good way to counteract the threat of Erling Haaland, one man able to mark, one to mark the space and the other to troubleshoot. If Wolves keep a low block, Haaland will have to come short to get on the ball, and that is far from his best asset.
A potential template for Wolves might be Newcastle, whose muscular, enterprising style regularly causes City grief. Of course, Newcastle have better players, but their ability to make every contest physical is one that Wolves can imitate.
Guardiola says that Walker came back from the break injured, so hasn’t travelled. But he’s glad to play on Sunday, as it means his players, the Brazilians in particular, have had an extra day to get ready, which is why Savinho starts.
Where is the game? Wolves will look to bottle up the middle of the pitch, forcing City to go around rather than through them; I imagine that’s why Guardiola has picked wingers not wide attackers – for that reason, I wonder if Doku and Savio will play on their natural sides. Otherwise, the home side’s front two might also pose a threat – Cunha looks a potentially taxing match-up for Stones, while Strand Larsen is a threat in behind, all the more so given the lack of pace in the centre of City’s back four.
Talking of City, they welcome back Nathan Aké – he’s on the bench – as is Manuel Akanji, who picked up a minor knock on international duty. As such, Stones comes in at centre-back, while Jeremy Doku and Savinho are handed starts on the wings, Phil Foden and Jack Grealish kept in reserve.
O’Neil is, of course, without Yerson Mosquera, Sasa Kalajdzic, Enso González, Bastein Meupiyou, Boubacar Traoré – and now Hwang Hee-chan, injured playing for South Korea and out for around a month. Consequently, Matheus Cunha and Jørgen Strand Larsen start up front, and have the ability to give John Stones and Ruben Dias a testing afternoon.
O’Neil tells Sky that Sam Johnstone got injured in training, so José Sa comes in – and has been pushing for selection. Morale, he says is fine – Wolves have had a tough run of fixtures and generally played well, though the effort last time out, against Brentford, was unacceptable. Though today is a hard game, they believe they can turn things around and, having won this fixture last year, they know what’s required and how well they have to play to win.
Otherwise, he’s taking the risk out of the buildup because his players don’t need complexity currently, but that’s not why he’s gone to five at the back – he’s always done that against City. Finally, he’s not bothered about Guardiola or any other manager saying Wolves are good – they just need to play well.
Teams!
Wolverhampton Wanderers: (3-5-2) Sa; Bueno, Dawson, Gomes T; Semedo, Gomes J, André, Lemina, Ait-Nouri; Cunha, Larsen. Subs: Bentley, Doherty, R Gomes, Doyle, Sarabia, Forbs, Bellegarde, Guedes, Lima.
Manchester City (4-1-4-1): Ederson; Lewis, Stones, Dias, Gvardiol; Kovacic; Sávio, Gundogan, Bernardo, Doku; Haaland. Subs: Ortega Moreno, Carson, Ake, Grealish, Akanji, Nunes, Foden, O’Reilly, McAtee.
Referee: Chris Kavanagh (Manchester)
Preamble
That the league table doesn’t lie is one of football’s truest truisms. There is a metric specifically designed to tell us which team deserves to win a match – it’s better known as “the score” – and these results are then collated into a precise overall ranking which brooks no argument. It sounds simple because it is.
And yet! Wolves, the aforementioned table tells us, are the second-worst team in it, their one point from seven games two fewer than Crystal Palace who sit above them and the same as Southampton who lie below. But the sense persists that they aren’t, or at least shouldn’t be that bad, and as such Gary O’Neil is under severe pressure.
He will not expect any favours from Manchester City. Just as Wolves are more than a number in a column so too are the champions, the relentless accumulation of the early Guardiola years replaced by the sinister certainty that will do that whatever it takes to finish one place above their nearest challenger. And with Arsenal having been beaten yesterday, they will know that today offers them the opportunity to emphasise that punishing reality.
Wolves, though, have the tools to trouble them – particularly in midfield, where their drive and physicality can make things uncomfortable for any team, never mind one still working out how to cope without the best midfielder in the world. If they can start quickly and defend properly, this could be an intense and competitive contest; if they cannot, they are in even more trouble than the league table suggests.
Kick-off: 2pm BST