Liverpool Vs Wolverhampton FA Cup Football Match Score 2023
Liverpool begin the defence of their FA Cup crown with the visit of Wolverhampton Wanderers to Anfield for Saturday’s third-round match. The Reds enter the clash on the back of a humbling 3-1 loss to Brentford in the Premier League, while Julen Lopetegui’s side were pegged back in a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa. Dreams of an EFL Cup double have already come to an end for Liverpool courtesy of perennial winners Manchester City, and the Anfield faithful may not be all that optimistic about their team’s chances of retaining their FA Cup crown if recent results are anything to go by.
Jurgen Klopp immediately pointed to perceived injustice in Monday’s 3-1 defeat to Brentford, where Ibrahima Konate’s own goal and Yoane Wissa’s header put the Bees 2-0 up before Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain pulled one back early in the second half, only for Bryan Mbeumo to restore the hosts’ two-goal cushion late on. While accepting that the manner of his side’s dreadful showing did not warrant anything other than a defeat, Klopp was left infuriated after Mbeumo’s nudge on Konate before Brentford’s third goal went unpunished, as Liverpool continue to play Champions League catch-up in sixth place in the table. Premier League fortunes take a backseat for the time being as Liverpool begin their quest for successive FA Cup crowns, having overcome Chelsea in last year’s final after only previously getting as far as the fifth round since 2015.
However, the eight-times winners – who are now without a clean sheet in five matches – have gone out in four of their last seven third-round ties while entering the FA Cup as holders, and their most recent exit at this stage coincidentally came at the hands of Wolves in the 2018-19 campaign. A first taste of a West Midlands derby for Wolves manager Julen Lopetegui ended with the spoils shared in a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa, as Daniel Podence’s early effort was cancelled out by Danny Ings 12 minutes from time to leave Wolves in relegation danger. Lopetegui’s start to life at Molineux can certainly be described as unspectacular, with victories over Gillingham and Everton – the latter coming via a last-gasp Rayan Ait-Nouri effort – preceding defeat to Manchester United and Wednesday’s stalemate with Villa.
Only Southampton have performed worse in the Premier League this season than Wolves, who do have four previous FA Cup successes to their name, although not since the 1959-60 season have the West Midlands outfit managed to go all the way in the tournament. Furthermore, only once have the visitors to Anfield managed to beat the reigning holders of the FA Cup – beating Manchester United in the 1949 semi-finals before getting their hands on the trophy – although a three-game unbeaten run away from home ought to stand them in good stead somewhat. As well as eliminating Liverpool in the 2018-19 third round, Wolves also dumped the Merseyside giants out in round four under Klopp in the 2016-17 tournament, but the visitors have suffered seven successive top-flight losses to the Reds since their last cup success.
When it rains, it pours for Liverpool, who lost Virgil van Dijk to what was initially thought to have been a precautionary substitution at Brentford, but the Dutchman is now confirmed to be nursing a hamstring injury and will be out for over a month. The Dutchman is joined in the medical bay by Arthur, Luis Diaz and Diogo Jota, although James Milner and Roberto Firmino will endeavour to come back from their hamstring and calf issues in time for Saturday’s game – the same goes for the concussed Jordan Henderson. There should also be a Reds debut for Cody Gakpo after Liverpool completed the formalities of his transfer from PSV Eindhoven, and the 23-year-old could be brought in from the first whistle amid Liverpool’s lack of options on the left-hand side.
Wolves were also forced into an unwanted half-time change in their last Premier League outing, with Podence coming off at half time against Villa with a knock, although Lopetegui is hopeful that the issue is a minor one. However, midfielder Boubacar Traore has picked up an unspecified problem which could rule him out for a couple of months, joining long-term absentees Chiquinho, Pedro Neto and Sasa Kalajdzic in the infirmary. While still expected to put out an XI capable of going toe-to-toe with Liverpool, Lopetegui could opt to hand Matija Sarkic a start in goal, and there may be a full debut for Atletico Madrid loanee Matheus Cunha. Soccer expert Martin Green has locked in his FA Cup picks and predictions for Wolverhampton vs. Liverpool on Saturday
Defending champion Liverpool look for something positive when they host Wolverhampton at Anfield on Saturday in a 2023 FA Cup third-round match. The Reds beat Chelsea on penalties to win last year’s title and were in the running for the English Premier League crown until the final weekend. Now they sit sixth in the Premier League table and come off a shocking 3-1 loss to Brentford on Monday. Wolves are 19th in the EPL table and primed for a relegation battle but have done well since bringing in a new manager just before the break. They took a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa on Wednesday and have four points from their past three league matches.
This is the Reds’ only shot at glory this season, so they will take it seriously. New signing Cody Gakpo, a World Cup star from the Netherlands, is expected to make his debut. The 23-year-old had three goals in Qatar and scored nine in 14 matches with PSV Eindhoven this season. He will join an attack that features Mohamed Salah (seven EPL goals) and Darwin Nunez (five). Liverpool have scored 34 goals in 17 league matches, while Wolves have scored just 11. Liverpool have won seven straight meetings with Wolves.
Liverpool have had some trouble on the back line but should be able to handle Wolverhampton. Caoimhin Kelleher is expected to get the nod in goal in place of Alisson, and the Irishman was a key part of the team’s cup success last season. He saved three penalties in a shootout victory against Derby County in this year’s EFL Cup before the Reds were ousted by Manchester City. Liverpool won the most recent matchup 3-1 at the end of last season. They held the ball for 63% of the match and outshot Wolves 29-7.
Wolverhampton haven’t had a lot of success against the Reds overall, but it’s a different story in the FA Cup. They have eliminated Liverpool in five of their seven meetings in the competition. In fact, their only two victories in the past 13 meetings came in 2017 and 2019 FA Cup matches. The Reds have gone out four times in their seven third-round matches as the Cup holders. They haven’t beaten Wolves in the competition since 1952.
Wolves have looked improved since Julen Lopetegui took over as manager before the World Cup break, going 2-1-1 overall since then. Their only loss in that span was a tight 1-0 setback to a strong Manchester United side. They beat Gillingham 2-0 in the EFL Cup and knocked off Everton 2-1 before that. Daniel Podence scored his fourth league goal against Aston Villa, and the team hopes he is recovered from a knock suffered later in the match. Atletico Madrid loanee Matheus Cunha could be ready for a full match after playing 25 minutes on Wednesday. He made only eight starts with Atletico last season but had six goals.
