With five teams still in the position to be relegated from the Premier League this Sunday, nowhere will the tension be felt more than at Molineux, where Wolves and Blackburn face the prospect of Championship football next season. Both sides are masters of their own destiny, however, and although a draw may suffice, a win would definitely guarantee either side’s top-flight safety. There’s no doubt about it: Sunday is going to be a day fraught with tension:
Form
Wolves come into the game having taken 7 pts from their last three games. A closer look at their home form provides plenty optimism for Mick McCarthy; three wins, two draws and just one defeat in the last six matches at Molineux, where they’ve averaged just over 2 goals per game. Big Mick’s side will certainly have little to fear from Blackburn, given they’ve beaten every one of the Premier League top three at home this season.
Blackburn are also unbeaten in their last three games, with a win and two draws helping Steve Kean’s side pick up 5 pts. Their record on the road is poor, though; just 2pts from their last eight away games does not bode well for the Ewood Park side. Blackburn also haven’t scored more than 1 goal in a game for the past seven matches now, suggesting they may well struggle to find the net if Wolves start banging them in at the other end.
Team News
The big question for Wolves concerns the availability of Kevin Doyle. Having previously been out of action with a knee injury, the forward returned as a sub last week at Sunderland but reports initially suggested Doyle had aggravated the injury, though Mick McCarthy is refusing to rule him out of the vital clash as of yet. Stephen Hunt and Stephen Ward have both recovered from bugs in time for the weekend.
Blackburn had three main doubts ahead of the weekend, but Steve Kean has confirmed Christopher Samba, Jermaine Jones and David Hoilett are all fit. Mame Biram Diouf missed the last match with parent club Man United due to the conditions of his loan deal but will return to the squad for the Molineux trip.
Key Men
Jamie O’Hara has been a revelation since his January loan move from Spurs. Playing in central midfield, he is the top-rated Wolves player in our rankings, with 6.96 per match. O’Hara has managed 1.23 Key Passes per game (with an 83% Passing Acuracy) and has averaged 1.7 Shots: second-best for all categories, despite only playing 12 games for the club.
Matt Jarvis may have started the last couple of games from the bench but coming on at half-time at Sunderland last week, his contribution was vital, setting up a goal in the 3-1 win. The left winger looks a strong candidate to start this time round and is not only top for Assists (6), but leads the way for Successful Dribbles (0.8) and Key Passes (1.81) this season, too. Jarvis sat out training yesterday with what McCarthy described as “the sniffles” but in this winner-takes-all showdown, can Big Mick really afford to leave his star winger out?
Wolves’ top scorer with 10 goals for the season, Steven Fletcher has kept his best goal scoring form for when it matters most; five goals in his last five games makes the Scotsman one of the in-form strikers in the Premier League right now and more than makes up for the absence of Kevin Doyle. Over the course of the season-with subs appearances taken into consideration- Fletcher has only averaged 1.1 Shot per game but has upped that to 2 per game over the last five matches as he looks to shoot the club to safety.
As always, the performance of centre-back Christopher Samba will be crucial to Blackburn’s chances. His contribution to the defence is shown in the 1.5 Tackles, 2.2 Interceptions and incredible 11 Clearances he averages per game. Samba has also grabbed 4 goals this season and averages 1.2 Shots per game, the second-highest in the side, illustrating his importance at both ends of the pitch. Samba wins more Aerial Duels than anyone else (69%) and is the club’s top-rated player, with 7.01 per game.
His adaptability has seen him shifted between right-back and right midfield of late, but regardless of position, Brett Emerton has shown good form; Blackburn may have scored just one goal in each of their last two games but Emerton has assisted one and scored the other. Of those players currently starting under Kean, Emerton averages the most Key Passes (1) per game and also has the highest Pass Accuracy, with 79%, showing why he is second-highest in the side for Assists this season.
David Hoilett is the top-rated non-defensive player for Blackburn, averaging 6.72 per game. Able to play either up front or in midfield, the pacy young Canadian has impressed wherever he has been fielded, picking up 3 Man of the Match awards in his 16 starts. Hoilett has grabbed 4 goals and averages 2 Successful Dribbles per game, far and away the most of any Rovers player.
