Paul Merson backing Wolves to beat drop

Paul Merson today backed Wolves to beat the drop after he tipped Wigan, Bolton and QPR to be relegated from the Premier League.

Wolves are currently a point above the drop zone, but the former Villa and England midfielder believes they will not be one of the three sides to fall to the Championship.

"I think Wigan, Bolton and QPR are the three teams from the Premier League that will go down at the end of the season," said Merson.

"QPR have some hard fixtures coming up, Wigan have been hanging round the bottom for too long and this will be their time to go.

"And I think Bolton just can't score a goal and let in too many, which is a recipe for relegation.

"I think Wolves will stay up. I like Steven Fletcher and think he is a good player who will be crucial for them, but they have decent players.

"Someone like Kevin Doyle will also step up to the plate now. He scored against Newcastle the other week so I think there will be a few more performances from him.

"They are often better against the big teams at home because the shackles come off a little bit and they play much better stuff then."

See also:

• New Wolves boss Terry Connor ‘ready for step up’

• John Ward is backing Terry Connor for the long haul

• Wolves announce £7m drop in profits

• Terry Connor: My Wolves team believe in me