Crystal Palace vs Wolves preview, H2H, team news, line-ups and prediction

Crystal Palace and Wolverhampton Wanderers will square off against each other on Wednesday night as part of a series of fixtures the clubs will participate in during their United States preseason tour.

Since the appointment of Oliver Glasner in February, Palace has enjoyed a remarkable surge that transcends beyond just their performances but results.

The Austrian tactician orchestrated victories against Liverpool, and Manchester United and a memorable 5-0 thumping of Aston Villa in the final game of the season.

Ahead of the new season, the South London club will be without one of their key players and talisman in the past few seasons, Michael Olise – who completed a transfer to Bayern Munich this summer.

There are growing speculations over the futures of Eberechi Eze and Marc Guehi. They are attracting significant interest from a host of top clubs after a remarkable season with Palace and for England at the recently concluded European Championship.

Despite this, the Eagles are not relenting efforts in bolstering their squad having secured two key additions so far. Moroccan centre-back, Chadi Riad joined the club from Real Betis while Japan international, Daichi Kamada completed a switch to Selhurst Park on a free transfer from Lazio to reunite with his former manager.

They began their pre-season campaign with a 1-1 draw against EFL Championship side and last season’s FA Cup semifinalists, Charlton Athletic. They recently played out a nine-goal thriller against League One side, Crawley Town.

The Eagles got off to the best possible start – taking the lead after 90 seconds through an Odsonne Edouard’s header.

Youngster, Jesurun Rak-Sakyi continued to impress in the preseason with two goals while summer signing, Kamada – who arrived from Lazio as a free agent also scored as the Eagles ended the half with a four-goal lead.

Crawley showed some character in the second half as Rushian Hepburn-Murphy netted twice while former Palace u21 star, Jack Roles added a third, but it was a little too late as Jordan Ayew and Jeffrey Schlupp kept the game beyond the reach of the League One side with two more goals to ensure a 6-3 win.

Glasner and his team are now heading to Maryland, USA for their United States preseason tour where they will take on Premier League opponents, Wolves.

Despite a disappointing end to last season, there’s a sense of optimism ahead of next as Wolves are now beginning to show a bold and energetic performance in their preseason games that has seen the club win all three matches.

The West Midland club are not relenting in efforts in the transfer market either and are making bold moves to reinforce their squad ahead of next season.

After months of closing in on a move to Chelsea, Wolves snatched the transfer of Brazilian gem, Pedro Lima at the last minute from Sport Recife and the 18-year-old is already looking promising, providing an assist in his first match for the club.

They’ve also completed the signing of Portugal u21 international, Rodrigo Gomes for Braga while Jørgen Strand Larsen also joined from Celta Vigo.

With more signings expected following Max Kilman’s departure to West Ham, the team looks promising, especially with Yerson Mosquera returning to the club after an impressive loan spell in Laliga with Villarreal.

During their pre-season trip to Spain, Wolves secured a 1-0 win over Como, though the game was overshadowed by a controversial incident involving Hwang Hee-chan, who reported a racist comment, which Como denied.

They later achieved a 3-0 victory over Bristol City in a behind-closed-doors match, followed by a commanding 3-1 win against West Ham, managed by their former boss Julen Lopetegui.

Rodrigo Gomes came off the bench to score twice, leading the Wolves to victory in the inaugural Stateside Cup tie in Jacksonville, Florida, on Saturday evening.

Despite tropical storms delaying the match, the game proceeded, much to the relief of Wolves manager, Gary O’Neil, whose team delivered an impressive performance from start to finish of the game.

Matheus Cunha opened the scoring with a sweeping first-half finish, but Mohammed Kudus equalized for the Hammers before halftime. Gomes’ introduction in the second half proved to be a masterstroke as the right winger struck to restore the lead for Wolves. He added a second with a swift finish – heading in a delectable cross from another summer arrival, Pedro Lima to wrap up a strong performance and positive result for the West Midlands club.

Wolves will face Crystal Palace and RB Leipzig next, before hosting Rayo Vallecano on August 10.

Crystal Palace VS Wolves match details

• Date: Wednesday, 31st July
• Location: Annapolis, Maryland
• Venue: Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium
• Kick-off time: 01:00 AM BST
• Tickets: Supporters can buy Crystal Palace tickets via the club website or trusted resellers like Seatsnet.com.

Match stats and head-to-head

• Wolves have not lost any of their preseason games so far, winning all their three matches.

• Following victories against Bristol City, Como and West Ham, Wolves have scored seven goals and conceded only one goal in their preseason friendlies.

• Glasner orchestrated a complete turnaround in form for Palace since joining in February. The Eagles recorded seven wins, three draws, and three losses that saw the London club leap from 16th position to a tenth-place finish.

• Glasner also guided Palace to their highest point tally since the 2018-19 season, helping the club reach a sky-high 49-point tally.

• The 49-year-old also guided the South London club to a record 57 goals in the Premier League last season, surpassing their previous top division record of 53 in the 1991-92 season.

Team news

Cheick Doucoure is Palace’s only injury concern, having suffered an issue that led to his withdrawal against Crawley. He is likely to start on the bench at best, with Naouirou Ahamada ready to replace him if needed.

Dean Henderson, Marc Guehi, and Eberechi Eze will also be unavailable due to England’s deep run at Euro 2024.

For Wolves, Matheus Cunha is likely to miss the upcoming match due to a knee injury sustained in the first half against West Ham.

Hwang Hee-chan, who replaced Cunha in that game, was also withdrawn after limited training earlier in the week.

Manager Gary O’Neil is expected to make several changes, giving more minutes to players who came off the bench last time. Santiago Bueno, Tommy Doyle, and Rodrigo Gomes could all be selected, with several Euro 2024 and Copa America participants still unavailable.

Predicted starting lineup

Crystal Palace predicted starting lineup:

Johnstone; Clyne, Richards, Andersen, Riad, Mitchell; Hughes, Doucoure; Rak-Sakyi, Edouard, Kamada.

Wolves predicted starting lineup:

Bentley; Doherty, Mosquera, Bueno, Ait-Nouri; Lemina, Doyle; Gomes, Sarabia, Chiquinho; Strand Larsen.

Prediction

Two clubs who harbour strong ambitions going into the next season will clash this midweek to put their players up to speed in tactics, dynamics and fitness.

Wolves are currently the better side winning all three of their preseason matches, scoring seven goals and conceding only one.

What’s more remarkable about Gary O’Neil’s side is their performances- they’re now reproducing the energetic, physical and fast-paced football they showed at the beginning of the recently concluded Premier League season.

Palace on the other hand are not completely out of shape but haven’t entered full gear yet.

However, they still possess attacking threats having scored seven goals in just two matches, and will look to extend their goalscoring streak against Wolves.

We’re predicting a 3:2 win for Wolves.