Dawson could be replaced by an exciting £4 million player, changing Wolves’ formation.
After crushing Tottenham Hotspur before the international break, Wolverhampton Wanderers will be looking to win two straight games in the top flight for the first time this season when they take on Fulham tonight.
Nevertheless, Craig Dawson, who received too many yellow cards this season, will miss the trip to Craven Cottage, one of the highlights of Wolves’ display against Spurs in London.
Head coach Gary O’Neil may opt to make a bold tactical move that would impact the entire team in the short term, or he may simply look to replace the former West Ham United defender with someone similar.
This season’s stats for Craig Dawson
Dawson’s suspension loss is a major setback for both O’Neil and the Wolves collectively. The seasoned center-half spent the last three years with West Ham during the most successful period in the Hammers’ history since the Premier League’s inception. He moved to Molineux back in January for a meager sum of £3.3 million.
Even though Dawson hadn’t played for the east London club in five months, he managed to earn himself a Europa Conference League winner’s medal in June.
When compared to all other center-backs in Europe’s top five leagues, the 33-year-old ranks well above average in a wide range of critical defensive metrics. He has been a rock at the back for the Old Gold over the past year.
Dawson 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 because he is especially effective when defending in his own box.
A couple of weeks ago, Wolves secured the win over Spurs thanks to the veteran’s two completed tackles, four aerial duels, and one blocked shot among the opposition’s six on goal. However, without Dawson’s defensive brilliance, the Midlands club will have to settle for a draw at Fulham.
Carlos Sarabia’s figures In their victory over Tottenham two weeks ago, Wolves used a 5-3-2 formation this season, with Dawson positioned in the middle of the back three and Toti Gomes and Max Kilman on either side of him for support.
During the pre-game press conference, O’Neil acknowledged that the most comparable player to replace Dawson would be the £8.5 million summer acquisition Santiago Bueno, who hasn’t made a single Premier League start.
It might be considered a risk to put the 25-year-old defender in the deep end this week as he has only played six minutes for Wolves this season, coming off the bench during a 1-1 draw away at Luton Town back in September. O’Neil, however, also has the choice to alter the team’s configuration entirely.
Prior to the international break, Wolves’ 5-3-2 against Spurs was quite effective; however, O’Neil has also opted to set up his team in a 4-2-3-1 this season. The absence of Dawson may allow O’Neil to switch back to a back four, dropping Rayan Ait Nouri deeper as a left-back and moving Toti alongside Kilman in the middle of the defense to create space for Pablo Sarabia on the wings. However, the former Bournemouth manager may not want to make changes to a winning team.
Like Dawson, Sarabia moved to Molineux in January for £4.4 million, but he has only made two Premier League starts this season and has not established himself as a mainstay in the starting lineup. Despite this, the Spanish playmaker has five assists across all competitions this year. For Wolves, only Pedro Neto has made more boasts.
Joe Cole praised the 31-year-old’s leveller as “brilliant” after he came off the bench to score the equalizer and assist on the winning goal, changing the game for Wolves last time out. In O’Neil’s 4-2-3-1, Sarabia’s starting would also force Hwang Hee-chan to switch to the right wing, leaving Matheus Cunha alone up top. Nevertheless, this could provide the visitors with a nice combination of playmaking skill and goal scoring on the flanks.
Even though O’Neil might not be eager to alter a winning team, Sarabia’s demands to start following his valiant late performance against Spurs will be hard for the coach to reject.
