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New on Sports Illustrated: Arsenal-Wolverhampton Preview

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta expects "a nice test" at Molineux on Tuesday despite Wolves' concerning run of form.

Wolves won 2-1 at Emirates Stadium in November, a result which took the visitors up to sixth and left crisis club Arsenal way down in 14th.

But the two sides' respective fortunes have changed since then, with Wolves now 14th and winless in eight.

Meanwhile, Arsenal are 10th and have not lost since before Christmas, yet Arteta is still wary of the threat this week's opponents pose.

"We're expecting a tough game," he said.

"They're a side that have improved so much over the years and have picked up some great results against the big teams, so it will be a nice test again for us."

Wolves have been without star striker Raul Jimenez due to a serious head injury, but Arteta feels all teams are struggling with such issues.

"We are all getting affected by injuries, by coronavirus, by all the things that are going on," he said.

"It's really difficult to play a starting XI twice in a row. It's the same for every team."

And opposite number Nuno Espirito Santo is not looking for excuses, acknowledging Wolves must improve.

"It takes commitment, belief and actions," he said. "When we speak about raising our standards, it's because our standards are very high.

"We expect to do it over and over again. We have to face our problems and address them. We want to perform better."

Wolves hope new signing Willian Jose can have a part to play in a better end to the season.

Nuno added: "He has brought experience and knowledge. He is a wonderful guy. We have some barriers to overcome, but we'll do it together."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Wolves - Daniel Podence

Badly missing Jimenez, Wolves were also without Podence for almost a month before he returned at Chelsea last week. Since Jimenez's last Molineux goal, Podence is one of only two Wolves players to score multiple times at home in the Premier League. He also hit the winner at Arsenal in November.

Arsenal - Alexandre Lacazette

Lacazette is a man in form for Arsenal right now - particularly away from home. He has scored in each of his past three Premier League away games for four goals in total. His previous four away goals in the competition came over a period of 25 games between March 2019 and December 2020.

KEY OPTA FACTS

- Following their 2-1 victory at Emirates Stadium in the reverse fixture, Wolves are looking to complete their first league double over Arsenal since 1978-79.

- Arsenal have won eight of their past 10 top-flight away games against Wolves (D1 L1), as many as they had in their previous 30 visits to Molineux (D8 L14).

- Wolves have lost their past two Premier League home games, last losing three in a row at Molineux in November 2018.

- Arsenal have won each of their past three Premier League away games, more than they had in their previous nine on the road (W2 D1 L6). The Gunners have not won four consecutive away league games since October 2016 under Arsene Wenger.

- Only Fulham (10) are on a longer current run without a Premier League victory than Wolves (eight - D3 L5).

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