Vitor Pereira is in confident mood ahead of Sunday’s clash with Brighton & Hove Albion at Molineux as he believes his Wolves players are now showing the potential they have to turn their start to the season around.
Although the head coach could be without Toti and Jorgen Strand Larsen this weekend having been battling the flu and injury, Pereira feels his group are in a positive place – despite the late drama last weekend which saw his side come away with just the one point from Tottenham Hotspur.
Pereira is pleased his summer signings are beginning to gel with the squad and prove why they were brought into the club, but he knows they still have plenty more to show if they are to pick up their first Premier League win of the season on Sunday.
On finding form
“In the last two games, the team has given me good feeling because we are playing better, better football, we are more consistent, and we show courage and personality to play. We won against Everton and we lost two points in the last minute against Tottenham, but we showed that we are now in a moment where we can compete.
“I was frustrated at the end of the game, but happy and proud of the team and the supporters, and this is important, because they were fantastic in London and they deserved the three points. We deserved the three points, because of a special second half.
“In first half we committed some mistakes but we corrected and in the second half, we proved that we can compete with Tottenham, and we can compete with Brighton, and we must prove Sunday that we can compete with them.”
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On why Brighton cause Wolves issues
“Because they have a strong team with very good players. They are working the last seasons to build a strong team, but in this moment, it’s about us. It’s about us to improve our level, it’s about being consistent, it’s about creating. I feel we are creating now because we have had time to be together.
“Now it’s possible to see every day that the players are understanding what we are demanding; tactically, mentally and the players – who are here in this league for the first time – they are realising what this league demands from them. What I see on the pitch every day is a team which is committed and competing to be at its best level, but with confidence and the spirit to help.
“Of course, we'll face a strong team, with strong players, but you must look at your team and try to increase. We did a good work together, working hard, and now Sunday is time to go there, to compete and to prove ourselves. To prove that we are in conditions to compete with Brighton, with Tottenham, with Everton, with the other teams.”
On gaining confidence from his players
“Each day, each training session – even today – what I see is my team working a lot, with responsibility, trying to prove that we deserve more than this. Not only can we compete, but the training, the intensity and the aggressiveness in the training, we’ve increased the level, because this is important in this league.
“They are trying to fight for the position, but in the right way; proving, working, running, fighting and playing. This is why I'm more confident now than before, because to be confident, I need to work. I need to connect them. I need to put everyone on the same page, to propose a tactical idea, to propose the right mentality to compete, but I need the players with me.
“If I don't have the players with me – because they arrived late [in the window], because they went to their national teams – and after two weeks working together, in my opinion, we’ve improved. We’ve improved a lot.”
On finding right team selection
“They’ve been working hard so they can deserve the position. This is what I want. This is the answer that I want. I changed the players because we were not winning games. That’s why I changed the system, that's why I'm looking for solutions because what we did in the past isn’t enough. If I'm looking for solutions, if I'm pushing myself, the pressure is what I put on myself. I know that I can find the solutions. I know that I can do better. I know the level that my teams can play, and for them it means exactly the same. They need to be in the best level of themselves to prove every day that they deserve the spot and they deserve the position
On having a competitive squad
“Football is not about gifts. I don’t give gifts. I cannot offer you [a place in the team] because you are a name in football. I cannot give you the shirt, you must desire it and you must deserve the shirt with your work – it’s not about words. I’m trying to be fair, every time.
“Sometimes, if I have two players in the same position and the level is almost the same and they are competing together, if I choose one over the other one, I feel like he deserves to be there. But this is the headache that I want to have. To choose when they are competing in their best level. This is not about offers, it’s about deserving it.
“In my life, I need to deserve what I get. If we win a game and I don't like the way that we performed, I'm happy for the three points, but I will go home thinking about how we can improve the level because I am not proud of myself. I need to feel proud of myself on my work, and this is what I ask from my players. We need to finish a game and feel proud of our work and make the supporters proud of our work.”
The Official Wolves Podcast delve into Andre's recent performances.
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On Strand Larsen and Arokodare playing together
“I believe that we can play with both. But in this moment, Larsen is struggling with injury because he's not fully fit. The Larsen that you used to see; pressing, fighting, because he's now with some pain and he's struggling with injury, but he's trying to help the team in this important moment, but he's not in his best level.
“The pre-season of Tolu’s was a preseason without games, that’s because he was in a position where he could leave the club or stay, or leave, or stay or leave. When he first came and started to work with us, he was not ready to start a game, but we needed him and we started with him in Newcastle. He tried his best, he scored a beautiful goal against Everton, but he is not yet in his best shape.”
