Wolverhampton Wanderers take on West Midlands rivals Aston Villa at Molineux on Saturday with both teams looking to return to winning ways.
The hosts were beaten heavily by Liverpool last weekend, while Villa have gone down 2-1 in back-to-back matches to slip to 12th, two places below their opponents.
Match preview
Villa may enter this game below Wolves but they have two games in hand on a number of sides around them, potentially seeing them climb as high as fourth with a couple of wins.
The Villans' match with Newcastle United last week was called off due to a coronavirus outbreak in their opponents' camp, meaning that they have had a 12-day rest between games.
Prior to that postponement, Dean Smith's men lost to Brighton & Hove Albion and West Ham United by the same scoreline, making it four defeats in their last five.
The exception in that run was a famous 3-0 win away to Arsenal in a performance that shows exactly what this Villa side are capable of on their day. Just ask Liverpool!
Wolves will therefore not read too much into their neighbours' form, particularly having struggled for momentum themselves over the past six weeks or so.
Nuno Espirito Santo's men have drawn two, won two and lost two of their last six matches, failing to win back-to-back games in the top flight since mid-October.
Last week's heavy loss to Liverpool was a particularly tough one for Nuno to take, and the Portuguese coach will now be after a swift response from his players.
Wolves won both league meetings with Villa last season and have conceded fewer home goals than any other side in the Premier League this term (5).
The Villans have conceded at least twice in four of their last five matches, but they enter this game on the back of three wins in their last four away outings.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Premier League form: DWLDWL
Aston Villa Premier League form: WLLWLL
Team News
Wolves are having to make do without striker Raul Jimenez for the foreseeable future because of a fractured skull sustained against Arsenal.
The Mexican had featured in every league game for Wanderers since joining the club in the 2019 summer transfer window prior to the trip to Anfield last time out.
Nuno went without a recognised striker against Liverpool and that will be the case again this weekend, with Daniel Podence expected to be given the nod through the middle.
The hosts must decide whether to go with a five-man defence or four, with Romain Saiss's return from a coronavirus layoff possibly being a determining factor.
As for Villa, Ross Barkley has been ruled out with a hamstring injury, but Smith's side should otherwise be refreshed following a couple of weeks off.
Bertrand Traore is pushing for a recall in place of Trezeguet, who has had more shots without scoring than any other player in the Premier League this season (22).
Playmaker Jack Grealish has played a direct part in 10 goals this term - only Manchester United's Bruno Fernandes (11) has been involved in more - and is also fully fit and raring to go.
Wolverhampton Wanderers possible starting lineup:
Patricio; Semedo, Boly, Coady, Marcal; Dendoncker, Neves, Moutinho; Traore, Podence, Neto
Aston Villa possible starting lineup:
Martinez; Cash, Konsa, Mings, Targett; McGinn, Luiz, Hourihane; Trezeguet, Watkins, Grealish
We say: Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-1 Aston Villa
Both sides have lost a bit of momentum and could do with a positive result on Saturday. Villa had won three away games in a row without conceding before going down to West Ham last time out, but we can see Wolves - unbeaten in four at Molineux - taking all three points in a narrow victory.
Top betting tip
Video prediction
Watch the Sports Mole Football Shorts prediction for this game below:
