EPL Week 1: Arsenal Take on Wolves
Arsenal vs Wolves EPL Odds: Gunners Heavy Favorites for Season Opener
Wolves Lose Neto to Chelsea
Arsenal fell just short of first place in the Premier League in 2023-24 but took the title race to the final day of the season. The Gunners finished only two points behind Manchester City last season and will be looking to break Man City’s four-year title streak this time around.
Arsenal’s 2024-25 EPL campaign kicks off on Saturday against Wolves, who just shipped off key contributor Pedro Neto to Chelsea. As Wolves head to North London, we’ll take a look at the Arsenal vs Wolves EPL odds.
Arsenal vs Wolves
Date & Time: Saturday, August 17th, 10:00 a.m. ET
Location: Emirates Stadium, London, England
Head-to-Head
Arsenal won both of their Premier League matches against Wolves last season and the EPL scores have gone Arsenal’s way in each of the last six meetings. They last met at the Molineux in April, as the Gunners won 2-0 behind goals from Leandro Trossard and Martin Odegaard. The Arsenal vs Wolves EPL odds priced the Gunners as -165 favorites for that match.
Wolves have only been victorious on one of their last 16 trips to North London.
Arsenal Ready for Title Challenge
2023-24 Season:
- Premier League: 28-5-5 (2nd)
- Champions League: Quarter-Finals, lost 3-2 (agg.) to Bayern Munich
- FA Cup: Third Round, lost 2-0 vs Liverpool
- EFL Cup: Fourth Round, lost 3-1 vs West Ham
Injuries/Absences:
D Jurrien Timber (Foot), D Takehiro Tomiyasu (Knee), M Fabio Vieira (Hip)
All signs point to Arsenal challenging for the Premier League title once again. In 2024-25, all of the Gunners’ key players are returning, and they brought in defender Riccardo Calafiori from Bologna to further bolster their squad.
While Arsenal may not have a traditional number nine, they still managed to score 91 goals last season. With the joint-best goal difference in the league, Arsenal finished in second place in the English Premier League standings.
Kai Havertz, who started 2023-24 playing as a left-sided eight, switched to striker and managed nine goal contributions in his final nine games of the season. With Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard in midfield, and Gabriel and William Saliba in defense, Arsenal look to be set for years to come.
Meanwhile, Mikel Arteta will be hoping for another productive season from winger Bukayo Saka, who has been improving with each passing season. When Arsenal are favored, as they are here, they tend to play a high-pressing game and keep a whole lot of the ball.
Breaking down a low block is sometimes a challenge but Arsenal have players like Gabriel Martinelli and Leandro Trossard who can produce something out of nothing.
While Takehiro Tomiyasu is out with a knee issue, Jurrien Timber and Fabio Vieira are both listed as questionable.
Wolves Place Trust in O’Neil
2023-24 Season:
- Premier League: 13-7-18 (14th)
- FA Cup: Quarter-Finals, lost 3-2 vs Coventry City
- EFL Cup: Third Round, lost 3-2 at Ipswich Town
Injuries/Absences:
D Nelson Semedo (Suspension), F Matheus Cunha (Hamstring)
Saturday was an eventful day for Wolverhampton Wanderers. While they offloaded winger Pedro Neto to Chelsea in a club record sale, Wolves also extended manager Gary O’Neil contract. The higher-ups at the club certainly trust O’Neil can keep Wolves in the EPL and compete for Europe without a big budget.
They also sold center back Max Kilman to West Ham early on in the transfer window and have raised over €100 million this Summer. No big names have come in the door, as Wolves have signed youngsters Rodrigo Gomes and Pedro Lima from Braga and Sport Recife, respectively.
Wolves also brought in Celta Vigo’s Jorgen Strand Larsen, who scored 13 goals last season, on loan. Plus, center back Yerson Mosquera is returning from a loan at Villarreal. While there’s potential here, Wolves still need a center back to round out their depth.
Against Arsenal, defender Nelson Semedo is suspended, while forward Matheus Cunha is in the process of recovering from a hamstring injury he suffered in preseason. In any case, Wolves went just 5-4-10 on the road on the 2023-2024 Premier League schedule.
Match Analysis & Odds
Arsenal picked up 47 of a possible 57 points at home last season in the Premier League. They know from the last two title races that every matchday counts and there’s little margin to error when competing against Manchester City. So, expect the Gunners to want to make a statement and come out firing to start the season.
For Saturday’s match, Arsenal are -500 favorites, while Wolves come in as +1250 underdogs and a draw is priced at +575. Arsenal kept seven home clean sheets in 2023-24, and a “no” on both teams to score is at -160 odds.
Still, over 2.5 goals sit at -210 Arsenal vs Wolves EPL odds, as Arsenal are 1.5-goal favorites. Bettors can take Arsenal -1.5 at -175, while Wolves +1.5 is at +120 for what could be a difficult road match for the visitors.
