Matheus Cunha believes Wolves still have plenty of room to improve despite enjoying being part of a tight-knit squad which are going into the new Premier League season in high spirits.
Having played a key role in Wolves’ two wins and two draws during pre-season, including an impressive showing in the 3-1 victory over Stade Rennais at Molineux on Saturday afternoon, the Brazilian is pleased with the way the Old Gold squad is bonding on and off the pitch ahead of the visit to Manchester United next Monday evening.
On an unbeaten pre-season
“To be honest, I’m very happy because we’ve learnt a lot. Sure, we have more things to improve but already we know how we play, we know the mentality that the coach has passed to us, and we need to put this in the pitch.
“After this win we are also happy because we put the work in the pitch and we need to improve on this for the Premier League also.”
On being part of a happy squad
“Is the manager happy with us? I hope so! We do everything for him, for ourselves and for the fans and we have an idea which is very clear for us also, and we need to keep putting that in the pitch.
“Everyone is very happy and I feel the group is very happy together, and this is the most important – to put the ideas of the manager on the pitch.
“But I need to put the focus on myself to help the team. This is most important. I know my quality, I know what I can do to help my teammates, and I need to be focused to do everything I can on the pitch. After this, I’m very happy with my support.”
On a first pre-season in Old Gold
“I’m very happy. I’ve improved a lot to do my best. It’s my first complete season with Wolves because I came in the middle of last season and it was very different because I had everything for La Liga and then I came to the Premier League, so I had to take time to adapt a little bit.
“But now, this season my focus is very much on Wolverhampton and I’m very happy with the group. I’m very happy with my teammates and I’m happy with myself also.”
— Wolves (@Wolves) August 5, 2023
On preparing for the Premier League
“The pre-season is very important because it’s my first pre-season in the Premier League and the Premier League, for me and for many people in the world, is the best league in the world, so it’s hard and you have to be physical a little bit more than the other leagues.
“But I’m very happy in pre-season and my focus is fully on the team and I hope I can do a lot of things for Wolves this season.”
On adapting to life in England
“My first game was versus Aston Villa and it was very hard and I remember having to run a lot because of our position in the Premier League.
“It was not funny because we needed to do a lot of things, but now, we have another mentality of allowing ourselves to play a little bit more and have a bit of freedom.
“When you only have 10 points after a start, everything has to be about being strong at the back and having everything together where you need to do a lot of things, but this season, with the pre-season we’ve had, it’s been a little bit easier to do everything for the club in the Premier League.”
