Everton team news: Sean Dyche confirms key figure 'could' return for Wolves clash

Everton manager Sean Dyche confirmed that there is a chance Abdoulaye Doucoure could return to action against Wolves, but there is a 'risk vs reward' situation with his current injury.

The Toffees fell to a 3-1 defeat at Goodison Park against Manchester City in their most recent outing despite taking an early lead through Jack Harrison. Goals from Phil Foden, Julian Alvarez and Bernardo Silva condemned Dyche's side a second straight defeat following their loss to Spurs last time out.

Despite fielding a strong eleven, Dyche opted to start Beto before bringing on Dominic Calvert-Lewin in the second half but he was without Dele Alli, Doucoure, Idrissa Gueye and Ashley Young for the game.

Next up is a trip to face Gary O'Neil's Wolves side at Molineux who are fresh off a 4-1 away victory over Brentford, but both sides have injury concerns ahead of the clash.

Everton team news

The Everton manager was quizzed over the absences of both Calvert-Lewin and James Tarkowski from training today but he was quick to reassure the fans that they both suffered small knocks and that both will be available for the Wolves trip.

Dyche also confirmed that Gueye has a calf issue and is not available for this weekend and they are waiting to see how it improves and he revealed that early signs are promising as it isn't as bad as they first thought.

Another key figure in Doucoure could be in line for a return; Dyche claimed it was a 'risk vs reward' situation with the midfielder who is currently out with a thigh injury. He has missed their last three games but the Everton boss gave hope that he could feature against Wolves as he said they will make a decision prior to the game.

Ashley Young has also been absent for the last four games but he was spotted on the grass and training with the squad this week. However, Dyche said that he is still a 'little bit away' and that they are hopeful he can secure a return 'pretty quickly'.

Wolves team news

Wolves' top scorer Hwang Hee-chan was forced off deep into first-half injury time, although O'Neil confirmed that he was only suffering from a back spasm but it remains to be seen if he will be available given he is set to depart for the Asian Cup in January. Also potentially absent are Craig Dawson who is a doubt due to a knee laceration, but it is confirmed that defender Jonny has been removed from the group due to a training-ground incident. There's also doubts over two other players due to illness with Fabio Silva and Boubacar Traore who could also miss out. Outside of that, Wolves boast a strong squad in good form in what will be a tough test for Dyche's side.