Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Brighton and Hove Albion is one of the most one-sided ties in English football history. Not least when you think it’s among teams that are considered mid-card teams.
The Seagulls have won 18 out of 40 matches; Wolves only able to hold them to a draw 14 times.
In the Premier League, the record is just as bad for the hosts of Saturday’s tie. They only have two wins in 10 previous meetings.
Right off the bat, we will say there is no evidence Wolves can hold off their visitors on matchday 2. That’s especially with Brighton playing the way they are under Roberto De Zerbi.
The Italian has the club playing the best football that the AMEX fans have ever seen. He is being compared to Mikel Arteta of Arsenal and treble-winning Pep Guardiola of Manchester City in terms of the level of football that he puts on display week in, week out.
Opening day fortunes
Wolverhampton Wanderers, on the other hand, have no defined identity as is. Much of that is thanks to a sudden change in management happening a few days before the start of the 2023-4 Premier League season. However, new manager Gary O’Neil was able to gather his troops to stifle the threat of Manchester United on opening day; reducing what was expected to be a schooling to a hard-fought 1-0 win by the Red Devils at Old Trafford.
Wolves might have come away with a point. But a refereeing error denied them all three points; Man United goalkeeper André Onana committing a clear foul in the box during a Wolves set-piece.
Speaking after the match which many pundits gave him high praise for, former AFC Bournemouth manager O’Neil praised his team’s fight against United and implied that it will remain so all season long.
“It wasn’t me that created the performance, though, it was the group of players that showed some real quality,” he said. “But, unfortunately, we found a way to not put the ball in the net – despite having 23 shots.”
De Zerbi will be more confident going into the game after his opening-day thrashing of newcomers Luton Town. However, O’Neil’s team with their lack of a clear identity at the moment could stun him with their chaos and finally get another win against Brighton after so long.
The Matchday 2 fixture promises to be an entertaining one.
Match Tickets
The Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Brighton and Hove Albion tickets for the matchday two clash between both sides are up on the websites of both teams.
The match will be played at the Molineux, the home ground of the Wolves. It will take place on Saturday 19 August 2023 at 3 PM. Sky Sports will broadcast the game to fans in and around the United Kingdom. The Premier League’s other broadcast partners around the world will cover the other regions where the league is enjoyed.
Tickets are fast selling out. This implies that ticket reselling platforms will see a spike in patronage. Neutrals who are also interested in the game will likely be visiting ticket reselling platforms for tickets to the game.
Gary O’Neil is one to watch for the 2023-4 season and Wolves tickets will see a spike in patronage every week.
Brighton tickets will also be a must-watch as this season. They will be playing without two key players in Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo.
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Brighton and Hove Albion on Saturday 19 August 2023 will be the first time without both players in the Seagulls squad, in fact, and fans are going to want to see that.
Team news
Wolverhampton Wanderers are still active in the transfer market like other clubs. They are reportedly setting their sights on Michail Antonio. They want the Jamaican forward, 33 as a short-term, but experienced, replacement for Raul Jimenez, who left for Fulham in June.
Mike Trésor Ndayishimiye also reportedly asked his current club, KRC Genk, to listen to the offers from Wolves. He’s the winner of the Ebony Shoe award for the best African player in the Belgian Jupiler Pro League for the 2022-3 season. And Wolves are one of the leading clubs for his signature.
Outside of all of these potential moves, Gary O’Neil will have his full squad available to welcome Roberto De Zerbi and his full squad.
Meanwhile, after months of speculation, Moises Caicedo finally left the AMEX Stadium.
Chelsea are the Ecuadorian’s new home now; Brighton in need of a replacement. They are reportedly looking to reinvest the Caicedo money in Cameroonian talent Carlos Baleba. He plies his trade in LOSC Lille in the French Ligue 1.
Brighton did good business this summer. De Zerbi gave debuts to Mahmoud Dahoud, James Milner and João Pedro – three of their six new signings. The Seagulls still need to sign some players though, Luckily, there is still time before they travel to the Molineux to do just that.
Lineups
Matheus Cunha is going to keep his place in the starting XI that will welcome Brighton to the Molineux on Saturday 19 August at 3 PM.
Pablo Sarabia started alongside him. But he got subbed out early for South Korean striker Hee-Chan Hwang. This points to a stint on the bench for the Spaniard against Brighton; O’Neil hoping to be able to count on him off the bench in that game.
The starting lineup will remain largely unchanged except for the attack where the Wolves technical team will decide on who pairs Cunha from the start of the game.
Wolverhampton Wanderers: José Sá; Aït-Nouri, Kilman, Dawson, Semedo; Nunes, Lemina, Gomes, Neto; Cunha, Hwang.
Brighton and Hove Albion adapted quickly to their new team; their new additions slotting in nicely like they were always at the club.
With the exclusion of James Milner, the starting lineup that faced Luton Town is likely going to be the same that will take to the Molineux to fight for another three points in the league.
Joel Veltman will come back into the right-back role which the veteran utility man started in for their last game.
Despite being a striker, João Pedro was deployed behind Danny Welbeck. He looked comfortable in that role and De Zerbi is likely going to keep him there against Wolves; the former Manchester United and Arsenal striker keeping his place up front.
Brighton and Hove Albion: Steele; Veltman, Jan Paul van Hecke, Dunk, Estupiñán; Gross, Dahoud; March, Pedro, Mitoma; Welbeck.
Prediction
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs Brighton and Hove Albion is a one-sided affair, as stated earlier.
The Seagulls scored four goals in their opening game and Wolves suffered an unfortunate loss in theirs. A loss, however, is still a loss. Even the circumstances of this one do not change the fact that Wolves were on the back foot in attack. And that’s despite what the stats say.
Brighton, however, will be wary. Their opponents for Saturday 19 August 2023 were able to create chances that led to them firing off 23 shots in a single game.
Gary O’Neil might be on to something. But evidence shows that Brighton still come out on top whenever these two sides meet.
Matchday 2 is not about to be one of the rare occasions when Wolves come out on top.
Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-3 Brighton.
