The Brazilian striker, who put pen to paper on a season-long loan deal on Tuesday, scored the only goal of the game to give Wolves all three points and ensure that Nuno Espirito Santo's tenure began with a victory.
Bontani pounced upon a mistake by Middlesbrough defender Daniel Ayala before clinically dispatching his finish past Darren Randolph.
"I'm very happy to score on my debut, but I'm mainly happy because we won against a very strong opponent and we've got off to a good start," he said.
"I didn't expect to receive the ball from the defender, but mistakes can happen at any time and you have to be ready.
"I just tried to put the ball as far away from the goalkeeper as I could and I was very happy when I saw the ball go in.
"It's a great win and a great start, but now we know we need to improve on things as well.
"For example, we don't want to suffer in the last few minutes like we did today - we have to make things easier for ourselves.
"Having said that, we know Middlesbrough are a very difficult team to play against so we're very happy."
After a whirlwind week, Bonatini admitted to tiredness before he was replaced by Nouha Dicko just before the hour mark, but said that the support and encouragement he received from his team-mates has been typical of the warm welcome that he has enjoyed since signing.
He continued: "In the last ten minutes of the first half I was tired, but my team-mates helped a lot. They've been amazing with me all week - from my first day here I felt very much at home.
"It doesn't feel like I've only been here for a week. It's like a family here, which is important as we have a long season with many games, and we need to be together.
"I was pleased to repay my team-mates with a goal today and I hope to support them during the season as they have supported me."Â When asked to describe his debut, Bonatini called the experience 'amazing', also praising the 29,000-strong Molineux crowd which provided stunning vocal backing for the home side from first whistle to last.
"The stadium was full and the atmosphere was amazing," he said.
"We need to fans to support us like that and we will play for them as we did today.
"Sometimes we will make mistakes, but their support makes it easier to recover when you do make a mistake.
"I'm very happy to be here and I'm sure we can have a very good season."
7th August 2017
Matchwinner Leo Bonatini praised the spirit and togetherness amongst the Wolves squad after he enjoyed an 'amazing' debut for the club against Middlesbrough at Molineux on Saturday.
