City take on Wolves at the City of Manchester Stadium on the back of an opening day 2-0 Premiership win at Blackburn and also winning a friendly game against Barcelona at the Nou Camp. Wolves however, arrive at COMS following a 2-0 home defeat to West Ham on the opening day, but recorded a 1-0 victory at Wigan in midweek.
The blues have found Wolves difficult opposition over the years; in 1987, the Black Country side visited Maine Road in the Littlewoods Cup, where an error by City keeper Eric Nixon condemned the blues to defeat. However, City made up the deficit in the second leg, winning 2-0 at Molineux and winning the tie 3-2 on aggregate.
The Wolves held the upper hand over the blues in the 90’s until Kevin Horlock gave Kevin Keegan’s side a 1-0 win at Maine Road in2002, while Shaun Wright-Phillips put City on the brink of promotion the same season as the blues won the return game 2-0.
Wolves last foray into the Premiership was for the 2003/04 season when they gained their first win of that campaign against a lacklustre blues side. The two teams met again in a relegation dogfight and Wolves raced into a 2-0 lead, only for the blues to peg them back at 2-2. The visitors then missed a penalty before retaking the lead. Not to be beaten in front of their supporters, City rallied and the game finished 3-3.
The blues look like they have returned from Spain relatively unscathed but will again be missing Roque Santa Cruz, who has targeted the Manchester derby for his blues Premier League debut.
Wolves have always been a difficult side for City to get past but with the new signings, City should prove too much for the Premiership newcomers.
Prediction: Another clean sheet for Shay: City 3-0 Wolves