West Ham v Wolves preview: Bruno Lage looks to lift Wolves after Emirates heartbreak
Bruno Lage is preparing his side for a stern West Ham test as they aim to quickly overcome their Arsenal hangover.
It is a swift turnaround for Wolves as they make theie second trip to the capital within four days, following Thursday’s collapse at the Emirates.
Heading to the London Stadium tomorrow, Wolves face a West Ham side out of form – with only one win in their last five league games.
But Lage understands the danger they can pose and is eager for his team to prepare correctly for a key game in the hunt for European football.
Lage said: “They have done very well. He (David Moyes) has come and changed everything.
“This year they are doing very good things. They were on a good run and then we beat them, but we cannot forget what they are doing in the Premier League and in the Europa League.
“It’s been a fantastic season for them and we have to go there with the same mentality to play against a strong team with a big manager who has a lot of experience.”
Despite the majority of fans feeling disappointed in how Wolves played against Arsenal, Lage publicly defended his players and insisted he was proud of the way they played – prompting the head coach to call for a similar performance tomorrow.
“It’s one more game,” he added.
“Football is crazy, just look at the last five games. We beat Tottenham, they beat Man City and then Burnley beat Tottenham. That’s why in the Premier League every game is hard to win.
“We need to prepare the game in the best way and that’s why it’s so important that we play again like we did (against Arsenal). That’s our target. When you have 40 points in the middle of February, and the way we are playing, scoring goals and finding consistency, our fans and everyone else thinks maybe we can achieve more.
“People can dream about that and what I can promise them is that we’ll continue to work. We have to create our chances and score goals.”
Wolves will likely face West Ham without in form defender Nelson Semedo, after he limped off with a potentially serious injury, which is suspected to be his hamstring.
The right-wing-back needed assistance from the medical staff to walk down the tunnel and was replaced by Jonny Castro Otto, marking his injury return.
Ki-Jana Hoever has not been in the squad for the last two games but could start tomorrow if the game comes too soon for Jonny.
“(We have) Jonny and Ki,” Lage said. “It was also in our mind (to consider rotating) because it is hard to play against Arsenal and West Ham from Thursday to Sunday. It was in our mind to see which players recover better and put some fresh legs in the game.
“These kind of things happen and that’s why I want a squad with competition, so we can always take the best decision.
“If we don’t have Semedo we will find a good solution for Sunday.”
