Pre-season training | Week four round-up

27th July 2024

Wolves have entered into their second phase of pre-season this week with Gary O'Neil's side heading across the pond for their 2024 USA tour.

Following a week in Marbella and another back at Compton Park, it's another chance for the players to get prepared for the 2024/25 campaign in sunnier climates as the squad jetted across the Atlantic for a fortnight in Miami.

And wolves.co.uk has rounded up everything that has been going on around the training ground as well as in Miami during the fourth week of pre-season.

Saturday 20th July

The fourth week of pre-season started with just a second friendly outing for the squad as Bristol City paid a visit to Compton Park for a training game, which allowed O'Neil to ramp up the minutes in the players' legs.

It was a 120-minute match of four 30-minute quarters against the Championship outfit, allowing several of the squad to play an hour of football, having split the team up for each half. This built on the 45 minutes the players experienced against Como out in Marbella.

The first-half Wolves side toom a 1-0 lead into the break thanks to Matheus Cunha's well-placed effort from distance, before Hee Chan Hwang and an own goal in the second half made it a comfortably victory for the Old Gold.

Four goals scored and none conceded from the opening two training matches has seen a good return from the start of pre-season for O'Neil's side.

#Summer2024 #WolvesInUSA

Sunday 21st July

Following the match against the Robins on Saturday, there was no let off for the players, who would usually be given the day after a game off to help start their recover.

But the squad were not put through their paces as much as they had been the previous few weeks with double sessions most days, allowing the players a chance to get ready for a busy period out in the USA.

Monday 22nd July

Monday saw further double sessions put on the agenda for the players, as training continued to increase in intensity ahead of the America tour.

O’Neil was getting the most out of his players ahead of the visit to the USA, which will see the players not complete as many double sessions as they also try to fit in three competitive matches and contractual commercial opportunities.

During Monday evening, Wolves supporters were given the chance to go behind the scenes at Compton Park with Joao Gomes, as the latest documentary from Wolves Studios was released.

Joao Gomes: The Pitbull provided incredible insight into the life of the Brazilian international and his relationship with his teammates and head coach, as well as revealing what it’s like to be a professional footballer with a speech impairment.

Tuesday 23rd July

Wolves are heading stateside for the first time in 43 years!

With a whole host of players, coaching staff and the backroom team jetting out to the US, the travelling group was split into two for the journey across the Atlantic.

After an early morning start for half of the squad, the first group set off from London Heathrow at 11am. However, the second group - including O'Neil and his coaching staff - were allowed a lie-in as they arrived into Miami International later in the afternoon.

Once all the squad were over in Florida, they reunited at their Fort Lauderdale base ahead of spending a first evening together on US soil.

Wednesday 24th July

After a day off from training on Tuesday as the squad set off to the US, it was straight back to work for the players as they made a new home for the next two weeks at Inter Miami’s state-of-the-art Florida Blue Training Centre.

The squad will share the facilities with the team owned by David Beckham while Miami prepare for their Leagues Cup fixtures – the annual tournament which sees clubs from the MLS and Mexico’s Liga MX compete – as they look to retain the title they won last season.

After settling into their new surroundings, the players also had to spend Wednesday getting used to the Florida conditions in training.

Although the temperatures were not yet hitting the heights they experienced in Marbella two weeks ago, the humidity was off the charts, meaning a trip to the pool, or the beach in some cases, was more than needed following a double training session.

Thursday 25th July

With the Miami heat and humidity continuing to prove a challenge for the squad, Thursday saw the team’s training reduced to just one morning session.

But that didn’t stop O’Neil from putting the side through their paces in preparation for Saturday’s opening Stateside Cup clash with West Ham United up in Jacksonville.

After training, the entire travelling group, including all players and backroom staff got to experience a water taxi boat tour around the 'Venice of America' in Fort Lauderdale.

The afternoon allowed the group to relax and spend time bonding ahead of the new season, where they were even joined by club legend Steve Bull, who was spotted giving some tips to new number nine Jorgen Strand Larsen!

Friday 26th July

The news broke on Friday that Wolves’ new captain for the 2024/25 season would be none other than midfield maestro Mario Lemina, who takes the armband following the departure of Maximilian Kilman to West Ham.

In an exclusive interview with the Wolves Express podcast, Lemina and his head coach explained how they had come to the decision and why the Gabon international was the best man for the job.

Just the one training session awaited the players on Friday, as the squad were soon back at the hotel for their lunch before flying out to Jacksonville to get their Stateside Cup campaign underway against Kilman’s new side on Saturday evening.

During their first night in Jacksonville, the players got involved in their first commercial event of the tour, with Tommy Doyle, Pablo Sarabia, Hugo Bueno and Jorgen Strand Larsen taking part of a meet and greet in the city, while Bully headed over to Culhane’s Irish Bar for a pre-match party.

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“I took to the project, and I believe in it a lot. I will do everything for the fans.”

Matheus Cunha