Prior to Spurs’ arrival on Saturday, Wolves had received a significant boost. Ange Postecoglou will have to pick up the pieces after Wolves’ disorganized 4-1 loss to Chelsea.
Tottenham’s perfect start to the Premier League season came to an abrupt halt when they lost first place to defending champions Manchester City.
The half-hour mark saw Cristian Romero sent off for a careless challenge on Enzo Fernandez inside the box, and the second half saw Destiny Udogie sent off for a second bookable offense. Going to Molineux is now off-limits for both of them.
Before the interval, James Maddison, the attacking midfielder, and defender Micky Van de Ven were hobbling down the tunnel. Postecoglou is concerned that Van de Ven’s hamstring injury may become a “serious” issue, while Maddison’s ankle condition will be evaluated in the next few days. Both have been essential to Tottenham’s incredible start under Ange Postecoglou.
Up until his withdrawal on Monday night, Van van Ven had appeared in every minute of action for the Spurs across all competitions since joining the team in the summer from Wolfsburg.
Maddison has three goals and five assists in eight goals that she has been personally involved in.
Richarlison’s announcement yesterday that he will have surgery for a chronic pelvic ailment exacerbated Tottenham’s problems.
Lately, injuries and bans have severely damaged the Spurs team, already lacking Manor Solomon, Ryan Sessegnon, and Ivan Perisic. Ben Davies is also questionable for this weekend, which may require Postecoglou to deploy Emerson Royal with Eric Dier in an unconventional center-back role, similar to what he had to do against Chelsea.
Richarlison’s replacement will be Brennan Johnson, but Spurs will struggle to find a creative substitute for Maddison in the Black Country.
The unexpected issues facing Spurs will be devastating for Postecoglou, but they will also help Gary O’Neil and Wolves.
In their past three games at Molineux, where they have faced Newcastle, Villa, and Manchester City, respectively, Wolves has not lost. For the first time since 1969, they will also be attempting to defeat Tottenham twice in a row at home.
