THROWN TO THE WOLVES
It’s a hurl new ball game for boss Nuno as Bennett is chucked in to the mix
RYAN BENNETT reckons Wolves are getting physical as they learn to cope in the Premier League. Wanderers suffered successive defeats last month to strugglers Huddersfield and Cardiff, who outmuscled and outworked their newlypromoted rivals.
It was part of a dire run of five defeats in six games – sparking criticism that boss Nuno Espirito Santo (above) had no Plan B if his attacking 3-4-3 formation failed.
But the former Porto coach has since introduced route-one long throws by recalling defender Bennett to hurl them in. It has helped Wolves and their stable of Portuguese talent to record back-to-back wins over Chelsea and Newcastle. Former Grimsby trainee Bennett, 28, said: “We know we need to add that dimension, we can’t play all the time.
“We like to get the ball down and it all looks nice, but sometimes you do need to have that determination.
“The long throw is just something the manager’s decided we can add to our game.
“He said with the size of Willy Boly and how good he is in the air, why not utilise it now and again?
“It came a bit out the blue, he just told me I was on them, I took a couple in training and then the first one in the game the other day against Chelsea went further than I thought.
“When I was really young, in my Grimsby days, I used to take a few, but it’s not been for a while – so I got the WD40 on the shoulders and got it going!”
Wolves want to snap up Raul Jimenez on a permanent deal, but are also planning to sign another striker next month. Jimenez, 27, has impressed on loan from Benfica with four Premier League goals and four assists this term.
The Mexico international’s hold-up play and unselfishness has delighted team-mates.
His form, including their equaliser against Chelsea, has helped Wolves get their season back on track.
Santo will now try to sign the tall striker permanently either in January or at the end of the season.
But Wolves are scouting other options to bring in another new frontman in the window.
They spent £80million on new players in the summer and the addition of £30mrated Jimenez would take their spending past £100m.
As well as his success on the pitch, Jimenez has marketing appeal back home with more than 3m Twitter followers.
He is dating Mexican soap star Daniela Basso and some Wolves matches are now being commentated on in Spanish.