Wolves vs Newcastle preview

Team news, key stats and prediction ahead of Wolves vs Newcastle in the Premier League.

• Premier League Table | Fixtures | Top scorers
• Charlie Nicholas' Premier League predictions
• Find out more about Sky Sports

Team news

Wolves will be without forward Diogo Jota again for the Premier League visit of Newcastle.

Jota picked up a dead leg during the defeat at Watford on New Year's Day, and will have further scans to determine the extent of the problem.

Patrick Cutrone appears set to join Fiorentina, but midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White is available for selection having now recovered from a back problem. Defender Willy Boly has stepped up his own rehabilitation following a fractured ankle.

Newcastle head coach Steve Bruce has had mixed fortunes on the injury front ahead of the trip to Molineux.

Defenders Paul Dummett and Jetro Willems (both groin) and Ciaran Clark (calf), as well as strikers Andy Carroll (hamstring), Miguel Almiron (groin) and Dwight Gayle (muscle injury), are all fit.

However, defenders Fabian Schar and Javier Manquillo (both hamstring) and Jamaal Lascelles (fractured tibia) are out, as is midfielder Jonjo Shelvey and striker Allan Saint-Maximin (both hamstring), while wing-back DeAndre Yedlin (knee) and midfielder Ki Sung-yueng and frontman Yoshinori Muto (both knocks) are doubts.

How to follow

Follow the action with our dedicated live blog. Highlights of the game will be published at 5.15pm on Saturday on the Sky Sports website and app plus the Sky Sports Football YouTube channel.

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Opta stats

• Wolves have won just two of their last 11 league meetings with Newcastle (D6 L3), with both of those victories coming at St James' Park.
• Newcastle are unbeaten in their last five away league games against Wolves, winning two and drawing three. Their last defeat at Molineux was in the second tier in April 1993, while in the top flight it was in November 1977.
• Wolves have lost their last two Premier League games, last losing three in a row back in November 2018.
• Newcastle are looking to avoid losing four consecutive Premier League matches for the first time since May 2018.
• Excluding own goals, none of Wolves' last 49 Premier League goals have been scored by an Englishman. The last team to go 50+ goals without an English scorer were Stoke City between August 2015 and December 2016 (59 in a row).
• Wolves have scored the first goal in just six different Premier League games this season, fewer than any other side. However, they're one of just five sides still unbeaten when opening the scoring this term, winning five and drawing one of those six games.
• Newcastle have led for just 342 minutes in the Premier League this season - only opponents Wolves (283) and Crystal Palace (275) have led for fewer minutes.

Charlie Nicholas' prediction

I have been singing the praises of Newcastle but now they have hit a brick wall. Steve Bruce needs a couple of loans but I don't think he will get the money for a purchase, unless they sell a player to earn it.

They have a few injuries too so they are struggling. I have no idea who they will be targeting but they need players in, as they are in a bit of a free fall situation at the moment. Wolves are not overly glamorous but they are sitting in seventh, six points off the Champions League places, so they will want to get the job done and get away from it.

However, it is these types of games that Wolves struggle with, and I think they will struggle once more. They have played a massive amount of games - sometimes you get a rest but it is a mental fatigue as much as a physical fatigue, so they could come unstuck here.

CHARLIE PREDICTS: 1-1 (13/2 with Sky Bet)

Wolves to be ruthless?

Although Charlie has backed both sides to share the spoils, 81 per cent are backing a home win at Molineux, as Wolves look to propel themselves to a Champions League spot. With £250k on the line, what score will you predict?

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