Winless Wolves back in search of maiden as Hammers visit.
Wolverhampton Wanderers vs. West Ham United kicks off at 15:00 [GMT] on Saturday, January 3, 2026, at the Molineux.
Bottom-placed Wolves [LLLLD] and 18th-placed West Ham meet at the Molineux for this bottom-table clash. After enjoying a dominant spell against the Hammers across 2018-19 and 2019-20, when they won four Premier League meetings in a row, Wolves have since found things far tougher. They’ve managed just three wins from the last 10 league encounters, losing the other seven, although they did edge this exact fixture 1-0 back in April. Home advantage has not consistently favoured Wolves in this matchup. West Ham have won on five of their last seven Premier League visits to Molineux, with only two exceptions interrupting that run – a 3-2 Wolves win in April 2021 and a 2-1 victory for the Hammers as recently as April 2024. Wolves remain winless after 19 Premier League games, drawing three and losing 16, a run that places them among the worst starts to a top-flight season in English football history. Only Bolton Wanderers, who went 22 games without a win in 1902-03, have endured a longer wait for a first victory from the start of a season. Wolves’ ongoing drought is particularly stark; only four teams in Premier League history have gone longer without a clean sheet from the start of a campaign. Issues persist at both ends too, with Wolves scoring only four of their league goals in the second half of matches, the fewest in the league both in raw numbers and proportionally. Even by Wolves’ own recent standards, this has been a bruising period, compounded by defensive frailties and a lack of cutting edge late in matches. They will be on the hunt for their maiden season victory here when they appear with the 3—5—2 formation, having Tolu Arokodare and Hwang in attack.
After back-to-back wins at the start of November, West Ham [DLLLD] are now winless in eight Premier League games, drawing four and losing four. That sequence represents their longest such run since a nine-game spell between March and May 2011. Wolves have yet to keep a single clean sheet this season, while West Ham have managed just one – the joint-worst tallies in the division. There are, however, familiar individual narratives. West Ham boss Nuno Espírito Santo faces his former club unbeaten in four Premier League meetings, including two previous wins at Molineux with Tottenham and Nottingham Forest. On the pitch, Jarrod Bowen remains a key figure, having scored six Premier League goals against Wolves – more than against any other opponent. Putting an end to their winless drought comes at the top of the priority list. A 4—3—2—1 with Callum Wilson in attack is expected.