Wolves vs. Manchester United Betting Tips: Tackles and shots feature in Molineux best bets

Wolves moved off the foot of the Premier League with a late win at Everton on Boxing Day and Julen Lopetegui's side will look to notch back-to-back wins when they host Manchester United at Molineux. Our man Scott Thornton previews Saturday's early kick-off and picks out his two best bets...

Wolves secured a vital win over Everton in their last match. Julen Lopetegui will have been delighted to make a winning start but the performance wasn’t quite up to scratch. His side failed to control possession and will be hoping to step it up on Saturday.

Wolverhampton are now in 18th place, one point from safety. The appointment of Lopetegui is a huge lift for the club. There is enough quality in the team for them to navigate their way to safety this season.

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Manchester United brushed aside Nottingham Forest in their return to Premier League action. Anthony Martial and Marcus Rashford got their names on the scoresheet as the team began life after Cristiano Ronaldo. However, it was Casemiro who stole the show. The Brazilian dominated the midfield and will be key to any success the team has for the remainder of the season.

United were very fortunate to win at Molineux last season. Wolves had several great chances but they were unable to capitalise. They will be hoping to put in a similar display this season on the way to getting a result. However, a lot has changed at both clubs since that meeting.

Wolves failed to control the ball against Everton. They had just 41% possession against a side that are usually reluctant to press an opponent further up the field. This is something that Lopetegui will look to change over time but points are all that matters at this stage.

United should have plenty of the ball on Saturday and this will lead to Wolves tackles. Wolverhampton had 19 tackles on their trip to Goodison and they are averaging 17.88 tackles per game in the Premier League this season.

Wolves had 16 tackles in this fixture last season. Ten Hag’s side have shown signs of improvement and their last four opponents have made 18, 16, 18 and 18 tackles. Rashford, Martial and Antony are set to start. They have the pace and dribbling ability to further inflate the tackle numbers.

Wolves are averaging just 9.88 shots per game when playing in front of their own fans this season. In Lopetegui’s opening league match, they managed just seven shots. United’s opponents this season are averaging 12.4 shots per game. Only Fulham have managed 14 or more shots against Ten Hag’s side in their last eight matches.

I expect Wolves to keep it tight when these sides meet and offer very little in the early stages of the match.

Our longer odds bet features the same angles as the main bet. This bet landed with ease in Wolves last match. They had 19 tackles and managed just seven shots on their trip to Goodison Park.

Wolves are averaging 17.2 tackles in their last 10 matches and have had 18 or more in four of those. They are also averaging just 10.8 shots per game over that period. They have had 14 shots or more in one of their last 10 matches.