Preview: Cardiff v Wolves – We Meet Again

Wolves correspondent Tim Spiers previews the clash.

Preamble

There's been plenty of talk about Nuno Espirito Santo and Neil Warnock and *that* spat from April's unforgettable title clash.

But from a Wolves perspective that's merely a sideshow to what has become a pretty important game (although if you need reminding, any excuse....)

After four defeats and just one point from the past five matches, Wolves are in the midst of their first rocky patch since Nuno took charge in June 2017.

All and sundry have had their say on what's gone wrong since that fantastic start of one defeat in eight, but Nuno remains steadfast in his stance that his ideas and his philosophy will remain the same.

And why not? That worked perfectly for the last 15 months, so he's not going to rip up his own rule book just because of a couple of poor performances.

What must change tonight is the level of performance, particularly from a number of players who were well below their usual standards against Huddersfield. Nuno has called for individual consistency and for a big reaction from his team tonight.

A clean sheet will be his priority but against a highly-motivated Cardiff team desperate for points, that won't be easy.

If we see half the drama we did in April, it'll be a cracker.

The opposition

Luke Hatfield spoke to two Cardiff reporters to get the lowdown on the Bluebirds.

Team news

Ex-Wolves youngster Nathaniel Mendez-Laing has been struggling for fitness of late and may not be involved, while Kenneth Zohore has been sidelined for a month with a calf problem. Neither player has a return date.

Wolves will be missing Jonny Castro Otto who is likely to miss the rest of the calendar year with a knee injury, so Ruben Vinagre looks set to deputise again

Nuno must decide whether to stick with the XI who produced their worst performance of the season against Huddersfield, perhaps freshen up his team.

Adama Traore and Diogo Jota are the most likely beneficiaries if he does, but after conceding six goals in three games perhaps the defensive-minded Romain Saiss and Leander Dendoncker will get a chance? Or perhaps it's time to unleash Morgan Gibbs-White from the off, as Wolves legend Steve Bull suggested this week?

Joao Moutinho and Ivan Cavaleiro were substituted at half-time on Sunday so their places may be at risk.

Likely line ups

Cardiff (4-1-4-1): Etheridge; Manga, Morrison, Bamba, Cunningham; Gunnarsson; Harris, Camarasa, Ralls, Murphy; Paterson.

Wolves (3-4-3): Patricio; Bennett, Coady, Boly; Doherty, Saiss, Neves, Vinagre; Costa, Jimenez, Traore. Subs: Ruddy, Dendoncker, Moutinho, Gibbs-White, Jota, Cavaleiro, Bonatini.

Key players

Cardiff – Callum Paterson

It’s been a dream few weeks for the makeshift centre-forward who has benefitted from Cardiff’s lack of goals by becoming a striker and promptly scoring three times in five matches. The utility player began his career as a right-back before switching to midfield under Warnock and is now up front.

Wolves – Ruben Neves

Wolves simply have to exert some control in midfield and Neves (and Moutinho) will be crucial to their hopes of winning the game.

The bosses

Neil Warnock: "We've had some good games against Wolves so I've been looking forward to it. I’ve already shaken hands with Nuno, I spoke to him last year. It’s not all about money and he did a good job last year. I’ve always liked Wolves.

Nuno Espirito Santo: "We’ve trained well and we’re ready to compete. We’re not in a good moment, that’s the fact. We must perform based on the standards we’re used to."

Form

Cardiff LWLLW

Nov 24: Everton 1 (Sigurdsson 59) Cardiff 0

Nov 10: Cardiff 2 (Paterson 28, Bamba 90) Brighton 1 (Dunk 6)

Nov 3: Cardiff 0 Leicester 1 (Gray 55)

Oct 27: Liverpool 4 (Salah 10, Mane 66, 87, Shaqiri 84) Cardiff 1 (Paterson 77)

Oct 20: Cardiff 4 (Murphy 15, Reid 20, Paterson 65, Harris 87) Fulham 2 (Schurrle 11, Sessegnon 34)

Wolves LLLDL

Nov 25: Wolves 0 Huddersfield 2 (Mooy 6, 74)

Nov 11: Arsenal 1 (Mkhitaryan 86) Wolves 1 (Cavaleiro 13)

Nov 3: Wolves 2 (Neves pen 68, Jimenez pen 79) Spurs 3 (Lamela 27, Moura 30, Kane 61)

Oct 27: Brighton 1 (Murray 48) Wolves 0

Oct 20: Wolves 0 Watford 2 (Capoue 20, Pereyra 21)

Past five meetings

Apr 6, 2018 (Ch): Cardiff 0 Wolves 1 (Neves 67)

Aug 19, 2017 (Ch): Wolves 1 (Bonatini 67) Cardiff 2 (Ralls 54, Mendez-Laing 77)

Apr 1, 2017 (Ch): Wolves 3 (Batth 9, 41, Costa 82) Cardiff 1 (Zohore 12)

Dec 13, 2016 (Ch): Cardiff 2 (Connolly 68, Pilkington 86) Wolves 1 (Doherty 2)

Jan 16, 2016 (Ch): Wolves 1 (Zyro 40) Cardiff 3 (Noone 28, 36, Ralls 48)

Referee

Andre Marriner (West Midlands)

Took charge of Wolves' 1-0 win over Burnley earlier this season, dishing out six bookings.

In total he's shown a below-average 35 yellows in his 13 games in 2018/19, with two reds.

Match odds

Cardiff 13/5, draw 11/5, Wolves 11/10