Prediction & odds for the game: Wolverhampton Wanderers (9/20) v West Bromwich Albion (7/1) – ST is backing the home win

When: Saturday, 16th January @ 12.30pm K.O

Where: Molineux Stadium

For the first time in almost nine years, Wolverhampton Wanderers will play West Bromwich Albion in the Black Country derby when the two meet on Saturday.

Wolves

Wolverhampton Wanderers are far less stable than they were towards the end of last season and a lot of the blame for that is being directed towards the manager – although it must be said that it does feel as if there’s a distinct split in the fanbase over this issue. Either way, they’ve waited almost a decade to try and get revenge on their bitter rivals, and supporters aren’t going to accept anything other than a passionate and committed performance this weekend.

The win over Crystal Palace in the FA Cup has been one of the only real positives for Wolves fans in recent weeks, because while they did draw against Tottenham and Brighton, you could argue they should’ve won both games based on the way they went. They’ve also had defeats to Burnley and Manchester United thrown in there, in addition to a disappointing loss against a weakened Everton side last night.

West Brom

The mission statement for West Bromwich Albion this season is pretty simple – stay in the top flight of English football and do it by any means necessary. Things haven’t quite gone to plan for them thus far as the currently have just eight points to their name, but with extra time to prepare for this huge Black Country derby in comparison to Wolves, they’ll go into Molineux with no fear and the hope that they can spring the upset.

It’s almost hard to believe the Baggies have picked up a point against both Manchester City and Liverpool in their last few games because outside of that, it’s been a miserable time for their fanbase. They were battered by Aston Villa, Leeds and Arsenal in the space of just a few weeks, conceding 12 goals in the process, before being beaten by third tier Blackpool on penalties in the FA Cup.

Conclusion

The hope for Wolves fans is that Nuno Espirito Santo will understand the weight of this fixture and the emotion that fans pour into it because Sam Allardyce will certainly know how much it means to Baggies fans. We think this is going to be a really tight game with both teams having their fair share of chances, but when push comes to shove, Wolves will just about be able to edge out a win that could turn their entire Premier League season on its head.

Our official scoreline prediction is going to be 2-1 Wolves, ensuring we hit the over 2.5 goals bracket.

Verdict: Back the home win at odds of 9/20 and the over 2.5 goals scored at odds of 11/10 (All odds are taken from bet365).

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If you want to bet on Wolves vs West Brom then head on over to the betting page. Alternatively, you can check out some of the other available fixtures at the soccer predictions page as we continue through the journey of an incredibly unpredictable Premier League campaign.