Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
FA CUP THIRD ROUND LEADER OF THE
Neves boasts new tattoo of a wolf on his arm and now he can ink himself into Molineux folklore by mauling Liverpool
THERE is a banner at Molineux proclaiming: “The strength of the wolf is in the pack”.
Yet every pack needs a leader.
Every revolution, a Portuguese one in this instance, requires a spark. For ambitious Chineseowned Wolves, that catalyst has been Portugal international playmaker Ruben Neves.
His £15.8million move from Porto to then Championship Wolves in July 2017 was a record fee for the division which stunned many.
No one is questioning the wisdom now, however – least of all Neves himself, the youngest-ever Champions League captain, aged just 18. His vision to join upwardly mobile Wolves has been thoroughly vindicated and he has played a pivotal role under his old Porto boss
Nuno Espirito Santo, winning the Championship and breaking into the Premier League’s top 10.
Portuguese stars, including Rui Patricio and Joao Moutinho, have since followed him to the Black Country.
The visit of Liverpool in the FA Cup tonight will hold no fears for Neves and Wolves, who have already taken points off Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United and, most recently, Tottenham at Wembley.
What is clear from time in the company of the intelligent, and remarkably mature 21-yearold is he’s as far from a foreign footballing mercenary as you can imagine.
The engaged father-of-one lives locally in leafy Tettenhall, two miles from Wolves’ Compton training ground.
Neves has even added a recent tattoo of a wolf and a set of goalposts on his left arm, as he explained: “I did it because of the animal.
“I feel the wolf is a very competitive animal, very intelligent. He works hard to achieve his goals and protects his family.
“I didn’t do it because of the club but, of course, it is a bit more special because of that.” The emblem has added to fans’ devotion to the ace who can pick a pass, break up play, read the game and shoot from distance.
Ever since the Championship,
Wolves supporters have sung: “He’s
Nuno Santo’s man... he’s better than
Zidane.”
But grounded Neves seems the last person to get carried away. He had his whole family over from Portugal for New Year to celebrate the end of a “dream” 2018.
It included other highlights such as the first birthday of daughter Magarida in August, getting engaged to sweetheart Debora and the pregnancy for his baby son, due in April.
He said: “It was a fantastic year for me and my family. 2018 was the most important year because we won the Championship. It was my big dream to win a title and we achieved it.
“I’ve since made my debut in the Premier League and enjoyed the first half of the season.
“My girlfriend and I also got engaged and she is pregnant Liverpool to win and over 2.5 goals again. I have a little boy due in April and I will do my best to have another big year for me, my family and the club.”
Happy with life under Nuno (left), Neves signed an improved, lucrative five-year contract at Wolves last summer and has two goals and an assist in 19 top-flight games in the engine room alongside Moutinho, who joined in July.
It has been a thrill for Neves to partner his compatriot after growing up a fan and ball boy at Porto, where Moutinho starred.
Neves added: “It was really special when he signed here. When I was younger I saw Moutinho playing and he was very good.
“He was a reference for me as a ball boy and now to play with him, it is unbelievable.”
Swapping Champions League football for the English second tier may have seemed an unusual move but he had his reasons: “The Championship allows you to grow as a player. It is very competitive.”
And if he continues like this, everyone will be talking about him next June when he could potentially line up for Portugal against England in the Nations League final.