Wolves v Liverpool
Football: English Premier League
Tuesday 31 January 2012 - Kick Off 7:45pm

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Wolves

There was a rush from the layers to shorten the prices on Mick McCarthy being the next manager to leave his post in the Premier League last weekend as rumours began swirling that Wolves were going to let the Irishman go. It seems to be the way of modern football to 'sack the manager' at the first sign of problems, but Wolves need to remember where they were before McCarthy took over the reins here at Molineux.

In saying that, I guess it is disappointing for the fans to have seen their side slip into the relegation zone as they are now 19th in the Premier League table. However, they are well aware that a win would take them as high as 16th in the table and their 18 points tally keeps them in touch with their relegation rivals. Wolves have a 3-2-6 record at home this season, scoring 16 goals and conceding 20.

The team are on a run of 10 consecutive games in all competitions without picking up a win, including a disappointing FA Cup exit to local rivals Birmingham City. Wolves have lost 4 of their last 5 games at home in all competitions, including the last 3 in a row.

Jamie O'Hara is on the road to recovery and a return to the first team, but that is still a little way off and he won't be available for this game. Emmanuel Frimpong is also ruled out, while Karl Henry serves the first of a three game suspension.

Liverpool

Liverpool had two massive results in the two Cup competitions over the last week, but now need to bring that form to the Premier League if they want to realise their ambitions of playing in the Champions League next season. There were a lot of negatives after a 3-1 defeat at Bolton Wanderers in their last League game, but now confidence seems to be seeping into the club after the results against Manchester City and Manchester United.

The defeat to Bolton means Liverpool fell down to 7th in the Premier League and they dropped to 6 points behind Chelsea in the final Champions League spot. They have an inconsistent 5-1-5 record away from home this season, scoring 11 goals and conceding 13, but have actually won more games on their travels than at Anfield.

Even with all the positives coming out of Anfield following their Cup results, the win on Saturday was actually their first in 4 games in all competitions. They go into this trip to Molineux having won 1 of their last 5 away games in the Premier League, losing 3 of those games.

It will be interesting to see what team Kenny Dalglish picks considering the two pressure games Liverpool have played in the last 7 days. Craig Bellamy could be recalled, as could Charlie Adam and Dirk Kuyt following his winning goal on Saturday.

Head to Head

Liverpool beat Wolves 2-1 at Anfield earlier this season.

They also did the double over Wolves last season, including a 0-3 win here.

The three games before that one had all ended in draws at Molineux.

Prediction

It is hard to know how much the last week has taken out of the Liverpool players as they have had two emotional and physical games against the Manchester clubs at home. On the other hand, Wolves have had 10 days between games to get themselves ready for this one.

The problem is the home side have been in terrible form in recent weeks, although they have had a couple of unfortunate defeats. The fans are beginning to get on the manager's back and there are rumours that Mick McCarthy is not long for the job.

I don't think McCarthy has lost the dressing room and I think they can get something out of this game as Liverpool have had a few problems in their recent away games in the Premier League. The Reds should cause some problems with the pace of Bellamy up front, but they seem to lack goals, despite scoring 4 in their last 2 games, and they have had a few problems defensively.

With a few doubts about both sides, I would not be surprised to see this ending in a score draw.

The Statistics :

The Pick :

Wolves 1-1 Liverpool

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

I'll go for the Draw @ 3.80