Legendary Wolves goalkeeper Carl Ikeme is fully confident Vitor Pereira’s side will hit the ground running next season after a positive end to the current campaign under the Portuguese.
Ikeme has been back at Compton Park this week after being invited to cast an eye over first-team and under-21 training ahead of starting his coaching badges this summer, as the keeper looks to ‘give back’ to football.
And having witnessed a Pereira coaching session up close and personal ahead of the visit to Crystal Palace on Tuesday night, Ikeme feels the team is in safe hands.
On the impact Pereira has made
“Since Vitor has come in you can see the difference he has made. He’s instilled a lot of confidence back in the team and a lot of stability and discipline as well.
“He’s brought a steady, sort of calmness to the ship, because I felt like at the start of the season, there were moments in the games where we looked like a good team, and you could tell that it wasn’t that we had bad players, but it just wasn’t going right, unfortunately, which can happen in football. But I think Vitor has bought a lot of confidence.”
On improvements to the squad
“The lads look a bit freer as well, freer going into the games and he’s brought about stability. Stability is the main one because we were leaking a lot of goals as well and since he changed the formation as well, that has helped us to settle down and stay in games.
“That was a problem at the start of the season, we just weren’t giving ourselves a chance to win games or to get points at times. Sometimes it’s just about being able to stay in games. But we’ve got match winners in the team, with Matheus [Cunha], Strand Larsen, even the boys on the wing, Ait-Nouri and Semedo, they give us a lot of attacking options.
“But ultimately, you need to stay in the game to go on and win them and I think that’s what we’ve improved with Vitor. We’ve also improved with the ball as the season has gone on as well, because in a lot of the games, we look really comfortable in possession and really dynamic on the break as well, so I’ve been impressed.”
On pushing on next season
“Hopefully we can finish the season strong, because I think that’s important as well, as that will give us confidence for next year. But I was in the club shop this week and there was a lot of optimism going into next season and I think it’s a good place to be.
“You don’t want to finish the season on a low and be worried about next season, but with Vitor coming in, the players that we have, the players that came in at the start of the season and even in January, as well as the existing players we’ve got, you’re starting to see a fusion of a really good side, and hopefully we can have a good summer, a good pre-season, and we can be really positive going into next season.”
Congratulations, Vitor! 🙌
— Wolves (@Wolves) May 15, 2025
Nominated for the @premierleague Manager of the Season 🗳️ https://t.co/JZ47J5ljxs pic.twitter.com/ygJrrVfklB
On returning to Compton Park
“It’s always good. It’s weird because although it always feels familiar, there are always changes every time I do come back, something is always a little bit different, but it’s been a nice welcome back and it’s always home.
“It’s just what’s good about the club, there’s still familiar faces that I remember from when I’ve been here before, so you’ve always got someone who you’ve met before, or you’ve worked with in the past. So even though a lot of the team has changed, and obviously the gaffer has changed – and there’s more staff every time you come back as well, it is still familiar.”
On getting involved in football again
“I’m doing my coaching badges next month, and I still watch football all the time, still watch us all the time, and obviously a lot of people know my life has been a bit turbulent, and I had a turbulent end to my career
“It took me a long time to get back on my feet again, in a sense, but there’s just something missing and something that I want to get back into. Whether that’s coaching or another role in football, football it is my passion, and it is the one thing that I enjoy more than anything still. Sometimes you can feel like you’ve got something to give back, and I feel like I’ve got something to give back to football.
“I spoke to Phil [Hayward] last week to ask if Vitor would let me come and watch training, just so I can get my eye back in, and thankfully he allowed me to come in. I’m just grateful for that and happy to be back around football again, because it is my passion and it has been pretty much my whole life.”
