Goalkeeper Dan Bentley has revealed he is ready for the “Premier League battle” as he strives to make his debut for Wolves.
January signing Bentley is keen to make an impact on the squad this year as he is currently being used as an understudy to Jose Sa.
The 29-year-old English goalkeeper joined Wolves on a two-and-a-half-year deal and believes that he can “compete in the most important and high-pressure games.”
He said: “I didn’t join to be a cup keeper with all due respect to the cups.
“My role here is to compete and try to play in every single game.”
Bentley had spent his last four years as a first-choice goalkeeper at Bristol City, where in that time he won the clubs Player of the Year award for the 2020/21 season.
Bentley was also the club captain for a period of time and believes that he has valuable qualities to bring to the squad.
He said: “My ability as a player first and foremost, and then secondly as a leader, I was the captain at Bristol City, so leadership is something that comes very natural to me.
“Making sure standards are high, helping the captain [Ruben Neves] in the dressing room, all of these things that aren’t necessarily visible to the general public are things that are all natural to me.”
Bentley has not yet made his debut appearance for the club but, is driven to do so making this his priority since joining the club.
“I’m not sitting here with the view that I am now a Premier League player, it might sound strange, but I am a Premier League player when I have played in the Premier League.
“Yes, I’m at a Premier League club, I’m very privileged to be here. But that doesn’t mean that I’ve cracked it.
“It’s a dream ticked off to be at a Premier League club, but the next step is to play in the Premier League.”
Despite not yet achieving his lifelong dream of playing in the Premier League, Bentley has already noticed the differences between the Championship and the topflight.
Bentley said: “There just an aura and a feeling about being in the Premier League that is just slightly different.
“Everything is slightly more intensified, there's a little bit more scrutiny, a little bit more pressure, and training is just that little bit sharper.
“Only very slight differences, but differences that are noticeable for someone who has played in the Championship for six and a half years and has now come to a new level.”
In addition to this, the Englishman also appreciated the step up in the overall quality of his new teammates.
Bentley had particularly high praise toward club captain Ruben Neves and sees him amongst the best he has ever played with.
He said: “He is absolutely unbelievable, first couple of days in training I was almost jaw-dropped at the things he does.
“Some of the passes he sees, I think ‘how has he even seen that, he’s not even looking.’
“But I don't want to do anybody a disservice because this squad is crammed full of talent, but Ruben was one of the first players I noticed that made me think ‘wow, this person is special’.”
Bentley had acknowledged that Neves and the rest of the squad can improve on the results this season and has high aims for next season.
He said: “Challenging as high up the table has got to be paramount, looking forward and not over our shoulders is something that would be a bit more comfortable.
“When I look at our squad and the way this club is run, I think why would you not aim high? So, I think we should aim as high as possible, and just see where that takes us.
“Now if that is Europe and beyond, then fantastic.”
These aims and goals are those of the entire Wolves squad share and are striving to achieve, none more so than manager Julen Lopetegui who joined the club at a similar time to Bentley.
The 29-year-old believed that Lopetegui’s coaching style is already having a positive effect on his game.
Bentley said: “He’s very, very meticulous, looks into a lot of detail. He’s very demanding and he knows what he wants.
“He knows how to get the most out of his players, and that is the most credit I can give to a manager.
“He personally has a positive effect on me for sure, and from what I’ve seen and heard, he’s come in and had a very positive effect and that’s the highest accolade I can give him.”
By Olly Darcy
