Arsenal will be looking to make amends for last weekend’s Premier League slip-up when they host Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday afternoon.
The Gunners blew a two-goal lead in a frustrating 2-2 draw with Aston Villa and are now six points behind leaders Liverpool, having played a game more than their title opponents. Losing points at Molineux could prove fatal in their bid to usurp the Reds, with the injury-ravaged north Londoners desperate for victory at all costs.
Wolves won’t be an easy opponent, but they are one of Arsenal’s favorite opponents. They have beaten Old Gold seven times in the Premier League, including a 2-0 win on the opening day of the season.
New coach Vitor Pereira’s momentum has waned in recent weeks as Wolves have now lost their last three league games. They sit 17th after three-goal defeats against Nottingham Forest, Newcastle United and Chelsea and few in Wolverhampton will be expecting any significant improvement against the Gunners.
Here is 90 minutes Guide to Wolves vs Arsenal.
Wolves vs Arsenal H2H record (last five games)
Current form (all competitions)
Wolves | arsenal |
|---|---|
Chelsea 3-1 Wolves – 20/01/25 | Arsenal 3-0 Dinamo Zagreb – 01/22/25 |
Newcastle 3-0 Wolves – 15/01/25 | Arsenal 2-2 Aston Villa – 18/01/25 |
Bristol City 1-2 Wolves – 11/01/25 | Arsenal 2-1 Tottenham – 01/15/25 |
Wolves 0-3 Nottingham Forest – 06/01/25 | Arsenal 1-1 (3-5p) Man Utd – 12/01/25 |
Tottenham 2-2 Wolves – 12/29/24 | Arsenal 0-2 Newcastle – 07/01/25 |
country | TV channel/live stream |
|---|---|
United Kingdom | Not televised – live commentary on BBC Radio 5 Live |
United States | peacock |
Canada | fuboTV Canada, Fubo Sports Network 6 Canada |
Pereira criticized star striker Matheus Cunha after Wolves’ recent defeat to Chelsea and the Brazilian remains banned from Molineux. Interestingly, Arsenal are reportedly among his suitors and there could be an audition with Mikel Arteta and his recruitment team on Saturday.
Mario Lemina is another player who could leave Wolves in January. He has been left out of the squad until the window closes after asking to leave the club, meaning he will miss the visit to Arsenal.
The Midlands side are already without long-term absentees Sasa Kalajdzic, Yerson Mosquera and Enso Gonzalez, while Toti Gomes remains a big doubt for the weekend despite moving closer to a return.
Boubacar Traore could feature in some capacity against Arsenal having been missing since August. Last Monday he visited the club’s academy.
Predicted Wolves line-up against Arsenal (3-4-2-1): Sat; Doherty, S. Bueno, Agbadou; Semedo, Andre, J. Gomes, Ait-Nouri; Guedes, Cunha; Larsen Beach.
Arsenal are without a number of key first-team players due to injury problems, including key centre-back William Saliba, who is missing at the weekend. He is unlikely to be out of action for too long – a return is planned in early February – but he will not be returning to the squad quickly.
Bukayo Saka is still missing after his thigh injury and Gabriel Jesus is unavailable due to a torn cruciate ligament and will therefore have to sit out until 2025/26. Takehiro Tomiyasu and Ben White are other guaranteed absences for the weekend trip north.
Myles Lewis-Skelly has impressed in recent games but missed the midweek win against Dinamo Zagreb in Europe due to a muscle injury. There are doubts that he will be there at the weekend.
In better news, Ethan Nwaneri has returned from injury against Dinamo and is expected to feature in some capacity at Molineux. Riccardo Calafiori also returned to the bench after fitness problems, but was not used.
Predicted Arsenal line-up against Wolves (4-3-3): Raya; Timber, Kiwior, Gabriel, Zinchenko; Odegaard, Partey, Rice; Martinelli, Havertz, Trossard.
Without the injured Saliba, Arsenal are much more vulnerable in defense and Wolves will be looking to strengthen a weakened back four on Saturday. They have scoring potential with Cunha and Jorgen Strand Larsen.
However, given Wolves’ current form and the Gunners’ superior side, Arsenal remain strong favorites heading to Molineux. They have been more productive in front of goal in recent games without blowing their opponents away, with their hosts conceding more goals than any other team in the Premier League this season.
Arteta will be desperate for victory regardless of the performance and his players should score three points that would condemn Wolves to a fourth consecutive league defeat.