Wolverhampton Wanderers will host Leeds United at the Molineux on Saturday, desperate to pick up their first win of the 2025/26 Premier League season.

Wolves have lost four Premier League matches in a row to start the 2025/26 Premier League, and they will be under a lot of pressure to bounce back strongly vs Leeds United at the Molineux on Saturday afternoon. The home fans will expect a fighting performance from the players, and it remains to be seen whether they can step up and deliver.

Vitor Pereira’s charges will be one of the favourites to go down this season, especially after the way they have started the season. Wolves have been very poor defensively, and they will need to tighten up at the back if they want to survive in the Premier League.

Meanwhile, Leeds United have picked up only one win from four Premier League matches, and they will be desperate for survival as well. The Whites need to start picking up points in these matches if they want to stay up in the top flight.

The 2024/25 EFL Championship winners are unbeaten in four of their last six matches against Wolves, and it will be interesting to see if they can return to winning ways. The Hard Tackle takes a closer look at the encounter ahead of the latest meeting between the two sides.

Team news and tactics

Wolves

Vitor Pereira will be without Ki-Jana Hoever due to a knee injury. Other than that, the hosts have a fully-fit squad to choose from. Wolves are likely to shape up in a 3-4-2-1 formation vs Leeds United, with Jose Sa in goal.

In the back three, Toti Gomes will start alongside Emmanuel Agbadou and Santiago Bueno. Matt Doherty will start as the wing-back alongside David Wolfe. They will look to keep things tight at the back and hit Leeds on the break.

As for the midfield unit, Joao Gomes and Andre will add defensive cover and control to the side from the middle of the park. Fer Lopez and Marshall Munetsi will start as the attacking midfielders here. They will look to link the midfield with the attack and help create opportunities for Jorgen Strand Larsen.

Probable Lineup (3-4-2-1): Sa; Gomes, Agbadou, Bueno; Doherty, André, João Gomes, Wolfe; Lopez, Munetsi; Larsen

Leeds United

Daniel Farke will be without Ao Tanaka due to a knee injury but has a full-strength squad otherwise. Leeds United will shape up in a 4-2-3-1 formation vs Wolves, with Karl Darlow in goal.

Jayden Bogle and Gabriel Gudmundsson will start as full-backs. They will look to help out at both ends of the pitch. Pascal Struijk will form the central defensive partnership alongside Joe Rodon.

As for the midfield unit, Ilia Gruev and Anton Stach will pair up in the double pivot. They will look to keep things compact defensively and add drive to the squad. Noah Okafor will start as the attacking midfielder, and he will look to link up with the striker and create openings in the final third.

Finally, Joel Piroe will lead the line for Leeds United against Wolves, with Daniel James and Wilfried Gnonto on either side of him.

Probable Lineup (4-2-3-1): Darlow; Bogle, Struijk, Rodon, Gudmundsson; Stach, Gruev; Gnonto, Okafor, James; Piroe

Key Stats

• Wolves have lost seven of their last eight matches in the Premier League.
• Leeds United have failed to score in their last three matches in the Premier League.
• 18 goals have been scored in the last six matches between these two teams.
• Leeds United are unbeaten in four of their last six matches vs Wolves.

Player to Watch

Jorgen Strand Larsen

Embed from Getty Images

The Wolves striker is our key player to watch out for. Strand Larsen will need to step up and deliver if the home team wants to pick up all three points. The Norwegian international has been their best player over the last twelve months, and they need him to produce a quality performance here.

Strand Larsen will look to bring his teammates into the game and find the back of the net. It remains to be seen whether he can take advantage of Leeds United’s defensive vulnerability and punish them here.

Prediction

Wolves 1-1 Leeds United

Both teams will be desperate for a victory here, and this will be a close contest. Neither side will want to sit back and defend here. Wolves and Leeds United will look to outscore each other, and they are likely to get on the scoresheet.

Both Wolves and Leeds United have been quite fragile defensively, and this could be an open contest with a fair few chances. However, it will be difficult to separate the two teams on current form. They are likely to cancel each other out and share the spoils in a draw.