Nuno Espirito Santo’s self-styled Wolves can hurt Liverpool after rediscovering their mojo
Having defeated Chelsea and drawn with both Manchester clubs and Arsenal, Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have provided evidence aplenty they are already very much at home competing with England’s elite
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Your support makes all the difference.A trip to Molineux may not have been Jurgen Klopp’s most pressing concern when first assessing Liverpool’s diary for December. Yet, having already safely navigated their way through the small matter of those derby duels against Everton and Manchester United, another challenge to the Premier League’s solitary remaining unbeaten record potentially awaits against Wolves on Friday night.
Having defeated Chelsea and drawn with both Manchester clubs and Arsenal, Nuno Espirito Santo’s side have provided evidence aplenty they are already very much at home competing with England’s elite.
That victory over Maurizio Sarri’s Blues marked the start of a sequence of three successive top-flight wins – the first time the club has done so since 1980 – and while Liverpool will present a sterner challenge than Newcastle or Bournemouth, head coach Santo has warned there is no chance of his side deviating from his firm philosophies.
“The confidence we have is that we compete the same against all the opponents. That doesn’t change (based on who we play),” said the Portuguese, who will be without injured forward Diogo Jota (hamstring) for the game.
“But it’s not how you perform against those clubs that can make us better against Liverpool. We have to forget what we did in the past, focus on the present. It’s a new opponent and challenge.
“It’s a big challenge for us, we’re prepared. They’re top of the league, it says we’re going to face one of the best teams in Europe, we look forward to it.
“Everybody can see what Klopp is doing and the way Liverpool plays and what they’re achieving and building. We will be facing one of the best teams in Europe at the moment. What a game.”
Maximum points from their last three games has been a resounding response to their previous return of one point from a possible 18. Having struggled during that run to break down the likes of Brighton and Huddersfield, who were happy for them to have the ball, they again appear to have rediscovered their mojo.
“It makes you proud that when you have a bad moment – credit to the players – we solved it,” Nuno said. “It doesn’t mean it can’t happen again, but we are ready.”
Well-drilled defensively, Wolves are quite comfortable with the opposition having possession and, whether it be a killer pass from Joao Moutinho or Ruben Neves or a searing run from Adama Traore, boast a squad well-equipped to punish sides on the counter-attack.
Iin 18-year-old Morgan Gibbs-White, they have a rare find. Always willing to play the positive pass, he has shown no fear of late regardless of the opposition. A shift to deploying him as a No10, flanked by Raul Jimenez and Jota in recent weeks has paid dividends.
And in Jimenez, on loan from Benfica, they have secured one of the signings of the summer. Level on Mohamed Salah for assists (four) and with five goals to date, including two in his last three matches, the Mexico international has impressed with his tireless energy and movement and ability to hold up the ball and bring others into play.
Jimenez certainly personifies the work rate at the very core of the Nuno’s philosophy – much as it is the same for Klopp. Wolves are third in the division for successful interceptions (233). The former Porto and Valencia manager has struck a balance between grit and guile.
Moutinho, a renowned technician, is a case in point. The midfielder has made the sixth-most tackles (51) in the league this term. Ireland defender Matt Doherty, meanwhile, has emerged as a fantasy league favourite with three goals, and is sixth in the division for aerial battles won (94).
Now seventh, a mere point adrift of Manchester United, they have already accumulated the same number of points (25) than their previous top-flight campaign in 2012 which unravelled so disastrously, ending with relegation.
This current side, make no mistake, is an altogether different proposition to any previous Wolves team of the Premier League era. Not that Nuno – or the Black Country club’s ambitious Chinese owners – have any intention of stopping here.
“I think we are growing and getting better,” Nuno said. “We are trying to take things step by step. We don’t look too much ahead. We had a goal last season that was game by game and in the end it got us promoted. This is where we will go now. Again we will go game by game.
“All the club is taking steps forward in that direction, creating the right infrastructures, all the things the players need. On that point we have to feel pleased – but it isn’t over yet.”
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