Nuno urges Wolves loanees to work for the team
Wolves boss Nuno Espirito Santo has told his on-loan trio not to make the ‘worst mistake’ of trying too hard to impress him.
The final nine games of the Premier League season – starting with West Ham on Monday – could be seen as a crucial period for Willian Jose, Rayan Ait-Nouri and Vitinha as they aim to win permanent deals.
But Nuno is taking a different approach and says those three must continue to focus on improving the team, rather than their own prospects.
“No, no, I don’t look at things like that,” said Nuno, when asked about Jose, Ait-Nouri and Vitinha.
“None of our players that are on loan have to prove me, or anyone, something.
“They are here because they are options and solutions for this season.
“Then in the end of the season, we will decide like we always do.
“But, and I’ve told them personally, the worst mistake you can make is to try to prove something because that’s going to change your game.
“This is not what we want. We want a player to play for the team – not play for himself.
“Improve, and improve inside of the team like all of us have to do.”
Striker Jose is on loan from Real Sociedad while Ait-Nouri and Vitinha are on loan from Angers and Porto respectively.
Wolves have a buy option of £22million for Jose, £20m for Ait-Nouri and £18m for Vitinha – although the Express & Star understands there is room to lower those prices.
Meanwhile, Nuno has revealed an unnamed Wolves player is currently in self-isolation after being notified that somebody else on a flight he was on had tested positive for Covid-19.
The player, though, has since returned two negative tests and could still feature against the Hammers at Molineux.
“He travelled on the 24th, joined us to train on the 26th, three days after he got a message from UK Government telling him there was a positive case of Covid-19 on his flight,” explained Nuno.
“He had to isolate until April 4, but he worked with us between the 26th and the 29th.
“So, the question is, does it make sense? Fly on 24, join on 26, gets information on 29 and now he has to isolate until April 4.
“He has had two negative tests since (his return).
“If we played West Ham on Sunday no, but because we play on Monday, he’s still an an option.
“But he doesn’t have the preparation with the team, and it still can happen to anybody that has travelled.
“Even if you choose seat 1A, if the protocols say ten rows are still contagious, you have to isolate.
“You cannot protect. You cannot avoid.”
Nuno also says Wolves are having to assess the fitness of Joao Moutinho ahead of the clash with David Moyes’ side.
The Portuguese, having missed two of Portugal’s three games over the international break, is yet to train properly with the rest of the Wolves squad.
Nuno was coy on the exact details of the knock but added on the veteran midfielder: “It was in the beginning of the first game.
“He only played 45 minutes and was not able to continue for the second half.
“Since then, he’s not been training as normal.
“He hasn’t joined the group yet but he’s improving. We still have to wait a couple of days.”
