MX23RW : Monday, February 3 22:53:25| >> :60:58:58:

Nuno Espirito Santo says Wolves looking to strike in January transfer window

Nuno Espirito Santo says Wolves looking to strike in January transfer window
© Reuters
The Mexican suffered a fractured skull following his clash of heads with Arsenal defender David Luiz last month.

Nuno Espirito Santo says Wolves are prepared to act quickly in the January transfer window to make up for the "terrible" absence of Raul Jimenez.

Mexico striker Jimenez suffered a fractured skull following his clash of heads with Arsenal defender David Luiz last month and no time frame has been put on the 29-year-old's return.

Portuguese teenager Fabio Silva scored his first goal following his club-record £35million move from Porto in September, a late penalty in Monday's 2-1 defeat at Burnley, but Nuno says Wolves are ready to move when the transfer window opens on January 2.

"We are preparing," Nuno said ahead of Sunday's home game with Tottenham.

"There is no day that we don't speak to each other. The manager, the technical staff, Scott (Sellars, general manager football technical), every day.

"Of course we have to rebalance our squad, it's still a long season ahead of us."

The loss of Jimenez, who has scored 48 goals in two-and-a-half years at Molineux, was a huge blow for Wolves and the impact on the team was said to be the equivalent of Spurs losing their star striker Harry Kane.

"I will not compare it, but I would say the absence of Raul is very important to us," Nuno said.

"We feel it and we felt it since the moment it happened. It is a huge blow because it is not only what he does on the pitch, but what he means for the squad.

"The confidence that the players have in him, the belief that until the last minute that he is going to put it inside (the goal).

"I will not compare to other teams, but I will admit that for us his absence is terrible."

Wolves have lost three of their four games since Jimenez was injured on November 29 to fall into the bottom half of the Premier League.

Adama Traore's influence has also waned in recent weeks with the powerful Spanish winger starting the last two games on the bench – and Nuno says the 24-year-old has become an obvious target for defenders.

He said: "My admiration for Adama is obvious, he's a unique player. Fantastic, so talented.

"But since Adama returned from the national team (in November) he is dragging a situation, which is not giving total comfort to his actions.

"He has a knock on his foot, but the commitment and will that he has to overcome the pain means I am immensely proud of Adama.

"Every time he plays he is one of the players that is clearly a target. It happened against Chelsea in the first action, that he had a big knock.

"He was getting better and in one second it goes worse. But this is football."

ID:428089: cacheID:428089:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:4165:
Written by
P A
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho pictured on December 16, 2020
Read Next:
Jose Mourinho: 'Life will not get easier for Spurs at Wolves'
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool23175156213556
2Arsenal24148249222750
3Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest24145540271347
4Chelsea24127547311643
5Manchester CityMan City24125748351341
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle24125742291341
7Bournemouth24117641281340
8Aston Villa2410773437-337
9Fulham249963632436
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2481063538-334
11Brentford2494114242031
12Crystal Palace247982830-230
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd2485112834-629
14Tottenham HotspurSpurs24831348371127
15West Ham UnitedWest Ham2476112946-1727
16Everton236892328-526
17Wolverhampton WanderersWolves2454153452-1819
18Leicester CityLeicester2445152553-2817
19Ipswich TownIpswich2437142249-2716
20Southampton2423191854-369


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!