Nuno Espirito Santo calls on his Wolves side to show ‘more responsibility’ after continuing their Premier League revival with a 1-0 win over Leeds to move 11th
- Leeds goalkeeper Illan Meslier’s unfortunate own goal settled the contest
- Wolves are unbeaten in four league games after an eight-match winless run
- February has seen wins over Arsenal, Southampton and Marcelo Bielsa’s men
- Newcastle and a trip to Manchester City are next for Nuno Espirito Santo’s side
Nuno Espirito Santo called on his Wolves side to show ‘more responsibility’ after they extended their unbeaten Premier League run to four games after a 1-0 win over Leeds at Molineux.
Nuno’s men slipped to 14th after a 1-0 loss to Crystal Palace on January 30 made it eight games without a win in the top flight and a number of fans were questioning their Portuguese boss’ future.
However, victory over nine-man Arsenal and a creditable draw against Champions League was followed by a morale-boosting away win – their first since late November – against Southampton last weekend.
The pressure has eased on Nuno Espirito Santo with Wolves taking 10 points from a possible 12
Pedro Neto and Ruben Neves congratulate Adama Traore after his role in the winning goal
Tonight’s win takes the team up to 11th and while the 47-year-old was pleased with his side’s attitude, he continues to demand more.
‘We are always trying to chase consistency. We have been consistent in the way we are approaching the games, it’s really important for a team to perform better,’ he said.
‘It’s something we’ve been chasing and we realise we are not at our best. We are trying to improve them day by day and today they gave a good answer.
‘We are doing OK, but the standards and expectations are high and that requires more responsibility from all of us.
‘I’m very pleased, especially with the attitude we approached it with. It’s very difficult to play against Leeds, you can go the same way and chase duels and press, but the boys did very well.’
Illan Meslier made five saves during the match, but he was powerless to stop the winner as a shot from distance by Adama Traore came off the crossbar and bounced in off the unfortunate Frenchman’s back.
‘There’s luck with the goal, but the strike of Adama is fantastic,’ said Nuno. ‘It was almost unstoppable and I think we deserve that luck.
Illan Meslier had a brilliant game for Leeds and was very unfortunate to score an own goal
‘Leeds created enormous problems. They challenged in every moment and our keeper did well but Meslier did well too.’
Wolves’ next game is a very winnable clash away at struggling Newcastle next Saturday, before they face a rude awakening three days later at champions-elect Manchester City.
That said, they did win 2-0 at the Etihad last season to stun Pep Guardiola’s men, with both strikes coming from that man Traore.
