Wolverhampton vs Chelsea Predictions

• Fewer than three goals have been scored in five of Wolves’ last seven matches
• Wolves have beaten West Ham and Everton at home in the Carabao Cup
• Chelsea have failed to win four of their last six games against Premier League opposition

Wolves seek another cup pick-me-up

The Carabao Cup could come to Wolves’ rescue again this week as Vitor Pereira’s under-fire squad prepare to don their tin hats and face Chelsea in the fourth round at Molineux. The Portuguese boss no longer spends his time off with the fans at a local pub after overseeing a woeful start to the Premier League campaign which has left the Old Gold rooted to the foot of the table.

The Molineux faithful demanded a face-to-face exchange in the wake of Sunday’s 3-2 home defeat to Burnley and it is likely that all the squad’s time off has been cancelled for the foreseeable.  But Wolves’ performances in this competition have been much better and if Pereira can coax another one out of his players this week, the mood couild lift around Molineux.

The Carabao Cup is not a priority for Chelsea this season, although getting back to winning ways is following their 2-1 home defeat to Sunderland on Saturday. The Black Cats were good value for their 2-1 win at Stamford Bridge and exposed some weaknesses in the Blues’ defensive make-up.

Blues could be blunt in attack

Chelsea have lost three and drawn one of their last six league matches and could be short on centre forward options in the Black Country with doubts over Joao Pedro and Liam Delap’s involvement. Marc Guiu got the start on Saturday and looks likely to be held back here, which could lead to a tactical reshuffle or a winger being deployed out of position up front, which Maresca has done before.

Goals may be in short supply if that is the case and with five of Wolves’ last seven matches having failed to produce a third goal, backing Under 2.5 goals looks the way to go here. If the teams were in better form, then a high-scoring game akin to some of their recent meetings would be anticipated, but they have won only two of their last 12 Premier League games between them.

Expect a cagey clash with the potential for a 1-1 draw and goalscorers that are not among the usual suspects.