Toti says beating your local neighbours can always produce extra emotion, which is what happened during the scenes of celebration at Molineux on Friday night.
Rodrigo Gomes’ strike in the eighth minute of added time sealed a fourth victory in five against Aston Villa at Molineux and came after a colossal effort in the pouring rain, and amongst a lively atmosphere under the lights.
Toti had missed the past two months with a hamstring injury, but you wouldn’t have known, returning to the defence and coming through 90 minutes, so running the length of the pitch to celebrate with his teammates and supporters brought him immense happiness.
On returning with a win
“It feels amazing – a derby game. We know what this means, and especially after the first game at Villa Park, where we performed very well, but we couldn't get the win. We knew that we had to come strong tonight, so we could leave here with the three points.
“We knew it was going to be tough, in the rain. The first half was 0-0. We knew that we had to come strong and solid for the second half, because they were going to come with everything. That's what they did, but everybody was compact and solid at the back and the goals for sure would come, and that’s what happened.
“There’s nothing better than coming here, playing at home, and as you could see, the fans were supporting us from the first minute. It was that little bit of strength that we need.”
On scenes of celebration
“It definitely means a lot for Rob. He played this kind of game before too, as a player, and now as a coach it’s different as well. Like you saw at the end, he was emotional as well. But this is what a derby brings and I’m super happy.
“You can always build from a win. It doesn't mean everything is good when you win, but I think everybody performed well today, and everybody did their best. Whatever is going to happen, we just need to stick together and keep fighting until the end. That's why we're here, and we're going to be here until the end and fight for this club.”
Well worked. Well taken. @GomesOficial08 firing us in front 💥 pic.twitter.com/RyJ8SjrJQm
— Wolves (@Wolves) February 28, 2026
On Joao Gomes’ finish
“He’s an unbelievable player. Of course, sometimes he tries to score, and it doesn't happen, but he does a lot for us. We need to we need to be grateful, and I'm super happy for him, with his first goal of the season.”
On need to show character
“It's been happening a lot with us, not just individually, but collectively as well. After what happened with Tolu, it was something that was a bit emotional as well. We knew that after the Palace game we had to come and everybody be together and strong, so we could lift from that moment.”
