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Wolves had me from hello – Nuno Espirito Santo

Nuno Espirito Santo realised his Wolves team were ‘special’ during the very first competitive game he took charge.

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And more than 12 months on, the 44-year-old insists there is no pressure to achieve a top-10 finish in the Premier League, given their Championship success and transfer activity.

Nuno has transformed Wolves since taking over last summer where he has guided them to promotion while also making a number of eye-catching signings.

But he knew in their first game of the Championship campaign last year, against Middlesbrough, that he was working with a unique group of players.

Nuno said: “Middlesbrough at home, the first game (was when I knew I had something special at Wolves).

“When the competition started, that is when I believed we were going to achieve our goals of getting promoted.”

Wolves won the Championship title with 99 points and caught the eye of the footballing world with their entertaining attacking style.

And now, combined with some of the signings they have made over two years, pundits have widely tipped Wolves for a top-10 finish in England’s top flight this season.

However, Nuno insists there is no added pressure to reach the top half, saying: “There is no pressure at all.

“We are very conscious, we stay humble every day of lives.

“We are a very humble group, we are a group of players that help each other, that try to protect each other, support each other, so we don’t care what has been said.

“We go game by game try to be better each game, try to get the game as a tool to work on it.

“See the mistakes, see the good things, improve here, improve there, the table doesn’t mean anything.

“It is the how. And how you play is what determines your season and your success.”