Former Aston Villa manager Paul Lambert looks set to make numerous changes to his Wolverhampton Wanderers starting line-up ahead of the Championship clash at Molineux.
Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Paul Lambert may well muster an extra surge of motivation as he prepares his Wolves charges to host Aston Villa this weekend.
Lambert, Villa boss from 2012 until his departure in February 2015, at the time was ‘delighted‘ to hear of his Villa Park sacking and could be forgiven for desperately wanting to take all three Championship points on offer against Steve Bruce’s resurgent Villains.
However, the reality of the situation is that Wolves need the victory for far more significant reasons. Their league position of 17th also sees the Molineux side just five points from the drop line – having taken just 14 points from the last 48 on offer.
Ahead of the game, Lambert has somewhat of a selection dilemma – as many of his so-called second string impressed with their admirable performances in last weekend’s 2-0 FA Cup victory over Premier League Stoke City.
Recent Championship stand-out Connor Ronan is expected to drop out of the starting XI, as Wolves have plenty of options in their attacking midfield areas. It is anticipated that forward Jon Dadi Bodvarsson will lead the line, supported by the forward thinking trio of assist king Helder Costa, the returning Ivan Cavaleiro and the likely deployment of 18-year-old Bright Enobakhare behind Bodvarsson. Subsequently, Joe Mason could be the man to miss out – although Lambert may see the 25-year-old Irishman’s greater experience as preferential to Enobakhare.
The deeper lying midfield duo of Jack Price and top-scorer David Edwards are expected to get the nod as a double shield for Wolves’ defensive line.
Goalkeeper Carl Ikeme should start behind right back Dominic Iorfa, left back Matt Doherty and a central defensive pairing of Mike Williamson alongside captain Danny Batth.
With the exception of Doherty, the back four selection is an area in which Lambert could deliberate over – as the likes of Conor Coady, Richard Stearman and Kortney Hause have all pressed their cause for starting berths in recent weeks.
Here is the predicted Wolves line-up in full:
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