The Daly Brief | Spurs vs Wolves, Premier League | OneFootball

"Despite losing all five league games so far, Wolverhampton Wanderers clearly have faith in Vitor Periera having just given him a new contract. Could a formation change, trialled midweek, pave the way for improved results?"

Rob Daly, official club commentator, presenter and pundit

Notable summer departures...

Wolves are bottom of the Premier League and, having failed to score in three of the five matches so far, there’s no doubt Matheus Cunha’s departure is being felt. The team coped well when the Brazil international was absent through suspension last season, but he did score 17 of the club’s 54 goals - form that earned him a big money move to Manchester United. Rayan Ait-Nouri, now at Manchester City, is a big miss at left-wing-back, not only for his defending, but his attacking output - five goals and seven assists last season. In fact, both scored in the 4-2 home win over Spurs last term. Coupled with the departure of captain Nelson Semedo on the right, perhaps it’s no surprise the team is taking some time to adjust.

Formation change...

Despite the league form, Wolves did enjoy a Carabao Cup victory midweek against Everton. Interestingly, it came after Pereira switched from his usual 3-4-3 formation to a 4-3-3. “I’m not here to please myself, but to find solutions,” he said of the tweak, speaking about the need to put his players, 'in a comfortable position'. "At this moment, we can use both formations. Of course, we just had one day (of training) to change. But the intention of the game is the same.” At the very least, the win lifted the mood at Molineux - will they be bold and implement their trialled system in N17 today?

Which Wolves?

The next big decision for Pereira is who to play. The manager, so far, has been unable to settle on his preferred XI. Midweek rotation was understandable in the Carabao Cup as he made nine changes from the team that lost 3-1 at home to Leeds a few days earlier. Some of those who came in impressed, like the tireless Marshall Munetsi who struck the opening goal against Everton. Goalkeeper Sam Johnstone played well in the narrow league loss at Newcastle and made some good stops against the Toffees. But midfielder Andre was, perhaps, the best player on the pitch with his range of passing and ability to protect the defence. Note that the Brazilian international had been dropped for the last two league games - has he earned his place back in the team?

Norwegian fire power...

Jørgen Strand Larsen was handed a start on Tuesday too - making a return after an Achilles issue. The Norway international striker scored 14 times in the Premier League last season, including goals in both games against Spurs. Unsurprisingly, Wolves moved to make his loan move from Celta Vigo a permanent one. The towering striker is an aerial threat in the box, as his goals against West Ham showed recently, and can link play extremely well with his back to goal. Perhaps it’s no surprise that other clubs wanted him this summer before he signed his new deal in September.

Frank decisions...

Thomas Frank went with seven changes midweek against Doncaster handing starts to, Antonin Kinsky, Kevin Danso, Archie Gray, Wilson Odobert and Mathys Tel. A group of players were rested completely - Micky van de Ven was an used sub while none of Guglielmo Vicario, Mohammed Kudus or Cristian Romero were in the matchday squad. One would expect all four to come back into the XI this evening. Pape Matar Sarr wasn’t involved due to a 'little stretch to the thigh', according to the head coach - meaning that Spurs were without nine players through injury on Wednesday.