Matheus Cunha left Old Trafford with mixed emotions on Monday night having been excited by Wolves’ performance against Manchester United, but also disappointed not to have come away with the points they deserved.
The Brazilian picked up the man of the match award for his efforts in the first game under new boss Gary O’Neil – who only had a few days to work with his players following the departure of Julen Lopetegui last week – but despite several opportunities to find the back of the net against United as well as a late penalty call not going their way, Cunha feels Wolves are in positive spirits this season and is optimistic that he and his fellow players will turn those chances into goals in the upcoming games.
On leaving Old Trafford empty handed
“For me and for the team, I thought we did very, very well. It’s not easy to come here and play like we did against Manchester United, so I’m a little bit upset because of the chances, but we played really well.
“We had a really difficult week and there was a lot of things to process, but Gary and his staff have come with a very good energy and we’ve kept our energy from a very good pre-season.
“But for sure, I’m a little bit upset from this result. But it’s like that. We need to keep moving, we need to improve and play better the next game.”
On his and Nunes’ performances
“We want to do everything for the team, Matheus [Nunes] also, we all know his quality, and we have this energy to keep the ball, to run, and when you come here to play against Manchester, you know it’s going to be a hard game, you know you’re going to have to defend well, and then have this chance to keep the ball like we tried to do.
“The Premier League is the best league in the world and I feel like I’ve been allowed to be a little bit more free here and I feel like I’m in a particularly good way also. I always think about doing everything I can for the team, but today we needed to score more from the chances we had.
“But it’s like that and we need to do more, more of the little things to win the next games. We need to do everything for the team, but also we need to improve and do better in the next game.”
On missed chances
“I think we’re in a good way. Today we had chances, and we need to improve more, but football is like that. Manchester also had good chances to score and for a long time the game was at zero, and it was about keeping the ball and controlling the game.
“We need to learn from this game, take that into the next games, and try to score to win the games and keep the energy high for the rest of the season.”
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On the late penalty decision
“For me, I had a situation like that with the national team and I think it’s 100 per cent a penalty, but it’s not my business to speak about what the referee needs to do.
“I think the referee did a good game, and we need to respect their decisions, because this situation is hard for him, and I understand that. It’s a very hard decision to make, but for me, it’s a penalty, for sure.”
On working with O’Neil
“He’s come with very good ideas and he’s helped us a lot. We didn’t have too much time to work, but he came with new ideas that we tried to put on the pitch.
“We’ve already learnt a lot with him in one week, but we also have the ideas from Lopetegui and his staff, and both of their ideas together are going to help us a lot on the pitch.
“We have a good mix of the old ideas and the new ideas so, even though it’s only the first game, I think we are in a good way.”
