Bournemouth host Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday in the fifth round of the FA Cup. With both teams suffering defeats in midweek, a tense battle is expected with little to separate them.
The hosts’ push for European football suffered a setback in midweek following a 2-1 loss at Brighton, their second straight defeat after falling 1-0 to Wolves last weekend. Andoni Iraola’s side are a long way away from their 12-match unbeaten run at the start of the year, losing three of their last five matches.
Defensive problems persist for Bournemouth, who are without a clean sheet in four of their last five matches in all competitions. However, their attacking threat remains undeniable, a dominant 5-1 FA Cup win over West Brom before the 2-0 victory at Everton in the previous round shows their quality.
Wolverhampton Wanderers, meanwhile, come into this game after a 2-1 home defeat to Fulham, their second defeat in the last three matches. The FA Cup has been a welcome distraction for Vitor Pereira’s men, who reached the fifth round with a 2-0 victory over Blackburn Rovers.
Led by Matheus Cunha, Wolverhampton Wanderers have impressed going forward, scoring in their last five matches. However, they have also struggled defensively and are without a clean sheet in five of their last seven matches in all competitions.
How the bookies view it: Bournemouth on top
The bookies have overlooked Bournemouth’s recent struggles and are backing them to win at 4/6 with BoyleSports. A victory for Wolverhampton Wanderers is valued at 14/5 with BoyleSports, who are offering odds of 14/5 for a draw.
Head to head: Both teams even
Bournemouth and Wolverhampton Wanderers have five wins each and two draws from 12 previous matches. Both teams won the away fixture in their meetings this season, with the Cherries winning 4-2 at Molineux while Wolves picked up a 1-0 victory at the Vitality Stadium.
Players to watch: Goal machine Cunha
Matheus Cunha has been in excellent form for Wolves, scoring four goals in his last five matches, including the winner against Bournemouth in their previous meeting. BoyleSports are offering odds of 2/1 on the forward to score anytime.
Justin Kluivert, who netted a hat-trick in the first clash between these sides was back among the goals for Bournemouth in midweek and could be worth keeping an eye on. The forward is valued at 7/4 by BoyleSports to score anytime.
Probable line-ups
Bournemouth have a fully fit squad to pick from with Justin Kluivert, Dango Outtara and Antoine Semenyo all expected to start. Evanilson has returned from injury but is likely to settle for a place off the bench.
Wolverhampton Wanderers have no injury concerns as well with Matheus Cunha, Joao Gomes and Jean-Ricner Bellegarde all expected to retain their places in attack. Dean Huijsen is set to continue at the heart of the defence.
Bournemouth: Arrizabalaga, Hill, Adams, Huijsen, Kerkez, Cook, Christie, Ouattara, Kluivert, Semenyo, Outtara
Wolves: Sa, Doherty, Bueno, Gomes, Semedo, Andre, Gomes, Ait-Nouri, Cunha, Dolye, Munesti
Anything else catch the eye?
Wolves have seen over 1.5 first half goals in three of their last four matches and a repeat is priced at odds of 11/8 with BoyleSports. Both teams can also be backed to score in the first half at 3/1 with BoyeSports.
Bournemouth’s last four matches have produced over 9.5 corners, including the last encounter against Wolves and this trend is set to continue with BoyleSports offering odds of 7/10.
This FA Cup match between Bournemouth and Wolverhampton Wanderers will be played on and kick off at 15:00. Check below for our tipsters best Bournemouth vs Wolverhampton Wanderers prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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