Premier League 
/ Lee Dixon / 11 February 2012 / Leave a Comment 
Kevin Doyle scored the winner against 10-man QPR last week
"A single goal may well be enough to settle this one between two somewhat nervy relegation-threatened sides and I think Wolves will be the ones getting it. "
This may not be the best match you'll see all weekend in terms of quality but these are desperate times for these two sides and it's Wolves who get the nod to win it, says Lee Dixon.
Wolves' defeat at home to Liverpool a couple of weeks ago was hugely disappointing all round for them, whereas the week before they lost at home to Aston Villa in a match they would certainly have got something from had they not had Karl Henry sent off. But they benefited from a sending off themselves away at QPR last week and turned a one goal deficit into a win. Mick McCarthy won't be too concerned about the circumstances of that win and will see the result merely as a springboard from which to go on a good run that can help his side beat the drop.
Match Odds
McCarthy has said he's had enough of 'heroic defeats'. You know, the ones where you're the better team for most of the match but concede two goals from just about the only two shots your opponent has on target or conceded in the last minute when you were on top. At this stage of the season he'd much rather win ugly than draw or lose pretty so it may be that this match ends up being one of those that should be best avoided by the so-called 'purist'.
West Brom may actually prefer to be playing away because their results on the road have actually been better of late than those at the Hawthorns. But Opta tells us they've kept just the one clean sheet away from home in the last 31 away matches so the stats are stacked against them being able to keep one here. A single goal may well be enough to settle this one between two somewhat nervy relegation-threatened sides and I think Wolves will be the ones getting it.
But if this match doesn't quite pan out that way and Wolves go a goal behind, don't lose faith in them salvaging at least something from it. Opta say no side has recovered more points (13) from losing positions than Wolves in the top flight this season. Whether that's Mick McCarthy's ability to motivate his players to believe they can get something out of a game from losing positions or high levels of fitness throughout the team that mean they can keep on going till the bitter end, is obviously up for debate. Either way, if the Baggies go a goal up, you may want to think of reaching for that lay button and opposing West Brom in-play.
There's no doubt that Kevin Doyle is very much McCarthy's sort of player. Tough, hard-working, dedicated, honest and professional. Very much the sort of player McCarthy was himself. The goals have admittedly dried up a bit for the Republic of Ireland international since his Reading days and he hasn't always been first-choice in the Wolves XI of late but he was the man who instigated that comeback last week after coming off the bench, with an assist for the equaliser and popping up with the winner himself. He may just get the nod to start this one after that performance and I wouldn't be surprised if he marks his return to the starting line-up with the game's opening goal.
2 pts Back Wolves to win @ [2.62]
Lay West Brom in-play if they take the lead
1pt Back Kevin Doyle to be first goalscorer @ [9.0]
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