Wolverhampton Wanderers v West Ham United
Premier League, Molineux, Saturday 6 April 2024, 3pm BST
West Ham United continue their 2023/24 Premier League season with a trip to the West Midlands for a clash against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday afternoon.
After a 1-1 draw against local rivals Tottenham Hotspur at London Stadium on Tuesday evening, the Hammers will be looking for a return to winning ways in arguably their most important run of fixtures in the race for European qualification.
Three points on Saturday would also deal a massive a blow to their opponents' hopes of securing continental competition, with Gary O’Neil’s charges currently three spots behind seventh-placed West Ham having played one game fewer.
The Irons will be looking to complete the Premier League double over Wolves, having comfortably won the reverse fixture 3-0 at London Stadium in December, where a double from Mohammed Kudus and a Jarrod Bowen finish sealed the points.
Wolves were held to a draw by relegation-threatened Burnley on Tuesday night, and are currently on a three-match winless run in all competitions, including a 3-2 FA Cup defeat against EFL Championship side Coventry.
Tickets...
West Ham fans are advised that the Club’s allocation of 3,012 tickets have sold out.
The first 90 per cent of tickets sold out to Bondholders and Season Ticket Holders with 27+ Loyalty Points. The remaining ten per cent (301 tickets) were then made available via a ballot process to Season Ticket Holders who had yet to purchase for this fixture. This ballot closed at 12pm on Wednesday 13 March.
Travel...
Driving to Molineux is fairly simple, but parking in the vicinity of the ground is less so, with most of the nearby car parks restricted to players, officials and permit holders on matchdays.
If you do want to drive, head up the M1 and then take the M6 to junction 10. From there take the A454 via Willenhall to Wolverhampton Ring Road.
At the first roundabout, take the fourth exit (A449 to Stafford), go straight on at the next two sets of traffic lights, then filter right at the third set of lights into Waterloo Road. Molineux appears on the right.
Car parks are available in Birch Street (WV1 4JW), Redhill Street (WV1 1NR) and Whitmore Hill (WV1 4RU). To book a parking pass contact the Ticket Office on 0371 222 1877.
Trains leave London regularly for Wolverhampton, with direct services from Euston leaving at 08.40, 09.16, 10.16 and 11.16, arriving around two hours later. Alternatively, you can change at Stafford, with a slightly faster overall journey time.
From Wolverhampton station, it’s only a ten-minute walk to Molineux.
After the game, direct trains back to London leave Wolverhampton at 17.45 and 18.45, or 17.15 and 18.15 via Birmingham New Street, or 17.32 and 18.32 via Stafford.
How To Follow...
Saturday’s 3pm kick-off will NOT be broadcast live in the UK, but will be shown across the world by the Premier League’s international broadcast partners.
If you live outside the UK, click HERE for details of Premier League listings in your territory.
You can follow the action via our live blog on whufc.com and our app, and across our social media channels. We will also have highlights and exclusive reaction for you after the final whistle on our website and social media.
Live audio commentary will be available in the UK on BBC Radio London, and worldwide on our official website and app.
Team News...
Wolverhampton Wanderers could welcome back injured duo Hwang Hee-chan and former Hammer Craig Dawson on Saturday, while Jean-Ricner Bellegarde will remain absent with a knock along with Pedro Neto, who will be unavailable after sustaining a hamstring injury.
Alphonse Areola could still be absent for the Hammers after missing Tuesday evening’s draw with Tottenham through a groin injury. Nayef Aguerd was also unavailable for that game with a shoulder problem, and will be assessed ahead of Saturday’s Premier League clash.
Opposition...
When Gary O’Neil took over at Molineux from Julen Lopetegui as head coach last summer, no-one was too sure what to expect. While concerns floated around about their financial situation, O’Neil was brought in to bring some stability.
Lopetegui’s nine-month spell in the Midlands ended with a whimper after reaching an 'agreement to part ways' on the eve on the new Premier League season, despite turning around the fortunes at Wolves. They were bottom of the table when the Spaniard took charge of his first game on Boxing Day 2022 and ended the campaign in 13th place.
This season, however, former AFC Bournemouth manager O'Neil has built on that significant promise, turning their expectations of a Premier League relegation battle into a genuine possibility of European football.
After a summer of turmoil that saw experienced names such as Rúben Neves, Diego Costa, Adama Traore, Nathan Collins, Raúl Jiménez and Matheus Nunes all depart Molineux for a total of over £100million combined, many would’ve been fearing the worst.
But their respective exits provided opportunity for others – and they’ve taken full advantage. A new-look frontline built around Hwang Hee-chan has seen summer signing Matheus Cunha, signed from Atletico Madrid, flourish on the wing, while the return of Matt Doherty and Jean-Ricner Bellegarde have provided stability in defence.
The season did not start too brightly for Saturday’s hosts, but Wolves have claimed impressive wins over the likes of Manchester City, while completing Premier League doubles over Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur.
Wolves have eight Premier League games left, including home fixtures against Bournemouth, Luton Town and Crystal Palace, so will be looking to leap through that window of opportunity and, after suffering a 3-0 defeat in the reverse fixture in December, will be eager for revenge.
Previous Meetings...
West Ham United will meet Wolverhampton Wanderers for the 16th time in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon; a run of games that started in August 2009 when Mark Noble and Matthew Upson gave the Hammers a 2-0 victory.
The all-time standings in this competition are currently tied, with each side winning seven times, with just one draw. The overall record in all competitions is firmly in the Hammers’ favour with 34 wins, while Wolves have won 24 times, and 14 draws.
West Ham have won five of the last seven Premier League matches, including a 3-0 win in the reverse fixture at London Stadium in December, though Wolves claimed four consecutive wins over the Hammers in 2018/19 and 2019/20, winning all four games without conceding a goal.
Both Wolverhampton and West Ham appear to go through spells of dominance in this particular fixture, with either side winning to nil in nine of the last ten fixtures.
The Irons’ most emphatic Premier League result against Wolves was the 4-0 victory we scored over them at London Stadium in September 2020.
Prior to that, the Hammers registered two 5-0 top-flight wins over Wolves in the old First Division, with Bobby Moore scoring in both victories at the Boleyn Ground in December 1960 and September 1964.
Match Officials...
Referee: Tony Harrington
Assistant Referees: Mark Scholes and Akil Howson
Fourth Official: Darren England
VAR: Tim Robinson
Assistant VAR: Adrian Holmes
Tony Harrington has been confirmed as the referee for West Ham United's Premier League trip to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Saturday.
One of the newest top-flight referees, who was promoted to Select Group One ahead of the 2021/22 season, Harrington takes the whistle for his first Hammers match at Molineux.
He refereed his first Premier League match in December 2021, and has gone on to take charge of 15 top flight clashes in total.
He possesses plenty of EFL Championship experience, having refereed 189 matches from the 2013/14 campaign onwards, and was the man in the middle for two Wembley finals in the space of a week in May 2021.
First, he officiated the FA Trophy final between Hereford and Hornchurch, then he returned for Blackpool's EFL League Two Play-Off final victory over Lincoln City.
Although he has never refereed a Hammers match, he acted as Video Assistant Referee for two of our fixtures last month - the 3-1 win at Everton and 1-1 draw with Aston Villa.
For more information about the officials, click HERE.
