Date 24/02/2015
Venue – Molineux
Kick-off: 7:45pm
Fresh from the 5-0 mauling of Rotherham, Wolves host the visit of Fulham hoping to continue their charge for a playoff spot.
Saturday’s result could well turn out to be a defining moment of the season as Kenny Jackett will be hoping such an emphatic win will be the platform to replicate a similar winning run from last season that saw Wolves cruise to the top of the division.
Without getting too carried away with just one result, there were many positives to take from Saturday. Nouha Dicko and Benik Afobe linked up superbly throughout the game and the latter is showing he well worth the reported £2 million price tag Kenny Jackett paid for him in the January transfer window.
Tomasz Kusczak was yet again in fine form and striker Connor Sammon will be surely left wondering how the Polish stopper left the game with his clean sheet intact after stopping several of his attempts that could have seen the score line look very different.
January’s Football League Young Player of the month Dominic Iorfa put in another solid performance at right back while another full back Scott Golbourne slotted comfortably back into the side.
Wolves are hitting form just at the perfect time with several sides in top six such as Middlesbrough, Bournemouth, Ipswich and Watford all came away with no points from the weekend.
Hopefully Jackett’s men can put those few poor performances in the past truly behind them and focus on becoming a much more balanced and confident side. Fans really needed that result against Rotherham to lift confidence and belief following some of these woeful performances.
Good form is something Fulham are very unfamiliar with at the moment after their 0-0 with relegation threatened Milwall on Saturday meant they are now five games without a win.
Since being relegated from the Premier League last season, Fulham have struggled immensely to life in the Championship despite bringing in seventeen new signing over the course of the season.
In the reverse fixture this season Wolves came away from Craven Cottage with all three points after Sako put away the only goal of the game from a first half corner. However Fulham did knock us out of the cup at the third round stage setting up this game up nicely as the decider between the two sides.
Danger Men
Wolves
Watching Benik Afobe in a Wolves shirt is a joy to behold and it is evident his time at Arsenal was not a waste as he shows characteristics of the typical Gunners prodigy. He has pace, power, superb control of the ball and his second goal on Saturday proved he has great composure in front of goal. A partnership with Dicko is something that will only grow and the two have enough quality to frighten any Championship defence.
Fulham
Striker Ross McCormack returns to the ground where his 120th minute equaliser eventually sent Wolves crashing out of the FA Cup. The £11 million signing from Leeds hasn’t nearly met the expectations his price tag comes with but has still managed 8 league goals so far this season (Nearly half of what Afobe has managed for Wolves and MK Dons collectively this season). If Wolves give him the chances they gave Sammon on Saturday he will be no doubt be adding to that tally.
Even at 34 years-old Scott Parker has the ability to dictate the flow of a game and the club captain will punish any defence who give him time and space to thread balls through to strikers McCormack and Rodallega.
Match Odds
Wolves 4/5
Draw 13/5
Fulham 10/3
First Goalscorer
Benik Afobe 4/1
Nouha Dicko 4/1
Bakary Sako 11/2
Hugo Rodallega 8/1
Ross McCormack 8/1
Bryan Ruiz 9/1
Follow the action on Twitter with @OfficialWolves or on the wireless with BBC WM.
Leave a Comment