Shropshire Star

Delighted Bruno Lage expects Adama Traore to stay following Forest thumping

Bruno Lage was delighted with his side’s performance in the 4-0 thrashing of Nottingham Forest - as he reveals he expects Adama Traore to remain with the club in this transfer window.

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Wolves dominated from start to finish against a weakened Forest team, and turned on the style in the second half to find four well-crafted goals.

It was the first victory for Lage as boss and he was pleased with the display.

He said: “It was a good game. We did what we planned and the way we want to play.

“In the end it was the same like we did against Tottenham, more ball, press high, create a lot of chances and the same feeling.

“We are confident with the work we are doing with this team and of course happy because of the result.”

When asked about how patient his side had to be at times, he added: “Patient but not too much. Sometimes we cannot confuse patience with moving the ball slowly.

“That’s what I said to the guys at half-time, we needed to put more tempo in the ball. Not to put long balls, more tempo between them passing the ball. To link and find the spaces, outside to cross or inside to play between the lines.”

Meanwhile, the head coach insists he expects to see Traore remain with Wolves.

Tottenham Hotspur are keen on the winger and are chasing his signature, although no bid is thought to have been made yet.

And when asked if he expects to see Traore in a Wolves shirt by the end of the month, Lage said: “Yeah, I think so.

“We want to create a strong team and to be competitive, that’s why we need to be competitive first inside to create this dynamic.

“We need players training every day and then putting the best XI every match. You know the competition in the Premier League, FA Cup and League Cup - we have a lot of games.

“We want to play like this and if everyone is not fit we need another player to play in his place.”

Injuries have also been a talking point with several high-profile players on the sidelines.

Willy Boly and Yerson Mosquera have both suffered hamstring injuries, while reports have suggested Pedro Neto has suffered a setback in his recovery from a broken kneecap.

When asked if that is the case for Neto, Lage said: “Yes. It happens, so maybe he needs a couple more weeks to return.

“The best scenario is the end of October or beginning of November, so maybe now it’ll be two or three more weeks on that and December he can be available.

“All the players are important to create the team we want, because we want to play like this.

“Pedro is a long process. Our first and best idea is to return at the end of October or November, so let’s see what happens.

“The important thing is to recover Pedro. If the player is fit at the end of November he needs three or four weeks to prepare himself and start to play.

“It’s a question of first, be fit with no problems, then do work with the physio on the pitch and then start working with the team and be ready to play and help us.”

Regarding Boly and Mosquera, he added: “Boly has started working for two or three days and I think he needs more time to work, maybe he can be available in the next game.

“Yerson maybe needs one or two more weeks.”