Wolves vs. West Brom: Raul Jimenez ruled out of Black Country derby, Cesar Peixoto justifies EFL Cup risk

Wolverhampton Wanderers head coach Cesar Peixoto has insisted that Raul Jimenez "needed to play" in Wednesday's EFL Cup tie at Everton.

Ahead of Sunday's Black Country derby with West Bromwich Albion, Peixoto made sweeping changes to his starting lineup and Wolves ultimately succumbed to a 1-0 defeat to their Premier League opponents.

However, it was a knee injury sustained by Jimenez during the first half at the Hill Dickinson Stadium that has left supporters more disappointed.

Questions have been asked over why Peixoto felt the need to use his first-choice forward in a cup fixture four days prior to the club's biggest game of the season.

As per the club's official website, Peixoto justified his decision to select the Mexico star, who will also miss his nation's upcoming matches versus Colombia, Peru and USA.

Wolves boss Peixoto speaks on Jimenez injury

The Portuguese says that there was a plan in place for the 35-year-old to be substituted at half time.

He said: "He was only going to play 45 minutes, like [Ladislav] Krejci. Raul needed to play because he didn’t play 90 minutes in the last game.

"It’s not a muscular injury, but he has a small injury to his knee and we’ll be without him for a few weeks. For sure, that’s bad news for us.

“Raul is Raul. He’s a key player for us and unfortunately, he has this injury. We’re frustrated and Raul himself is frustrated too. But he knows he needed to play and get some minutes to maintain his fitness for the next game.

"At his age, we have to manage his minutes, but playing too few minutes isn’t good either. I spoke with him before the game and told him he would only play 45 minutes. It’s something that could have happened in training and tonight it happened in the game."

Nervous wait for Jimenez and Wolves

Although it is a clear blow that Jimenez will miss the showdown with West Brom, Wolves will feel a sense of relief that a three-week break follows the match at Molineux.

If Jimenez's injury proves to be relatively minor, that period could theoretically allow him the time to recover and try to be ready for the game at Middlesbrough on October 10.

However, Wolves will naturally be fearful that the club legend could face a longer stint on the sidelines.

He has made five starts and four substitute outings across all competitions this season, scoring three goals.