Chris Sutton predicts result of ‘tough’ game between Arsenal and Wolves

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Arsenal and Wolverhampton Wanderers will get their respective Premier League campaigns under way at the Emirates Stadium on Saturday.

Arsenal, who finished second in the table last season, will be eager to hit the ground running as they look to win the Premier League title at the third attempt.

Meanwhile, Wolves will be hoping to kick on after finishing 14th in the standings last term, though they will start the season two star players down.

Max Kilman swapped Molineux for West Ham earlier this summer, while Gunners summer target Pedro Neto has joined Chelsea.

BBC Sport pundit Chris Sutton has previewed and predicted the results of each Premier League game in the first matchweek.

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Chris Sutton backs Arsenal to beat Wolves

The pundit, writing on the BBC Sport website, believes the Gunners will get the better of Wolves in north London.

Sutton also spoke about Arsenal’s title hopes, saying he expects them to start the season well, but acknowledging that ultimately the trophy is Manchester City’s to lose.

“Many people are tipping Arsenal to win the Premier League and in some ways I understand why,” he began.

“But their title hopes really come down to what Manchester City do, and if they dip or not.

“Mikel Arteta’s side can not do much more than last season, when they took the title race to the final day, but they really need to get off to a flyer. I think they will.

“Wolves were another team who faded badly in the final few weeks of last season but their manager, Gary O’Neil, still exceeded expectations after taking charge only days before it started.

“He has got some work to do on his squad because they still need to replace Pedro Neto and Max Kilman, who both left in the summer, and this is a tough game for them to kick off with.”

In terms of the scoreline, Sutton backed Arsenal to run out 2-0 winners over Wolves.

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Arsenal v Wolves team news

As per the Arsenal website, both Fabio Vieira and Jurrien Timber could be in contention after missing the Lyon friendly last Sunday with hip and foot issues respectively.

Takehiro Tomiyasu has been out with a knee injury, missing out on the Gunners’ pre-season campaign, and looks like he’ll be out for the next few weeks.

Kieran Tierney also sat out Arsenal’s pre-season matches after picking up a hamstring injury at Euro 2024 for Scotland.

As for Wolves, Matheus Cunha is back in training and will be available after recovering from a hamstring injury.

Likewise, Mario Lemina and Jorgen Strand Larsen should be fit despite having suffered knocks in their friendly with Rayo Vallecano.

Nelson Semedo is suspended after his red card against Liverpool on the final day of last season.

Youngsters Leon Chiwome and Enso Gonzalez are also out, while Daniel Podence is a doubt due to a knee injury.