VITOR PEREIRA: WOLVES V FOREST PRESS CONFERENCE

Good afternoon, Vitor. Tom from Sky Sports. Happy New Year.

Thank you, and Happy New Year to you too.

Can we start with Matheus Cunha, who is banned for two games and fined £80,000 for his actions at the end of the Ipswich game? What’s your reaction to being without your best player for the next couple of games, and what has Matheus said about that?

Good afternoon, first of all, and Happy New Year. We need to be ready to play with or without Cunha. We play as a team. I think we have players with different skills and qualities, but we’ll be ready.

Has Matheus said anything? Is he apologising to the group, or what’s his reaction?

He knows it wasn’t a good reaction. I look at a player not just as a player but as a human being. Sometimes, even I make mistakes. Everybody makes mistakes.
He knows he made a mistake. Now he must not do it again. He needs to keep his emotional balance and move forward.

The Premier League January transfer window is open. I’m sure you’re ready to answer a lot of questions, but you mentioned after the Tottenham game the need to strengthen defensively. Kevin Danso, currently at Lyon in Ligue 1, is strongly reported to be one of your top targets.
Can you confirm if you’re in discussions with the club about bringing him to the Premier League?

We are working in the market like other teams. I believe we are trying to understand what my players can offer for the way I want to play.
This is a time to look for targets, but as you understand, I can only speak about my players. I cannot talk about players on other teams.

So, as far as you can tell, there are no negotiations happening?

Our squad is a bit short at the moment.
But I prefer to have a short squad because I want to see the players from the academy. We started looking for talent. I like to work with talented young players.

Of course, the club knows we need to fill one or two positions. It’s important to bring someone in, but I’m happy with my team.

So, not only players coming in, but also potential players going out.
Mario Lemina has not featured in a matchday squad under you. I know he had a small injury. Is he definitely part of your future plans here at Wolverhampton?

He’s our player at the moment.

That means he’s in my plans. Of course, he had a small injury and was not in condition for the game.

But he’s part of my plans because he’s my player.

Nuno Espirito Santo is well-known for the work he did here at Wolverhampton. I’m sure he’s a man you know well.
Two seventh-place finishes in the Premier League. Quarter-finals in the Europa League. At the moment, survival in the Premier League is a priority.
But is your aim, given time, to replicate the success he had by getting Wolverhampton back up the table and into European positions?

I’ve known him for a long time, since his time in Portugal. He and his staff did fantastic work. Consistent, quality work. It means he’s one of the top coaches in England.

But I am who I am. I know what I want for my career, and I will try to achieve it.

Good afternoon. Just sticking with Nuno briefly, what are your initial memories of him? I know you both shared a couple of spells at Porto. Were you in the Porto junior side coaching when he was signed by Jose Mourinho? Do you remember him as a player, and are you surprised by his transition?

I’m getting older. I have a good emotional memory, but remembering facts is difficult. However, I remember the work he did.

Fantastic work. He’s built his career with quality and consistency. I like his personality because he’s low profile.
He’s not a coach who speaks much. He shows his work on the pitch.

What do you expect to see from his Nottingham Forest side?

A strong team.

Their results show they are a strong team. They are very consistent. Defensively, they are quick on the counter-attack and dangerous when other teams lose the ball. They can attack quickly with quality.
They are a very good team in transitions. To win this game, we need to be at our best.

It’s clear there’s been a huge impact at the club since your arrival. The players have discussed quite frequently the differences and what’s changed. How impressed have you been with your players? You talked about human characteristics a few moments ago, so perhaps not just their ability on the pitch but who they are off it as well.

I respect Gary O’Neil a lot.

I don’t want to compare works and personalities. I have my personality. We have our methodology.

We’ve known each other for a long time. I think it’s not respectful to compare. When a team doesn’t get good results, it’s normal for confidence to drop.

The most important thing is that we have an ideal game. I want to see my team play in a way that we are building. We are starting to build this way of playing.
I want to give them confidence. This is the only way I know. Bring back their confidence, connect them, and provide tactical directions. This is our work at the moment.

Thank you. One of the biggest changes in the first three games is Matt Doherty moving into the back three. Is that a temporary measure, or might he stay there?

I want to play with three defenders, not three centre-backs. There’s a difference. I want my defenders, in time, to have the freedom to attack the lines.

To draw in the opponent and open space for another player. Sometimes I need him to play as a full-back.

At other times, he’ll need to play as a centre-back or defender. I like to play with three defenders but not with two traditional centre-backs. I want centre-backs with the quality to get involved in the game and attack.

This is how I want to build my team.

Had you identified his skills before you came as someone who can do that job?

I like to play with a full-back on the left. If I have a full-back on the left, he can play wide or move inside.
He can pass and move, taking on a midfielder role. On the other side, I can play with a centre-back. If I change, I can switch to the other side.

I could have a full-back on the right and a centre-back on the left. We choose players strategically based on the opponent. Doc is a player who can do that.

He can do it because he’s fast, and he can play as a full-back or move inside as a centre-back.

So, what we’ve seen in terms of style from your team in the first three games, you’ve inherited this group of players.
How close is that to what you have in mind, what you’re aiming for as a style?

I’m trying to understand the roles where they feel comfortable. Right now, it’s time to study the players. I like to create diversity of movements in my teams.
Imagine this: If Rayan plays on the left and I move Nelson to the left and Rayan to the right, the movements they will try will be different.

This is the kind of experience I like to have with my teams. I sometimes like to switch players, like starting with the left foot on the right side, and vice versa. The same goes for forwards and those close to the striker.
I like to switch them around because when they change positions, they start to do different things. This is the variability I want to see in my team.