Wolverhampton Wanderers will be hoping to return to winning ways against West Ham United this afternoon following their recent 1-1 Premier League draw against Nottingham Forest.
Gary O’Neil’s men couldn’t add to Matheus Cunha’s equaliser against Forest and the 40-year-old will be looking for his side to be much more clinical against a team who have conceded 30 goals in the top flight this term – the joint fourth-worst defensive record.
The Old Gold will also need to improve defensively against West Ham and this could suggest that O’Neil may make a change or two to his backline.
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Hugo Bueno didn’t enjoy the finest of matches last weekend and the former Bournemouth manager might boldly ditch him for the match today.
Hugo Bueno’s game vs Nottingham Forest in numbers
The youngster was deployed on the left side of the midfield as O’Neil started the game with a 3-4-3 formation, and he was looking for Bueno and Nelson Semedo to provide some attacking output from the flanks in order to support the front three.
While the defender did show eagerness at getting on the ball, taking 69 touches during his time on the pitch, his end product was often wasteful, and he registered a pass success rate of only 70%.
Bueno also lost possession of the ball on 20 occasions while winning just three of his eight duels contested, showing his weakness in one-on-one battles during the match.
With O’Neil looking for him to get forward as often as possible, the Spaniard only delivered one successful cross, and he succeeded with 33% of his dribble attempts, indicating that he didn’t exactly provide a reliable attacking source.
The 21-year-old received a match rating of just 6/10 for his performance by journalist Liam Keen from the Shropshire Star and there will be a change for the clash against the Irons.
Rayan Ait-Nouri could replace Hugo Bueno
The Algerian has been missing since suffering an injury against Fulham last month, yet he could be fit for the tie against the Irons today and this would be a major boost for the side.
The 22-year-old has started 12 Premier League matches so far this season, averaging 0.8 key passes per game along with succeeding with 1.5 dribbles per game and being dribbled past just 0.4 times per game, indicating that he has impressed across a range of performance metrics.
With fixtures coming up against West Ham, Chelsea, Brentford and Everton, O’Neil will be aiming for at least two or three wins and this could significantly bolster their top-half ambitions.
Ditching Bueno today would be a wise move and while Ait-Nouri is fighting back to 100% fitness, he could be given a start against David Moyes’ men.
The Molineux outfit have been impressive in spells across the top flight this term, enjoying excellent wins over Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur, yet consistency issues have plagued their campaign.
If the Algerian left-back is ready to be unleashed in the starting XI this afternoon, O’Neil must give him a chance to start from the first whistle and boldly drop Bueno to the bench.