Vitor Pereira insists he will not allow his Wolves players to relax ahead of a visit to face Manchester United on Sunday, despite putting together a run of four wins in succession which have eased any relegation worries.
The head coach, who was at Old Trafford to watch this weekend’s opponents reach the semi-finals of the Europa League in the most dramatic of circumstances on Thursday evening, said the way Man United ended the match will give them confidence going into their Premier League meeting with the Old Gold.
But Pereira knows his players will be fully focused on themselves as they fight for their own ambitions, another three points, and leading Wolves to a fifth consecutive top flight win for the first time since 1970.
On injury news ahead of Old Trafford clash
“Bellegarde, Doherty and Hee Chan [Hwang], they are trying to come back. They don't have serious injuries, but they are trying to come back to help us in the game, and we’ll see. We have one more training tomorrow and I must decide and make those decisions tomorrow.
“Even before the last game, he [Hwang] felt something in the muscle, but at the end of the week, we decided to get him to the game, but he still felt something and the medical department are trying to recover him, but we will see what happens.
“[Johnstone and Lima] they are training [with the fitness coaches]. Sam is not training with the team because he still has a small problem, an old problem, that he’s tried to manage, but we’ve had a conversation that it is better to clean the problem and clean the injury and then come back. Pedro is not working with the team yet, but I think he will come back in a few days.”
On making history with Wolves
“It was a good week. A very good week. We relaxed a bit, but we kept going with our work to improve the team.
“The energy was fantastic. The connection with the supporters and the team was fantastic and we feel this happiness on the faces of the people. That's why I like to be with the people, to see these smiles on their faces.
“Here, you cannot do a lot, just to be with the supporters and enjoy a bit, and after, went home.”
On not allowing the players to relax
“In the previous week, but not this week. After the game against Ipswich, I felt the team were a little bit relaxed, but just for one day, in one training. We had a conversation and we corrected the feeling.
“This week, I didn't feel that. The team is committed. They know that we have a lot of work to do and the work is not done. “We have a lot of points to fight for because we are ambitious. We have we have a team with ambition, and I believe that we’ll compete in every game until the end.
“Our ambition is to do our best. To fight every time for the three points, to compete when we are defending, when we are attacking, and to respect our identity every time.”
Heading every ball 😆 pic.twitter.com/be1ljb1DHB
— Wolves (@Wolves) April 16, 2025
On managing a team full of confidence
“I think we have created this spirit in the players. They absorb a bit of the personality of the manager and I’m ambitious, I want more and more and more.
“I’m not happy, because I believe that we can improve every day with our work and I want to see better and better football, because I appreciate good football.
“If I look at my players now, we have more confidence with the ball. We are consistent when we are defending and we know exactly what to do, and the team, for me, with what we did, we made a step forward with the maturity, the tactical maturity we have, but we need to keep going to improve.”
On United’s dramatic Europa League quarter-final
“Old Trafford was fantastic, but the traffic was a problem! But in the end, we came from the game thinking, ‘OK, this is a football game, a proper football game, with everything.’ The emotion that was there – I like this kind of match.
“It was a massive win, and this is the kind of win that brings confidence. I believe that we’ll face a team more confident. But as I said since the beginning, it’s about us. It’s not about Manchester United – it’s about us.
“It’s about how to do our work, how to keep our identity with personality, our ambition, to believe in ourselves, believe in our work, and play and compete for the three points.”
On facing another Portuguese manager on Sunday
“He is a talented manager. He’s facing an increase in his level, because like myself, when I came here to this league, we face different problems, bigger problems, and we need to create the formulas to face the problems, and this is the opportunity to increase our level.
“I believe Amorim is a very talented manager, but he’s facing problems that allow him to improve and take the step for another level. This is what the Premier League can bring to us.”
