Wolves vs Manchester United live: Ruben Amorim targets three points from must-win Premier League clash

Man Utd will once again be without Benjamin Sesko as he continues his recovery from a knee injury, while Harry Maguire remains out until next week at the earliest.

United will have to make a late assessment on both Matthijs de Ligt – who missed the draw with West Ham – and Diogo Dalot, both of whom Amorim said should be available.

The line-ups should be released in the next 10 minutes, so here’s a reminder of the early team news…

Rodrigo Gomes and Leon Chiwome are the long-term absentees for the hosts, with neither back until next year, while the lay-off windows for Fernando Lopez and Marshall Munetsi are unsure after respective adductor and calf strains. Daniel Bentley is still “a few weeks away” from a return too.

Joao Gomes will be suspended after picking up another yellow last time out against Forest, and while Ladislav Krejci is edging closer to a return after a knee injury, this match may come too soon for him.

“No, I don’t know,” replied Ruben Amorim when asked that question.

“Maybe it’s more tactical than physical, to be prepared for fighting for the second ball.

“Maybe because we score a goal, we are a little bit more relaxed.

“I have the feeling that we had the game [against West Ham] under control because the opponent is not even near our box. I don’t know. I have to check.”

Edwards has taken over Wolves in a sticky spot with the club rock bottom of the Premier League with only two points on the board.

He revealed: “We’re in this bad, bad situation, but how do you want this to go? Do you want to fade away, or do you want to fight?

“There are things in our control, that we can do. Fighting, running hard, winning duels, those sorts of things are in our control. You can’t control a win, but you can control the other side, intensity, how often you run forward. Are you sprinting back? Are you trying to take risks? Are you trying to be brave?

“We saw that on the weekend, and we didn’t see it on Wednesday. We’ve got to control the things we can control at the moment, and hopefully then results will come. That’s the biggest message.”

Here’s some pre-match thoughts from Wolves manager Rob Edwards:

“They’ve got loads of really good players. Like every team, they’ll have a clear way of playing, and we’ll be able to have a really good look at it, but I need to focus on us, and I need to see us.

“We’ve got to turn up.

“We’ve got to expect the best Manchester United to turn up, and we have got to. I don’t want to see what we saw on Wednesday’s first half.”

These two sides have met a total of 98 times in the past, with Man Utd winning 47, Wolves winning 34 and 17 ending as draws.

Wolves won both matches last season, beating United 2-0 at home on Boxing Day before securing a double over Ruben Amorim’s side with a 1-0 win at Old Trafford in April.

Manchester United had failed to push on this season when they’ve had opportunities to move up the table.

It’s a frustrating thing for Amorim who has yet to discern a reason for the fumbling nature of their performances.

“I don’t know. I think it’s a clear fact, but I think it’s not a mental thing,” Amorim said,

“I think they are not thinking, ‘We are going to top five’. No, no. I think it’s some moments we play good, sometimes we play bad and we are not getting the results.”

Ruben Amorim has defended his decision to marginalise Kobbie Mainoo by saying he does not pick the Manchester United team on the basis of big names and cannot choose players just because they are England internationals.

Mainoo is one of only four senior players in Amorim’s squad who are yet to start a Premier League match this season, along with third-choice goalkeeper Tom Heaton, Tyrell Malacia — who was not even training with the first team in the summer —and Lisandro Martinez, who is just back from a long-term injury.

Ruben Amorim also spoke about the preparations for tonight’s Premier League clash with Wolves and admitted that ‘anything can happen’.

“Everything can happen, and that will change,” said the United manager.

“There is no team in the Premier League history that didn’t win one game. So, it can be any game.

“So, we need to try to improve, to rest the players, work really well, and prepare a tough match because, with us, it’s always a tough match.”

Man United led the Hammers 1-0 on Thursday, when defender Diogo Dalot struck just before the hour mark in the Premier League clash.

But Soungoutou Magassa equalised for the visitors inside the final 10 minutes, snatching a draw for a relegation-threatened West Ham at Old Trafford.