Wolverhampton Wanderers and Everton will both be aiming to build on victories in the FA Cup when they lock horns in the Premier League at Molineux on Tuesday evening.
Nuno Espirito Santo's side saw off Crystal Palace 1-0 to advance to the fourth round, whereas Everton needed extra time to overcome a dogged Rotherham United side.
Match preview
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Wolves danger man Adama Traore has not enjoyed the most fruitful of campaigns so far, but the 24-year-old's thunderous effort proved decisive against Palace as Nuno's side booked their spot in the next round of the FA Cup on Friday evening.
The West Midlands outfit ended a four-game losing streak across all competitions with that slender victory on their own turf, and Nuno will be desperate to see that momentum continue on Tuesday as the hosts aim to arrest a worrying slump.
The absence of Raul Jimenez is well and truly felt at Molineux, with his stand-in Fabio Silva failing to make a name for himself in the English game, and Nuno has called on the youthful Portuguese attacker to be more clinical as he finds his spot under threat from the returning Patrick Cutrone.
With only one win from their last seven in the top flight, Wolves have slipped to 13th in the table and now find themselves seven points adrift of the top six, but the hosts would temporarily leapfrog Arsenal and Leeds United with a much-needed win on Tuesday.
Wolves' attacking problems are evident with Jimenez out and Daniel Podence sustaining a recent knock, and they have hardly fared any better at the other end of the pitch either. Santo's men have shipped at least one goal in their last 10 Premier League matches - only basement team Sheffield United have endured a longer run without a clean sheet.
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Everton also progressed to the fourth round of the FA Cup courtesy of a one-goal victory, but the Goodison Park faithful would have been expecting a much more dominant display from their side against Rotherham on Saturday.
Carlo Ancelotti rang the changes as expected, but the Toffees could not get the better of their Championship opponents over 90 minutes as Matt Olosunde cancelled out Cenk Tosun's opener.
Tosun then thought he had struck the winner before it was ruled out after a VAR review, but Abdoulaye Doucoure bagged the decisive goal in the 93rd minute to ensure that Everton would be in the hat for the fourth-round draw.
The Toffees' narrow win over Rotherham follows an equally slender victory over Sheffield United and defeat to West Ham United in the Premier League, so Everton supporters may not be looking ahead to this tie with a great deal of optimism as they occupy seventh spot in the table, although they have witnessed their team win four of their last five in the top flight.
Ancelotti's side are one of four Champions League-chasing teams sitting on 29 points at this stage, so a point would be enough to see them break back into the top four before Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur take to the pitch a day later.
Everton were humbled by Wolves in a 3-0 defeat when the teams last met back in July, and Saturday's hosts have only ever lost one Premier League game against the Toffees on familiar territory.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Premier League form: LWLDLD
Wolverhampton Wanderers form (all competitions): WLDLDW
Everton Premier League form: DWWWWL
Everton form (all competitions): WWLWLW
Team News
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As mentioned, Wolves attacker Podence suffered a calf injury against Manchester United and will not be returning to action for at least another couple of weeks.
Wolves' two long-term absentees Jimenez and Jonny Otto are joined by Marcal - who is nursing a groin problem - but fellow defender Willy Boly has a slim chance of returning here.
John Ruddy enjoyed a rare appearance against Palace but will make way for Rui Patricio here, and Nuno could very well trust Cutrone from the first whistle here following Silva's wastefulness in front of goal.
Everton midfielder Allan remains in the infirmary and will likely be ready for action again before the end of the month, while the injury-plagued Fabian Delph and Jean-Philippe Gbamin are still sidelined.
Ancelotti will also welcome his first-choice goalkeeper back for this one as Jordan Pickford demotes Robin Olsen to the bench, while Mason Holgate and Yerry Mina should return to the rearguard.
Richarlison is expected to come back in after being rested against Rotherham, but Ancelotti has revealed that Dominic Calvert-Lewin will miss out due to a hamstring problem.
Wolverhampton Wanderers possible starting lineup:
Patricio; Semedo, Coady, Saiss, Ait Nouri; Neves, Moutinho, Dendoncker; Traore, Cutrone, Neto
Everton possible starting lineup:
Pickford; Coleman, Mina, Holgate, Digne; Doucoure, Davies; Iwobi, Rodriguez, Richarlison; Tosun
We say: Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-2 Everton
With Everton set to welcome a number of key players back for this showdown, the hosts' leaky defence could be in for a taxing 90 minutes at Molineux. The absences of Podence and Jimenez will continue to affect Wolves on the attacking front, and while this is sure to be a close game, Everton should do enough to eke out a vital win.
Top betting tip
Video prediction
Watch the Sports Mole Football Shorts prediction for this game below:
Ben Knapton
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Everton win with a probability of 37.64%. A win for Wolverhampton Wanderers had a probability of 34.59% and a draw had a probability of 27.8%.
The most likely scoreline for a Everton win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.29%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (8%) and 0-2 (6.9%). The likeliest Wolverhampton Wanderers win was 1-0 (10.71%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.09%). The actual scoreline of 1-2 was predicted with an 8% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Everton would win this match.
