LE BRIS PRE WOLVES

Football scientist Regis Le Bris previewed Saturday's game against Wolverhampton Wanderers, here's what he had to say...

WOLVES AT THE BOTTOM

“They are struggling at the beginning of the league, but their last two games showed that they are really competitive. They didn’t win but they did deserve to win against both Brighton and Tottenham. They played well, with good players and good energy, and are well-coached. This is our league - you can struggle even if you are strong. If you are not clinical, because they had many chances to score a second goal but they didn’t, and at the end of the game they were punished. This league is like that, if you don’t catch your opportunities then you will be punished. I hope we will be able to score twice and win this game, but it will be a tough challenge.”

WHAT TO EXPECT

“We don’t know before, because of the scenario and the respective form of every team, but every game is an opportunity. Even if you play against a team expected to be really strong, you try to win. After that, you will see opportunities and challenges. It is always different, but our mindset is always to win points and if possible, do it quickly.”

TWO GOALS ARE CRUCIAL

“When it is only 1-0, you know that at the end of the game something can happen. It is better to have this margin.”

HOME ADVANTAGE

“It is obvious that if you can feed this dynamic at home, with confidence and this extra drive from the crowd and the community, then it is better. Away, usually it is more difficult to win points. So far, our home form is positive and I hope it will be the case this weekend.”

COMPETITIVE IN EVERY GAME

“I think it is positive but we can feel the danger. That was the case against Manchester United, we felt for 20 minutes that when we struggled in one part of our game, the opponent was really able to damage our defence. So, it shows on one hand that we did well so far but it is still really fragile. If you don’t reset and pay attention to small details, you can be punished. It is still like a reset because you will have a new challenge, new opportunities and new problems. We are on the edge, like every team in this league, but happy to be competitive.”

TACTICAL BATTLES

“It is still a new experience because we don’t have the same situation twice, it is always different. Here, we have a young squad with 14 new signings and without strong shared experience, so we are living something new on this side. We are playing against the best teams in the world. They are creating new challenges and with the squad we are learning together. We struggled against Manchester United and it was negative because we lost, for sure, but at the same time it was useful as part of our learning process. We have to accept that we will learn through positive results and negative results as well.”

WOLVES HUNGRY TO WIN

“I don’t think we can feel complacency through the squad right now, it is not possible because we respect the league. Whether it is a team near the top of the table or at the bottom, it is still a good strong challenge. We can expect something difference because they might have a lack of confidence, but at the same time they might have more power and energy and desire to win. For us, the main point is to respect the opponent and the league, and to be at 100%.”