'It's a dangerous game' - Wolves boss warns against Carabao Cup complacency

Cesar Peixoto has warned his Wolves players that tomorrow night’s Carabao Cup clash will be a ‘dangerous game’ if they do not take Port Vale seriously.

Wolves are huge favourites to beat the League Two side, as they begin their 2026/27 campaign at Molineux in the cup before taking on Blackburn at home in their league opener next week.

The club’s priority will be to earn promotion back to the Premier League, but Peixoto is adamant that he wants to beat tomorrow’s opponents and has told his players not to be complacent.

“I think it's a dangerous game because Port Vale is going to play against Wolves, a big team, and we have to manage our motivation to play against this kind of team,” Peixoto said.

“What I say to the players every day is we want to win.

“You want to win, you want to work hard, you want to play well, you want to score goals.

“I think we are going to be prepared for the game, but it's a dangerous game.

“I'm very happy, I'm very confident. I appreciate a lot the people in the club, all the staff. I look at all the people, I work with all the people in the club.

“I like a good environment. I like to work hard also, but for me, it's a good opportunity, a great club with a great story.

“I have a lot of fire to attack the season.”

Peixoto played his strongest possible side for the majority of the final summer friendly against Racing Santander and the head coach is expected to name a strong team to face Port Vale.

Raul Jimenez is among a number of players aiming to get back up to speed after their post-World Cup break and the star striker did not feature for Wolves in any friendlies, but could be set for a place in the squad tonight.

Meanwhile, Fer Lopez is expected to play a big role for Wolves and Peixoto knows his quality, but is eager to build a strong team and not focus on individuals.

“He's an important player because of his characteristics,” Peixoto said of Lopez.

“He's important for the whole idea of the game. It’s important to grow up step by step, to not commit mistakes and stay injured for the next game.

“But you have to work a lot, you have to improve a lot. I want a team, not great players, because great players don't make a great team.

“I want a team all together, all the club in the same direction.

“The fans are important to support the team, support these players, forget the past and you try to build a good present and a fantastic future.”

Heading into a game against Port Vale that Wolves are expected to win, Kieran Trippier has also warned the hosts cannot underestimate their opponents.

”When I first signed for Newcastle we got beat by Cambridge, so that’s the reality, there’s no easy games,” Trippier said.

“You always have to respect the opposition. We are certainly respecting Port Vale because it is going to be a tough game, they are going to make it hard for us.

“They are going to want to come to Wolves to knock us out of the cup and we can’t allow that.

“So, we’ve got to prepare well, which the manager will make sure we do, and always respect whoever you’re playing because if you don’t you’ll get turned over.

“We can’t look past Port Vale yet, we have to take Port Vale seriously and winning always builds momentum, that winning mentality.”