Wolverhampton Wanderers head into Saturday's Premier League showdown with Tottenham Hotspur looking to get back on track after two successive defeats in the top flight.
Spurs make the trip to Molineux having already suffered a setback against Manchester City at the start of the week, and Mauricio Pochettino's side start the weekend five points adrift of the leaders.
Wolverhampton Wanderers
© ReutersWolves went from being regarded as a newly-promoted side to being seen as genuine contenders for a European place in the space of a couple of months, but the last two games have resulted in the expectation at Molineux returning to a more realistic level.
The club will still be delighted with having recorded 15 points from their opening 10 games in the top flight, but losing to Watford and Brighton & Hove Albion without troubling the scoresheet has shown that there is much work ahead.
Succumbing to Watford at Molineux could have been partly due to a number of players being heavily involved for their respective nations during the international break, but Nuno Espirito Santo's team failed against Brighton due to their performance in front of goal.
That has been a common theme throughout this campaign with Wolves failing to score more than two goals in a single game all season, and Nuno's team have not netted a first-half goal since Ruben Neves's free kick against Everton on the opening day.
Both streaks - particularly the latter - must come to an end sooner rather than later, and Wolves will have to rediscover the form which secured them a point against both Manchester clubs if they are to end their losing streak this weekend.
Nuno finally made his first change to a Premier League starting lineup last weekend, and it is likely to be his creative midfielders where he looks to make alterations against Spurs.
Two goals and no assists have come from the quartet of Diogo Jota, Helder Costa, Adama Traore and Ivan Cavaleiro, and Nuno must find a solution to improve how the ball is being used in the final third.
The defence has - so far - looked tight, but Wolves have required a bit of luck to restrict Everton, Manchester City and Watford to five goals between them in previous home encounters, and Spurs' attacking contingent will only pile the pressure on Nuno's three-man backline.
Recent form: WDWWLL
Recent form (all competitions): DDWWLL
Tottenham Hotspur
© ReutersTottenham Hotspur have been far from their best for much of this season, but there are still signs that Pochettino's men are not too far away from putting in a run of form which can get them back up the standings.
Any setbacks which they have suffered during the current campaign have come from failing to take their opportunities or contributing to their own downfall at the back and if those issues can be resolved, it should lead to an upturn in results.
Losing out to Man City on Monday night was considered to be a huge disappointment but like in their home fixture against Barcelona in the Champions League, the end result would have been different had they taken full advantage of clear opportunities after the break.
Each of their attacking players have been guilty of failing to take their chances but with Son Heung-min having ended his lengthy goal drought and Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli back on the scene, Spurs are close to being back at full strength in the final third.
Pochettino will not be too concerned with being five points off the pace at this stage of the season, but the Argentine will be aware that his team must take advantage of games at Wolves and Crystal Palace before the double-header with Chelsea and Arsenal.
A maximum return at Molineux and Selhurst Park would ease the pressure heading into the two London derbies against their fierce rivals, games which come either side of a potentially crucial Champions League encounter with Inter Milan.
That said, Pochettino would have been encouraged by how his second string performed against West Ham United in the EFL Cup on Wednesday evening, and this busy period could leave the long-serving boss needing to make full use of his squad in order to keep his side in contention in several competitions.
The short-term focus will be on trying to overcome a well-fancied Wolves side, but Pochettino will acknowledge that the fixture has the potential to make or break their chances when it comes to launching a realistic challenge on the Premier League title.
Recent form: LWWWWL
Recent form (all competitions): LWWDLW
Team News
© ReutersAlli successfully came through over an hour against West Ham on Wednesday night, and the England international could be preferred to Eriksen who lasted 84 minutes.
Lucas Moura and Erik Lamela could both return with Pochettino also having an eye on the Champions League clash with PSV Eindhoven, while Harry Kane will come back into the team in place of Fernando Llorente.
Davinson Sanchez will remain in the back four and Kieran Trippier, Toby Alderweireld, Ben Davies and Mousa Dembele should all return in defence and midfield, but Eric Dier has been ruled out until after the international break.
Nuno is unlikely to make any alterations to his backline or midfield, but Cavaleiro is pushing for his first Premier League start of the campaign after four substitute outings.
Jota has been sidelined with an unspecified injury, so either Costa or Traore are likely to take the other creative role in attack.
Wolverhampton Wanderers possible starting lineup:
Patricio; Bennett, Coady, Boly; Doherty, Neves, Moutinho, Jonny; Cavaleiro, Costa, Jimenez
Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:
Lloris; Trippier, Sanchez, Alderweireld, Davies; Wanyama, Dembele; Moura, Alli, Lamela; Kane
Head To Head
Saturday's fixture will represent the 94th competitive meeting between the two clubs, with Spurs registering 46 wins in comparison to 27 victories for Wolves.
The teams have only met on eight occasions since 2003, and Wolves have registered two triumphs and two draws from those contests.
However, Spurs are unbeaten in the last four, and their last visit to Molineux in 2011 ended in a 2-0 win courtesy of goals from Emmanuel Adebayor and Jermain Defoe.
We say: Wolverhampton Wanderers 1-2 Tottenham Hotspur
Wolves are well-equipped to make this game difficult for Spurs but unless they improve in front of goal, this match could pass them by. The recent return of Eriksen and Alli could prove to be crucial in this fixture, and we are backing Spurs to edge out the West Midlands side.
