Wolverhampton Wanderers face Fulham tonight in the Premier League, looking to put two consecutive wins together in the top flight for the first time this season, having put Tottenham Hotspur to the sword prior to the international break.
However, one of the stars of Wolves’ showing against Spurs will be absent in London as Craig Dawson is suspended for the trip to Craven Cottage for picking up too many yellow cards this term.
In the short term, head coach Gary O’Neil could simply look to make a like-for-like replacement for the ex-West Ham United defender, but the manager could also choose to make a bold tactical decision which would affect the rest of the team.
Craig Dawson’s stats this season
Losing Dawson through suspension is a big miss for O’Neil and for Wolves as a whole. The experienced centre-half moved to Molineux back in January for a nominal fee of £3.3m, after spending the last three years with West Ham in what was the most fruitful spell of the Hammers’ history since the Premier League began.
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In fact, Dawson even earned himself a Europa Conference League winner’s medal in June despite the fact that he hadn’t featured for the east London club for five months.
The 33-year-old has been a rock at the back over the past year for the Old Gold and ranks well above average in a whole host of key defensive metrics when compared to all other centre-backs across Europe’s top five leagues.
Craig Dawson
Per 90 Metric
Percentile Ranking
Blocks
94
Shots Blocked
99
% of Dribblers Tackled
81
Clearances
75
Passes Blocked
80
Shots
83
Shots On Target
74
Stats via FBref.
Dawson is particularly efficient when defending in his own box, hence why he ranks in the top 6% for blocks per 90, the top 1% for shots blocked per 90 and the top 25% for clearances per 90.
Against Spurs a fortnight ago, the veteran completed two tackles, competed in four aerial duels and even blocked one of the opposition’s six shots on goal as Wolves clinched the victory in the game’s dying stages. Nevertheless, the Midlands club will have to make do away at Fulham without Dawson’s defensive nous.
Pablo Sarabia’s stats this season
Wolves deployed a 5-3-2 formation in the win over Tottenham two weeks ago, with Dawson employed in the centre of the back three, supported by Max Kilman and Toti Gomes either side of him.
Speaking in his pre-match press conference, O’Neil admitted that the most like-for-like replacement for Dawson is £8.5m summer signing Santiago Bueno, who has yet to make a single start in the Premier League.
The Uruguayan defender has featured for just six minutes for Wolves this season, coming off the bench during a 1-1 draw away at Luton Town back in September and so it could be seen as a risk to throw the 25-year-old into the deep end this week. However, O’Neil also has the option to change the team’s formation completely.
Wolves’ 5-3-2 worked wonders against Spurs prior to the international break but O’Neil has also chosen to set his side up in a 4-2-3-1 this term. While the former Bournemouth boss may not want to change a winning team, the absence of Dawson could allow O’Neil to revert to a back four by shifting Toti alongside Kilman in the heart of the defence and dropping Rayan Ait Nouri deeper as a left-back, freeing up the wings for Pablo Sarabia.
Sarabia moved to Molineux in January for £4.4m, like Dawson, but has failed to become a regular in the first eleven, having made just two starts in the Premier League this term. Nevertheless, the Spanish playmaker has registered five assists this season in all competitions. Only Pedro Neto has boasted more for Wolves.
The 31-year-old changed the game for Wolves last time out, coming off the bench to score the equaliser and assist the winner, leading Joe Cole to label his leveller as “brilliant”. Sarabia starting would also cause Hwang Hee-chan to push over to the right wing in O’Neil’s 4-2-3-1, leaving Matheus Cunha alone up top, although this could offer a nice blend of goalscoring and playmaking brilliance on the flanks for the visitors.
While O’Neil may not be keen to change a winning side, it will be difficult for the coach to ignore Sarabia’s calls to start after his heroic late display against Spurs.