Bournemouth v Wolves Match Preview – Premier League 2025/26 | Form, Injuries, Lineups & Prediction

Bournemouth v Wolves Match Preview: Bournemouth and Wolves meet at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday afternoon with both sides desperate to get their first points of the new campaign. The Cherries showed flashes of attacking brilliance in their opening fixture at Anfield, with Antoine Semenyo’s brace pulling them level before Liverpool’s late surge sealed a 4-2 defeat. It was a reminder of Bournemouth’s growing firepower, but also of their ongoing defensive fragility.

For Wolves, the season began in brutal fashion as they were swept aside 4-0 by Manchester City, a performance that raised questions about their attacking threat without Matheus Cunha and highlighted how vulnerable their backline could be against top-tier opposition. Vitor Pereira’s men will be determined to bounce back quickly, knowing that dropping points early could set the tone for another relegation battle.

This clash brings two teams with contrasting approaches but similar ambitions together: Bournemouth aiming to build on last year’s progress, and Wolves fighting to steady themselves after a summer of change. Both need a response, and with the history of this fixture delivering drama in recent seasons, Saturday promises to be a pivotal encounter for both.

Current Form

Bournemouth come into their opening game at home after suffering a 4-2 defeat at the hands of the reigning Premier League champions. Antoine Semenyo‘s brace managed to bring the game back to 2-2 before the Reds found two late goals, demonstrating the Cherries’ impressive attacking play despite conceding four goals.

as one that left the Wolves howling in pain as City stuck them for 4 without reply and never really looked like they got out of second gear, a horrible start to life without Matheus Cunha but they will be hoping that 3 points on the road will help ease any nerves of a potential relegation fight this season.

Bournemouth v Wolves Match Preview: Head-to-Head

The head-to-head on this fixture is split down the middle, as both clubs sit on 5 wins each with 3 draws, the only thing separating the two sides.

In the most recent Premier League game, Matheus Cunha made the difference for Wolves, as his strike 5 minutes after an Illia Zabarnyi red card was enough to see them over the line at the Vitality.

Wolves didn’t get all the joy over the Cherries last year, as Justin Kluivert made history when he became the first player ever to score a hat-trick of penalties in a Premier League game as Bournemouth ran out 4-2 winners at the Molineux.

Injury news & Suspensions

Bournemouth;

• Enes Unal – out (ACL Injury)
• Justin Kluivert – doubt (Calf Injury)
• Lewis Cook – out (Knee Injury)
• Luis Sinisterra – doubt (Hamstring Issue)
• Ryan Christie – doubt (Groin Injury)

Wolves;

• Enso Gonzalez – out (Knee Injury)
• Fabio Silva – doubt (Knock)

Manager Quotes

Coming Soon…..

Predicted Lineups

Bournemouth

Petrovic; Smith (C), Diakite, Senesi, Truffert; Adams, Tavernier, Scott; Brooks, Semenyo, Evanilson.

Wolves

Sa; Hoever, Doherty, Agbadou, Gomes (C), Moller-Wolfe; Andre, Gomes; Arias, Bellegarde; Strand-Larsen

Key Battles

• Semenyo v Moller-Wolfe: Semenyo tore Liverpool’s defence to shreds last week and will be licking his lips at the prospect of getting to attack a defence that shipped 4 last week. Moller-Wolfe is new to the league and will have a rough introduction to the league in the opening two fixtures.
• Midfield Battles: Wolves have two outstanding midfielders in Andre and Gomes who will deservingly be entitled to big money moves should Wolves regain their Prem status this season but both will have their hands full with Alex Scott of Bournemouth, who has exceptional talent and is really one to watch to see beautiful football.
• Strand Larsen v Senesi: Strand Larsen is my dark horse pick for surprise star this season and he will be looking to propel Wolves up the table with his goalscoring prowess, great movement, a killer poacher instinct and a massive frame built for English football. The striker has all the qualities to cause Marcos Senesi serious problems for 90 minutes.

Predicted Scoreline

Bournemouth 4-1 Wolves

Everything points to a comfortable home win for Bournemouth who will be looking to build on the promising season from last year. I can see an easy 4-1 for the Cherries, with Semenyo making a lot of FPL managers very, very happy.

Possible Goal scorers: Semenyo x2, Evanilson, Tavernier; Strand Larsen.

Match Details

When: Saturday 23rd August, 3:00pm Kick off (BST)

Where: Vitality Stadium

Competition: Premier League, Round 2

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