The world will be set for Arsenal vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers on 2 December 2023 because of the entertainment potential of that tie.
Wolves rival Fulham for the unofficial title of the most improved team in the Premier League this season with the caliber of football they have played. This is very impressive for neutrals to witness and even more impressive for the club’s fans, who saw Julen Lopetegui get fired only a few days before the start of the season.
Arsenal, their hosts, are currently seen as one of two clubs that can end the Manchester City hegemony in the league. The Gunners went 10 games unbeaten but an unfair VAR decision led to their first season loss on matchday 11.
Mikel Arteta gave a spicy post-match interview after that game against Newcastle and, since then, has been on a mission with his boys. Hence, this tie could not come at a worse time for Gary O’Neil, who is slowly improving the Wolves side to take them back to the heights that Nuno Espirito Santo did all those years ago.
Matches against Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur have prepared the Molineux outfit for their return to London to face Arsenal. O’Neil’s team showed grit against Fulham and Spurs, but Arsenal is a different ball game altogether.
The Gunners, meanwhile, have had to play two challenging UEFA Champions League games in addition to facing Burnley and Brentford in the same period. Their Premier League games are hardly preparation for Wolves, but their match fitness and sharpness are at an all-time high going into their clash.
Tickets are selling fast, and this article contains information on securing seats for this spectacle on matchday 14. Read on for team news and our predictions on the match outcome.
Match tickets
The first batch of Arsenal vs Wolverhampton Wanderers tickets have sold out, and the club’s fans are waiting for a second batch. Wolves tickets to the game will begin selling on 10 November 2023.
Both clubs will cater to their registered fans first, so neutrals may need help getting tickets quickly from either website. This is where ticket reselling platforms like Seatsnet.com come in.
Fans with Arsenal tickets or Wolves tickets sometimes want to sell theirs. They do so on ticket reselling platforms. Neutrals can start purchasing tickets on these platforms in anticipation of the match.
Arsenal will host Wolves on 2 December 2023 at the Emirates Stadium. The match will kick off at 3 PM UTC. Fans can catch the game from the comfort of their houses via streaming platforms, as Sky Sports will not air the game.
A subscription to these apps and channels is needed to access the game.
Team news
Gabriel Jesus, Thomas Partey, and Emile Smith-Rowe are almost at full power after picking up different injuries at different points during the last few weeks. Mikel Arteta has capable replacements for them, however. Still, the match fixture schedule for the months of November and December will cause him to worry about the fitness of the replacement players. They could all be given the green light to start games earlier than expected, but Arteta will not risk their immediate return to action. There are no players on suspension at the club, as well. Long-term absentee Jurrien Timber continues to recuperate from his ACL problem while the rest of the squad battles to prevent a slip-up in their title charge this season.
Pedro Neto’s fitness will concern the Molineux outfit ahead of their trip to Arsenal. He picked up a knock to his hamstring on matchday 10 and spent three weeks recovering. O’Neil will throw him back into action, but he will unlikely get an entire run in the game. Hugo Bueno [hamstring issue], Jean-Ricner Bellegarde [unspecified muscle injury], and Joe Hodge [shoulder surgery] are the long-term absences in the Wolf pack. No suspensions are going into the game so O’Neil will have his entire squad (without the three absences) for the Arsenal trip.
Lineups
Jorginho has been playing a much more significant role in recent weeks, indicating that he could start for the Gunners in the Arsenal vs Wolverhampton Wanderers match. His presence on the pitch will allow Declan Rice and Martin Ødegaard to push forward and support the attack, which will definitely be Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli, and Eddie Nketiah. Arteta will not do much tinkering because he needs squad depth for the hectic fixture schedule ahead. Arsenal fans can expect the same lineup as the last few matchdays.
Arsenal: Raya; White, Saliba, Zinchenko, Jorginho, Ødegaard, Rice; Martinelli, Nketiah, Saka.
Wolverhampton Wanderers played out a scintillating 2-2 draw with Newcastle United on matchday 10. That lineup is likely to repeat itself against Arsenal. Much focus will be on getting Neto and Hee-Chan Hwang in great spaces to use their tricky feet and claim results.
Wolverhampton Wanderers: Sá; Semedo, Kilman, Dawson, Gomes; Neto, Lemina, Traoré, Aït-Nouri; Hwang, Cunha.
Prediction
History points to a one-sided game ahead of the 2023/24 iteration of Arsenal vs Wolverhampton Wanderers at the Emirates. Not only do Arsenal have more wins over Wolves, but the Gunners have not lost in their last four Premier League games against them. The last Arsenal victory was emphatic: a 5-0 dribbling at the Emirates, where the 2023/24 Premier League matchday 14 clash is billed to occur.
Arsenal have already put five goals past a team this season and are high on the list of couples who have scored the most goals per game. The game will be an important one for Pedro Neto especially because there are concrete links in the media showing Arsenal’s interest in him. He is also reportedly keen on the move and will want to prove how decisive he can be. He is one of the best attackers this season and will be Wolverhampton Wanderers’ primary creative outlet for this game.
David Raya will have to prove that he is worthy of being trusted for the next season because the Wolves’ attack mirrors a real-life pack of magnificent beasts. It will be a tightly contested game on paper, but it will not. Arsenal will create more chances and have more to score from, while Wolves will strike with precision when they get the chance. Their expected lack of dominance will cost them the game.
Arsenal 3 – 1 Wolverhampton Wanderers.