MX23RW : Thursday, January 30 16:07:16| >> :120:4539:4539:

Nuno Espirito Santo insists Wolves will relish Anfield crowd

Nuno Espirito Santo insists Wolves will relish Anfield crowd
© Reuters
Anfield will host fans for the first time since a Champions League tie with Atletico Madrid in March.

Nuno Espirito Santo believes Wolves will relish playing in front of a crowd for the first time since March.

Wanderers go to Liverpool on Sunday with the champions poised to welcome back 2,000 supporters.

Anfield will host fans for the first time since their Champions League quarter-final defeat to Atletico Madrid in March, just before sport was halted amid the coronavirus crisis.

Liverpool is in the Government decreed tier two – allowing them to host fans – while Wolverhampton remains in tier three, denying Wolves the chance to have supporters at Molineux, but Nuno expects his players to feed off the home crowd.

He said: "I am happy, really happy. We want fans back and on Sunday there will be 2,000 of them, even though they are not Wolves fans, they are football fans and this is what the game needs. It needs the fans back in the stadium.

"Honestly, I think it is only positive energy for all the players involved on the pitch. There will be 2,000 and it will be 2,000 with lots of positive energy. Hopefully soon there will be 14,000 or 15,000 with lots of positive energy.

"What players enjoy is to play in front of fans. This is why they work and how they enjoy. Having no fans doesn't make sense. I am so happy they are returning step by step.

"Hopefully when it is reviewed on the 16th, then we can go to Molineux in front of our own fans."

Wolves are without Raul Jimenez as the striker begins his recovery from an operation on his fractured skull following a clash of heads with David Luiz in last Sunday's 2-1 win at Arsenal.

Record £35million recruit Fabio Silva could replace him for his first Premier League start since joining from Porto in the summer.

He has only had 115 minutes of top-flight action so far as the club ease the 18-year-old in.

Nuno said: "It's a chance for all the squad, knowing we don't have someone who is really important for us. I don't recall a game when Raul was not in the team.

"It's a chance for us all to raise our standards and create solutions for the team."

ID:425223: cacheID:425223:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:3596:
Written by
P A
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves pictured on July 8, 2020
Read Next:
Liverpool considering moves for Neves, Silva?
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool22165154213353
2Arsenal23138244212347
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest2313553327644
4Manchester CityMan City23125647301741
5Newcastle UnitedNewcastle23125641271441
6Chelsea23117545301540
7Bournemouth23117541261540
8Aston Villa2310763435-137
9Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2381053531434
10Fulham238963431333
11Brentford2394104240231
12Manchester UnitedMan Utd2385102832-429
13Crystal Palace236982630-427
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham2376102844-1627
15Tottenham HotspurSpurs2373134637924
16Everton225891928-923
17Leicester CityLeicester2345142549-2417
18Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2344153252-2016
19Ipswich TownIpswich2337132147-2616
20Southampton2313191653-376


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!