Wolverhampton Wanderers boss Julen Lopetgeui says Liverpool have a ‘big advantage’ over his side this weekend.
The two teams are set to meet in the FA Cup third round at Anfield on Saturday. Wolves head into the game on the back of a 1-1 draw with Aston Villa last night. Liverpool, meanwhile, played two days earlier, losing 3-1 to Brentford on Monday.
And speaking to wolves.co.uk after yesterday’s game, Lopetegui railed against Liverpool’s extra rest.
“We are still improving and now we have to improve our numbers of players in the squad because in three days we play again against Liverpool, a team who has played two days before us and this I don’t understand,” he said.
“It’s such a big advantage for them. We played two days after the opponent and I don’t understand this, but I have to accept it.”
Welcome to English football, Julen! It may be an advantage for Liverpool, but with Jurgen Klopp certain to field a much-changed team, it shouldn’t matter too much.
Liverpool given chance for FA Cup revenge
Wolves have started to look a little better since the arrival of Lopetegui as manager. It is perhaps just as well for Liverpool that they have the extra rest.
Judging by the Reds’ performances at the moment, they’ll certainly need it. Despite their lowly position in the table, Wolves are never an easy game.
Many Liverpool fans will remember them humbling Anfield twice in recent history. Both teams were very different 13 years ago in December 2010, when Wolves pulled off a 1-0 win over Roy Hodgson’s Liverpool.
They followed that up with an FA Cup fourth round win over the Reds in 2017. Still in the Championship at the time, that was a signal of a team on the up.
It’s also worth pointing out that Wolves beat Liverpool in the FA Cup third round in 2019, too. That was at Molineux, as goals from Raul Jimenez and Ruben Neves knocked Klopp’s side out.
So, Wolves do have form here. But Liverpool are perhaps due a little bit of revenge. With Premier League survival now the priority for Lopetegui, it’s likely that we’ll see an unfamiliar line-up from him on Saturday. On the back of Monday’s Brentford debacle, Liverpool have to make their advantage count.
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