Shropshire Star

Comment: Nuno’s big news – and he’s only getting bigger

You would be forgiven for wondering what all the fuss was about when Nuno Espirito Santo’s name suddenly flashed up on Sky Sports News at around 10.30 last Thursday night.

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The revelation, which had emerged during a press conference earlier that day, that the Wolves head coach is yet to discuss a new contract with the club was undoubtedly newsworthy.

But judging by the tone on Sky you might have been left with the impression the Portugeuse and half his playing staff were on the brink of leaving Molineux that very night.

The reality, of course, is quite different, though those supporters who took understandable umbrage at the coverage will probably have to get used to it.

Nuno and Wolves’ success over the past two-and-a-half years means they are now big news.

The club are still some way short, however, of a standing which might dissuade some national media outlets from the assumption the head coach and the star players will be ready to depart, without a second thought, to the first bigger club that comes calling.

It might be best for fans to take that as a compliment of how far Wolves have come since Nuno arrived at the club in June 2017.

The club’s rapid ascent remains one of the more remarkable stories in recent years.

All of which does not mean to say Nuno’s contract will not become an increasingly pressing matter come the end of the season.

Securing the future of a man who is rapidly establishing himself as among the best coaches in Europe will be at the very top of Wolves’ agenda in the summer. For all the talk of the club’s somewhat unique model and the fact he has been able to work with some seriously-talented players, there can be no downplaying the job he has done so far at Molineux. While the current fashion is for clubs to talk of long-term strategies and installing cultures, Nuno is a reminder the biggest gains are still made by appointing the right man to coach the team.

Fosun, who have no shortage of credit in the bank for the direction they have taken the club since 2016, do not need telling that.

Granted, this is would typically be the time, when a manager has less than 18 months remaining on their existing contract, for an agent to get in contact with the club and test the water over a possible extension.

A number of Premier League managers have already signed new deals this season, including Dean Smith and Graham Potter. It is fair to say their stock is not so high as Nuno’s.

Yet the involvement of Nuno’s agent, Jorge Mendes, at Molineux, means negotiations over extending a deal will always run slightly differently to other clubs.

For now, there is simply no need to panic.

“The fans can be assured that every day, this is my obsession,” said Nuno last week.

“Wolves is my obsession. It is my life. I don’t think about anything else.”

Right now, with the first leg of a Europa League second round tie with Espanyol to look forward to tonight and with their club still well in the race for a Champions League place, those are the only words of which Wolves fans need really take notice.