Shropshire Star

Wolves boss Nuno: Fans can dream of Europa League glory

Wolves chief Nuno Espirito Santo has reminded final-chasing fans that 'dreaming is for free' after their astonishing 4-0 win against Espanyol in the Europa League.

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A terrific Diogo Jota hat-trick and a Ruben Neves scorcher saw Nuno's men put one foot into the last 16 of the competition.

They go into next week's last-32 second-leg in Barcelona knowing only a miraculous turnaround will stop them from advancing, and Nuno said: "Beautiful goals.

"It was a good evening, of course. I'm happy for Jota, delighted, as when a player scores three goals it means he has helped the team a lot.

"He did a good job, and Neves also scored a beautiful goal. It's organisation, taking advantage of the talent of the players."

Jota scored a treble for the second straight Europa game, after also doing so in the final group game against Besiktas in December.

And when asked if supporters are right to dream about going all the way in the competition, Nuno said: "You know me, we have to recover and rest because we play on Sunday.

"Then, we're going to think about all these things, but dreaming is for free."

Wolves' thrilling run in the Europa comes in what is only Nuno's third season as boss, after starting when the club was in the Championship.

On if he could have ever envisaged this success, Nuno said: "No.

"I was competing in the Championship, focused on playing Burton, Birmingham, with all my respects, you know what I mean?

"When you go day to day, you don't think about your future. You focus on your present."

Wolves now host Norwich in the Premier League on Sunday, before heading to the RCDE Stadium for the second leg against Espanyol next Thursday.

Nuno added: "We competed well, and the result is the consequence of what we did.

"We created many chances and we were clinical in those moments, so this is what we want.

"It's another clean sheet, so defensive-wise we were really well. Then, you let the players develop their talent on the pitch, so I'm happy with the consistency of the team."