Ruben Neves’ brilliant free-kick was the crucial goal, but two missed penalties by the hosts, the first saved impressively by John Ruddy, meant this was more than just three points.
The celebrations from players, staff and supporters showed the value of the victory and Nuno spoke of his delight post-match.
“It’s a massive result for us,” he said. “I’ve been in football many years and experienced almost everything but today was a new thing, two penalties in the last minute. That’s why we love the game, it gives you, it takes you.
“We had luck but I think we deserved it because we worked for everything. We had chances to not suffer in the end but that’s why people voted for John Ruddy to be in the Team of the Year. He deserved the moment.”
The victory saw every aspect of Wolves’ game on show, a combination of their resilience and talent, and Nuno was delighted by the adaptability of his team in such a crucial game.
“To win these games requires organisation but also talent and it’s a fantastic goal. It’s the talent we have but also the organisation.
“It’s very difficult to play against Cardiff, at home they have to most points with this kind of football. They are fighters, they go for every ball like it’s the last one. Until the last moments we were in control.”
The final frantic moments will be remembered for a long time by Wolves supporters, but Nuno wanted better control of emotions from his players in a heated atmosphere.
“I think we should control better the emotions. It’s my job to control the emotions of the players to avoid these situations. We were looking to put score more goals but at the same time when we defend we have to be a bit more cautious.
“During the whole game I thought we were the better team, we had shape, we had chances and defended well. We played better football but it’s very difficult to play against Cardiff and we must control out emotions.”
Wolves are now nine points clear of Cardiff and a further five in front of Fulham in third, but Nuno is refusing to look too far ahead with five games left.
“We don’t look at the table, we’re still very conscious we have a long way to go. We want to keep on growing and sustain this type of performance
“My aim is to improve each game, now we celebrate because we deserve it, and then we go back and work on Derby,” he added.
