What was the situation like when the league was suspended on 13 March? With a relatively small squad, Wolves were widely expected to struggle this season as they combined domestic duties with a Europa League campaign, so Nuno Espírito Santo deserves immense praise for leading them to sixth in the table – higher than last season’s seventh-place finish – while advancing to the last 16 of the Europa League, where they will resume with a home leg against Olympiakos after drawing the first 1-1. The effect of good coaching, on top of individual quality, is clear from the versatility that the team have regularly shown, especially when adapting earlier in the season to injuries to key players such as Matt Doherty, Willy Boly and Diogo Jota. The belief that invigorates the squad was apparent in their last away match before the lockdown, as they twice came from behind to win 3-2 at Tottenham.
What is the situation like now? As well as Wolves have done to sustain high-class performances in spite of an onerous workload, a period of enforced rest is likely to have benefitted a team whose 47 competitive matches this season amount to more than any other team in the league. The squad is fully fit.
What needs to be done for Wolves to have a successful end to the season? There is very little wrong with Wolves but one welcome addition in January would have been another creative central midfielder. Brighton scrounged a 0-0 draw at Molineux just before the lockdown and Newcastle and Burnley frustrated them in similar ways this season. Even with João Moutinho and Rúben Neves in strong form, it would have been handy for the manager to have another inventive central option, at least to spring from the bench, especially with matches against Burnley and Crystal Palace among their remaining fixtures. On the plus side, Wolves’ only major recruit in January, Daniel Podence, has impressed in his brief outings, suggesting that Wolves have significantly enhanced their threats from out wide, where they can already call on the exciting and diverse talents of Adama Traoré, Pedro Neto and Jota, all of whom can create chances for the excellent Raúl Jiménez as well as score themselves. Wolves can be confident of carrying on from where they left off.
Have the players and staff behaved during lockdown? Mostly, but the 20-year-old midfielder Morgan Gibbs-White had to face the music after being pictured at a house party in London during May.
Any unsung/community heroes? The club’s owner, Fosun, has made four big donations of personal protective equipment to medical services in the city since March. In addition, the manager and his players chipped in to make a six-figure cash donation to the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust.
Key player in the run-in? Traoré. His development into one of the most dangerous attackers in Europe has been one of the most thrilling features of this season. He started the campaign thriving in an unfamiliar role – at wing-back in place of the injured Doherty – and since then has wrought havoc from other positions, usually on the wing but sometimes in a central role. He has, then, demonstrated the tactical cleverness that he previously lacked. He has also improved his end product, delivering more successful crosses than any other player in the league and chipping in with four league goals, including three in a couple of wins over Manchester City. Those numbers do not convey the sheer excitement of the way this phenomenal player lays waste to opponents.
End-of-season-prediction Another laudable finish, and glory in Europe.
Remaining fixtures (all times BST): Sat 20 June West Ham (a) – 5.30pm, Sky Sports Weds 24 June Bournemouth (h) – 6pm, BT Sport Sat 27 June Aston Villa (a) – 12.30pm, BT Sport TBC Arsenal (h), Sheffield United (a), Everton (h), Burnley (a), Crystal Palace (h), Chelsea (a)
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Liverpool | 29 | 45 | 82 |
| 2 | Man City | 28 | 37 | 57 |
| 3 | Leicester | 29 | 30 | 53 |
| 4 | Chelsea | 29 | 12 | 48 |
| 5 | Man Utd | 29 | 14 | 45 |
| 6 | Wolverhampton | 29 | 7 | 43 |
| 7 | Sheff Utd | 28 | 5 | 43 |
| 8 | Tottenham Hotspur | 29 | 7 | 41 |
| 9 | Arsenal | 28 | 4 | 40 |
| 10 | Burnley | 29 | -6 | 39 |
| 11 | Crystal Palace | 29 | -6 | 39 |
| 12 | Everton | 29 | -9 | 37 |
| 13 | Newcastle | 29 | -16 | 35 |
| 14 | Southampton | 29 | -17 | 34 |
| 15 | Brighton | 29 | -8 | 29 |
| 16 | West Ham | 29 | -15 | 27 |
| 17 | Watford | 29 | -17 | 27 |
| 18 | AFC Bournemouth | 29 | -18 | 27 |
| 19 | Aston Villa | 28 | -22 | 25 |
| 20 | Norwich | 29 | -27 | 21 |
