• 3 months ago
George Priestman previews both Merseyside games this weekend.

With the help of Birmingham World's Charlie Haffenden for the Wolves insight.
Transcript
00:00This is George Priestman for Liverpool World, back for another Premier League preview video
00:04ahead of the weekend for both Merseyside teams. This week it's Wolves vs Liverpool and Everton
00:10vs Crystal Palace. But first up is Arnie Slott's side who travel to Molineux on the 5.30 kick-off
00:16on Saturday. And to preview the game, I've been kindly joined by Birmingham World's Charlie
00:21Haffenden. So Charlie, how's the season gone so far? Just give us a quick brief general feelings
00:27from Wolves so far, because it has been a very difficult start for Gary O'Neill's side, hasn't it?
00:32Yeah, it's been a terrible start. One win in their last 15 games in the Premier League,
00:37which is really grim reading, to be honest. There needs to be some context though,
00:41because they are bottom of the table and it's been awful with just one point out of their first 15
00:46available. But it's not been an easy start for them fixture-wise. They've played some
00:51really tough teams. Even the likes of Nottingham Forest and obviously Aston Villa as well,
00:56they're not sides that are the traditional top big six, but they're still tricky oppositions and
01:01teams in good form as well. So if you consider their run, I don't think you would have expected
01:06much more from them. No wins is pretty poor reading and it's not been good fun for the
01:11supporters. But with a bit of context and with very limited spending in the summer as well,
01:16they had to be quite restricted with their transfer business. I think things will improve
01:21for them and they have had alright spells in games as well.
01:25Yeah, no, it's a very long season and the fixtures at the start of the season can be
01:29very unforgiving. But just first up, just in that Wolves game, how were they? Because they
01:35led for so long, got an early goal and then conceded in the 73rd minute, but they were
01:41ahead for a long period of time against a very good team. So how were they during that time?
01:46Yeah, I was at Villa Park for that one, covering both teams. And in the first half,
01:50Wolves were the better team. Wennensteinsville wound it up and were probably the better side
01:54until maybe the 60th, 65th minute, which was really impressive. This is a team bottom of the
02:00league going into this match. Villa in fantastic form, lots of confidence, especially at home,
02:05but Wolves made them look really ordinary. Great system, kind of quite compact in the way they
02:10were playing, but also a little bit expansive as well, pushing into Villa's half, using the likes
02:15of Jean-Richard Nabelegaard and Mateus Kounia to push up the field. Jorgen Strand lost and they
02:20finally got their number nine in the summer. He's been a decent outlet up top as well and
02:24things were going really well. I think finally this is Wolves' time to pick up their first win
02:29and get some positivity back. But then another defensive capitulation and they go and lose the
02:35game 3-1 and we saw it against Chelsea. They were 2-2 at the break at Molineux. They go and lost 6-2
02:42and once again that was just so many defensive errors. Lapses of concentration against Newcastle,
02:481-0 up at home. They go and lose that one 2-1, two goals from outside the area. The first one
02:54was deflected from Fabian Scherer, a bit unfortunate, but the second one just a real
02:58poor lapse of judgment from Matt Doherty who allowed his man inside and of course
03:02Harvey Barnes scoring that fantastic goal I'm sure most people would have seen or
03:06matched today or at the time. It's a bit of a running theme for Wolves and once again at Villa
03:11Park we saw that. Towards the end they were just lacking that concentration, allowing players inside
03:16when they shouldn't have done. Quick 1-2s around them in the back and a defence that looked so
03:21compact beforehand all of a sudden fell apart. The injury for Yersin Muscair as well, now confirmed
03:27to be in ACL. He's out for the season. I think that struck them as well late in that second half,
03:32maybe struck their confidence a little bit and allowed Villa to get back and win that one. But
03:37it has been unfortunate for Wolves. They've played quite well in games,
03:40especially at Villa, but they just can't seem to hold on for 90 minutes.
03:45Yeah, how big was that injury for them though? How much has that been felt by the fans and the
03:51team do you think? It's massive. Muscair is not a player that we saw at Wolves last season. He was
03:57on loan at Villa Real. He was someone who we weren't sure if he was actually going to stay at
04:01the football club, if he was going to move on to help with PSR. But he did stick around. He
04:07impressed in pre-season and he's had a good start to the season as well. So to lose him for the rest
04:12of it is really disappointing from a Wolves perspective, especially when they've not really
04:16got much defensive depth. They didn't really sign a replacement for Max Kilman when he left
04:21for West Ham for 45 million. A lot of money there to be spent, but they couldn't really use it all
04:26because they've still got to think ahead for further PSR deadlines. They did sign Bastian
04:31Mopieu, who's an 18-year-old French centre-back, but he was injured when they signed him for
04:36starters and he's not quite got the experience yet to step into such a pressured environment.
04:41They were really relying on Muscair stepping up this year, but one freak moment like that and all
04:46of a sudden they've lost their depth. Yeah, even harder when you haven't made many signs in the
04:52summer as well. One thing I have noticed from the games this season is there's not been many games
04:58that have been low scoring. There's been goals where they've scored, they've conceded, it's gone
05:02both ways. Obviously the 6-2 with Chelsea is a big indicator of that, but why do you think there's
05:08been so many games? I know Gary O'Neill plays very expansive, tries to play very expansive
05:12and positive front foot football and I think he's a brilliant manager, but do you think that's
05:17contributing to why there's been so many goals in each game? I think so, and maybe just a lack
05:22of game management because he's very stuck in his ways, O'Neill, and they're not bad ways at all.
05:28It's entertaining to watch, they're going for it, it's quite refreshing and if the results were
05:32better all the fans, Wolves and elsewhere in the Premier League would be calling him fantastic and
05:37praising him for it. It's just the fact that those results aren't there that he's getting stick for
05:42and I mean it's understandable and I think worthy because they aren't getting those results and they
05:46are falling apart. Perhaps if they're 1-0 up with 20 minutes to go, don't keep pushing on forwards,
05:52don't take any risks, especially with the full backs. Ryan Aitnouri, a really good player,
05:58but as soon as he's caught out of position, they look really exposed Wolves. Craig Dawson,
06:02he's solid but he's not got that pace and he can get turned quite easily. Mosquera, you can see
06:07little lapses of concentrations I was mentioning before, maybe a lack of experience at this level,
06:12so he's not going to be available anymore. Toti Gomez as well is someone who can have a really
06:17good game but he just makes the odd error here and there. You can't afford to have the likes of
06:22Aitnouri bombing on forward when you're winning with 20 minutes to go and that's the theme we've
06:26seen so far. Yeah, for sure. It's really important to consider but there have been some bright
06:35moments here and there in games as you mentioned and just with that, which players have stood out,
06:41if any, obviously there have been some but personally I think Aitnouri is pretty solid
06:46and Kunja has always been a threat as well and the midfielders as well in the sense of
06:51Djargo is a big fan of him as well so any of those sort of stood out for you?
06:56Mario Lamina is one I've been really impressed with. He's their new captain this season. Of
07:02course it was Ruben Neves before he's moved to Saudi Arabia and then there's a bit of talk of
07:05who could take over the captaincy permanently. It is Lamina and he's been playing in a bit
07:09more of an advanced role than he did last year. Last year it was typically just in front of the
07:13defence sweeping in. Now he's playing almost as an attacking midfielder, a bit of a box-to-box as
07:19well, out of possession so he's been really impressive. He's got a goal against Newcastle
07:24United as well and he's been leading that team pretty much all over the field, runs his socks
07:29off every single week. Xiao Gomez, as you mentioned, he's got a lot of potential but
07:33maybe a little bit raw still and Aitnouri going forward, fantastic. He can dribble past pretty
07:39much anyone, it's just he needs to sort out that defensive side of his game. He can get
07:43bobbled forward a little bit too much and get caught out of position. I think he's been impressive at times.
07:55And conversely, who has really struggled this season?
08:00I think you've got to look at that defence, haven't you? I mentioned Aitnouri before with
08:04his positioning. Matt Doherty is a player who's got a lot of experience and he's been
08:10fantastic for Wolves in the past but when he has played this year there have been little shaky
08:16moments and lapses of judgment and you just think, has he still got it at this kind of level?
08:21Sanedo, you've got as well, who has played most games pretty well but once you get towards the
08:2875th, 80th minute his legs seem to go a bit fatigued. It's a bit of a problem for Wolves.
08:34Jose Sar, before they signed Sam Johnston, just so many errors in goal.
08:42It is a bit because Sar is someone for many years who's been one of Wolves' best players
08:47but over the last six months or so something's happened to him with his confidence maybe and not
08:52quite got it back. Johnston has taken over that number one position, a pretty brutal decision
08:56from Wolves considering Johnston wasn't even starting for Crystal Palace. He's been better
09:01I think and there's a bit more assurance at the back with Johnston in goal. A big surprise for Sar
09:08because he's been a Portuguese international in the past and he's someone who's been looked at as
09:13a top goalkeeper by lots of top clubs but he has fallen off a little bit. I saw him at Goodison
09:19Park, first game of last season, and you made some spellbinding saves. I have no idea however
09:24it didn't score that day and it was because of him. Just rattle through the last few questions
09:29fairly quickly here as we run out of time. One big thing with this game is Ait Nori has been linked
09:34to the move to Liverpool, very technically strong, could easily fit into Liverpool going forward.
09:39You mentioned defensive aspects, do you think that would be something that might hold him back from
09:43a move like that? I think it is. Gary O'Neill has spoken about Ait Nori quite a lot and openly
09:50criticised him defensively. Everyone knows how good he is going forward but he just loses that
09:55focus at times. O'Neill has been quite effectively saying that if you want to be a top left-back
10:02you've got to sort out the defensive side of your game, you can't be exposed as often as he is.
10:07I think it's just a fact this year that we've had big name examples of it, the Chelsea game in
10:12particular. Three of those six goals were directly Ait Nori's fault, down his side. There's a reason
10:18that Mdweke scored a hat-trick, it's because Ait Nori was terrible in that game. So a bit more
10:24consistency to his game, I think he can be a top player but he has got those mistakes in him.
10:31It's a difficult one, he just needs to be nurtured in the right way I think and trained to be first
10:36and foremost a defender and then obviously he's already got the capabilities going forward.
10:42Really interesting one because there is going to be a conversation at some point with Robertson,
10:46now 30, in the future there's going to be someone coming in, it could be him,
10:49so we'll have to see how that develops. Just quickly, what sort of team are we expecting
10:53from Wolves? I guess the injuries are the same as maybe last week?
10:58Yeah, obviously the Mosquera one that changes that in the starting XI. Toti Gomez should be back
11:04and if he is, he should play alongside Dawson to replace Mosquera. Samedo at right back,
11:09Johnson in goal as I was mentioning is the new number one. Ait Nori will probably be at left
11:13back. I think Wolves wish they had a different left back so they could play Ait Nori at left
11:18midfield but he will be at left back. He's at midfield three now rather than having a two and
11:23then two wingers, so it's Andre sat back, Xiao Gomez alongside a little bit further forward and
11:29then you've got Mario Lamina as well. Matthias Kuhnje has been playing out wide. Jean-Richard
11:34Nabellegarde has been typically the wide midfielder and then Jorgen Strand-Larsen through the centre.
11:43You just mentioned there, I completely forgot, I'm going to have to bring this in now,
11:47Andre playing in midfield. Liverpool were very much in for him in the summer of 2023,
11:54did really well to go and win the Coppa Libertadores, played a huge role in that and
11:57now he's arrived in England and seems to have had a pretty solid start from what I've heard.
12:03Yeah, he's been another one where he's played really well for 70, 80 minutes and then
12:09maybe lost his focus but that's just a team characteristic rather than Andre himself.
12:14I think he's looked really good, considering he's never played in the Premier League before,
12:17he's very composed on the ball, his passing range is fantastic, he's not afraid to crunch in for a
12:23challenge, he seems to tighten them well. He doesn't really lose his head either but it is a
12:27very small sample size, we've only had a few games of him at Wolves and only one or two starts so far
12:34but I think he's got the potential to be a top player. There's a reason they've spent their only
12:38£21 million they had left on him when they needed a defender, the opportunity was there,
12:44you can't turn a Brazilian international down when you're Wolves, that's just kind of the matter
12:48of it. Maybe they regret not signing a centre-back instead, obviously we've seen him as care injury
12:54but that is hindsight and they should get a good investment out of Andre.
12:59For sure and I think it's an interesting narrative that's going to happen with
13:02Liverpool didn't sign a number six this summer, obviously Ryan Gravenberge has developed into
13:06that so far this season, been absolutely incredible there but Andre is on the other
13:11side and it'll be interesting to see how he fares against a team that did want him to sign
13:15and did reportedly make an offer to the club as well so that's a real interesting little subplot
13:21to the game but just as we finish off, just a quick prediction, I'm not too sure on this one,
13:26I think there'll be goals, what about yourself? He's probably got quite a negative Wolves hat on
13:32at the moment but I think it'll be 4-1 to Liverpool, I just think it could be too strong going
13:38forward, especially on the flanks and I know it's a little bit more of a steady gameplay now under
13:42Arnish Law, it's not so quick and on the counter attack but even so when you've got the likes of
13:46Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Cody Gakper, Darwin Nunez, so many world-class
13:53attackers against a defence that's struggling so much at the moment, there's going to be goals
13:57I'm afraid and Wolves will go for it, they don't just sit back unless Gary O'Neill stops being
14:02stubborn in his ways, as I said decent ways, progressive ways, I think he's probably going
14:07to stick with the same kind of team, same kind of tactics and that will suit Liverpool to a T.
14:12Yeah I think I have to agree with you there, I'm expecting goals, I'm expecting Liverpool
14:16being really strong defensively this season as well so I'm going to be a bit bolder and go for
14:19a clean sheet at 3-0 win but yeah thanks so much for your time and enjoy the game as much as you
14:26can see this weekend. Yeah I will do, I mean I'm not a Wolves fan so I'd just like to see lots of
14:30goals because you want to see Wolves improving, you want to see them improving, you want to be
14:35reporting on the scene that's doing well but I mean it's always entertaining seeing how many
14:38goals there are at Molineux. Welcome back after the break, there is no guests for the second part
14:44of the Merseyside Premier League weekend preview so we're just going to jump straight in on my own
14:50with Everton versus Crystal Palace at Goodison Park on Saturday. Starting off with the team news,
14:58Sean Dyche confirmed that Jared Brantway is in line to come back into the side this weekend,
15:02he completed 90 minutes for the under-21 side against Sunderland last weekend in which he made
15:08an heroic overhead kick clearance in the 90th minute to ensure that side went on to win the
15:14game 4-3 and with 90 minutes under his belt he should be able to come back into the side
15:19in place of Michael Keane which will give Everton a much stronger back line.
15:23Also Vitaly Mikhalenko should also come back in at left back having been taken off in the
15:28defeat against Aston Villa and having missed out against Leicester last weekend. There is some
15:34debate on the right back decision with Nathan Paterson also featuring in that under-21s game,
15:39he should be available for the bench at maximum because he only played 60 minutes in that game.
15:44Looking a bit further forward he also spoke about Idrissa Garnaghey who came
15:48back to the squad after a week away following the death of his father and Dyche claimed he
15:53hasn't trained so he won't be starting this game. We saw Aurel Mangala and Abdoulaye Diouakoure
15:59play last weekend at Leicester so we could expect something similar here and it also depends who's
16:05going to play right back. If Ashley Young plays right back it means James Garner can come into
16:09midfield. If James Garner plays a right back then I'm sure we can probably see Abdoulaye Diouakoure
16:15or Tim Iriboune next to Aurel Mangala in midfield but overall it's a relatively
16:23similar side for Everton but there will be some changes and the boost of Brantford weight will be
16:27absolutely huge for their defensive strength against a Palace side that does have a lot of
16:33threat. In terms of Crystal Palace they're going to be without key starter Chris Richards in defence
16:38who missed training according to Oliver Glasner and won't be available for the trip to Goodison
16:42Palace. He's a big miss for them but it could mean that Trevor Chalabert on loan from Chelsea
16:47comes into the side and he's a very experienced figure so Palace may even be a little bit stronger
16:52in his absence but still first team out is not ideal for them. Also in terms of their backup
16:58attackers Ismail Assar who fans will remember from Watford, a sign from Marseille in the summer, he's
17:03not available either but it will be pretty much a fully-strength Crystal Palace side who come to
17:07Goodison Park. It will be very interesting to see how Everton cope with an attack that does
17:13have plenty of individual quality in terms of Eberichi Eze and Kamada and obviously Jean-Philippe
17:18Mateta as well at the top end of the pitch. In terms of recent form we know Everton registered
17:24their first point of the Premier League season against Leicester last weekend. They led for most
17:28of that game and of course they led for most of the game against Aston Villa as well in their
17:32previous defeat and also before that they led against Bournemouth so there have been signs of
17:36it turning around and they now have a very good run of games where they don't play any of the
17:41top six until November 1st so they have a chance to put some points on the board starting with
17:46Palace. In terms of Crystal Palace, since losing back-to-back games against Brentford and West Ham
17:52they beat Norwich 4-0 in the EFL Cup and since then they have been unbeaten against Chelsea,
17:57Leicester, QPR in the Cup and Manchester United but they've only won one of those and they have
18:02been hard to beat but they've also struggled to get over the line in games as well. No things
18:07point towards a very, very competitive game between the two sides but it is worth mentioning
18:13the recent head-to-heads is definitely in Everton's favour. Last season they played them
18:18four times across the League and Cup. In the Cup they had a replay in the FA Cup which they ended
18:23up winning at Goodison Park having drew the first game and they beat them away at Sellers Park in
18:29the League 3-2 and they also drew at Goodison Park in the League as well so they're unbeaten across
18:34four games against a Palace side that are very similar and also had Michael Alisse who is no
18:40longer with them so there is an argument that they were a little bit stronger last season but
18:45it's safe to say that it's going to be a very, very competitive game between the two sides.
18:50Both need a victory, both will feel like they can get a victory and with players coming back for
18:55Everton in light of Bramford's potential return that's a huge boost for them and they should be
19:01able to put out a pretty strong start in XI, perhaps the strongest start in XI that we've seen
19:06so far this season against a Palace side who are definitely beatable but it is going to be a
19:10very tough game because they are a very well set-up side, very disciplined and have a lot of
19:15quality going forward as well so I'm going to predict a score draw for this one-all at Goodison
19:21Park but it wouldn't surprise me if Everton could get over the edge in this game as Palace
19:26are showing frailties and Everton may just produce something this weekend.

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