Wolverhampton Wanderers host Charlton Athletic at Molineux on Saturday afternoon looking to avoid losing three Championship fixtures in a row.
Charlton have started the season in fine style, coming through their opening six matches in all competitions without defeat, and the Addicks will be confident of extending that record to seven games in the Black Country.
Wolverhampton Wanderers
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After registering four points from their opening two games, there was plenty of optimism at Wolves, but that has now disappeared to some extent with defensive problems costing the team a number of points and transfer interest in Benik Afobe only intensifying, despite the club insisting that the striker isn't for sale.
Despite Norwich City making three offers for his signature, the signs are there that the England Under-21 international will stay, but supporters are demanding improvements at the back, with individual mistakes contributing to their defeats to Queens Park Rangers and Cardiff City.
For the opening 30 minutes against QPR, Wolves were superb and looked like promotion contenders, but since then they have conceded five goals, three of which were due to errors attributed to goalkeeping duo Emiliano Martinez and Carl Ikeme.
Martinez returned in the League Cup against Barnet in midweek and delivered a much-needed uneventful display, but it is proving to be a problem area for boss Kenny Jackett, as is the centre of defence while skipper Danny Batth remains absent through injury.
Jackett has insisted that he doesn't expect any incomings before the end of the transfer window, but much could depend on Saturday's performance as Wolves can ill afford another defeat at this stage of the campaign.
Recent form: WDLL
Recent form (all competitions): WWDDLW
Charlton Athletic
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Charlton ended last season with just one win in seven games, which saw expectation levels fail to rise under the guidance of recently-appointed manager Guy Luzon, but it's a whole different story at The Valley this time around.
The Addicks have put together an unbeaten run of six games in all competitions, four of which have been wins. They will still be realistic regarding their hopes for this season, but so far, they have arguably been the most impressive team at the second tier of English football.
Their two home triumphs in the Championship have come against Queens Park Rangers and Hull City - teams who graced the Premier League last season - while they have achieved draws away at promotion hopefuls Derby County and Nottingham Forest.
It has been an exceptionally difficult start so Luzon and his players deserve huge credit for coming through it without tasting defeat, and even without a couple of first-team players last weekend against Hull, they were able to break down a team boasting the best defence in the division.
They aren't setting the world alight where goals are concerned, but Luzon has made the Addicks difficult to beat. They have only lost seven times in 26 games since he took charge, and they will believe that they can make it seven in 27 outings when they travel to the West Midlands.
Recent form: WDDW
Recent form (all competitions): WWDDWW
Team News
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Jackett has revealed that only midfielder Jack Saville has been ruled out of this weekend's match through an injury picked up against Barnet in midweek.
Midfield pair Jed Wallace and Tommy Rowe could make the bench after making their first appearances of the season, while Nouha Dicko should be recalled in place of Adam le Fondre.
Luzon has revealed that he will be without Tony Watt for the third game in the space of a week as he continues to nurse an injury issue.
However, Chris Solly, who missed the victory over Hull, is expected to take his place in the squad.
Wolverhampton Wanderers possible starting lineup:
Ikeme; Doherty, Stearman, Ebanks-Landell, Golbourne; Coady, McDonald, Edwards, Henry; Afobe, Dicko
Charlton Athletic possible starting lineup:
Pope; Cousins, Bauer, Diarra, Fox; Ceballos, Ba, Kashi, Bergdich, Gudmundsson; Makienok
Head To Head
In 50 previous meetings between the two sides, Wolves have prevailed in half of those fixtures with 25 wins, with Charlton registering victory on just 15 occasions.
However, since their return to the Football League in 2012, Wolves are yet to beat Charlton in four attempts, although three of those matches have ended in draws.
Wolves are unbeaten in the last four games staged at Molineux, with the last time they tasted defeat to the Addicks at home coming on their Premier League debut in 2003.
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Hit play below to see what the Sports Mole Sofa had to say about this encounter:
We say: Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-1 Charlton Athletic
A few weeks ago, Wolves would have been clear favourites for this fixture, but their poor recent form, especially in defence, leaves Charlton with every chance of picking up a result. The visitors will undoubtedly take more confidence into the game, but Wolves need a result and we believe they will do enough for a draw.
Darren Plant
