Bruno: Jose is the special No.1 ... but strikers help him
BRUNO LAGE says Jose Sa will have his strikers to thank if the Wolves keeper breaks the club’s record for Premier League shut-outs.
The Portuguese boss (below) paid tribute to the character of his team as they made it four wins from their last five outings against Spurs last week.
Sa chalked up his ninth clean sheet in north London and now stands just four short of the number set by Rui Patricio two years ago.
However, Lage was keen to praise his forwards, rather than his shot-stopper.
He said: “What is so important to Jose are
Raul Jimenez and Fabio
Silva. If they don’t score goals what you want from them is to work and to press.
It’s team-work.
“It’s very important for Jose. We have a lot of goals that we start from Jose and the clean sheets are not just about him – but all the players in front of him.
“He is making a contribution. I’ve known him since he was 16 or 17. He is taking things step-by-step in his career.
“He conquers things through hard work.
“We build up from the back and we need to make the best decisions. Our goalkeeping coach Tony Roberts has been working with him and improving Jose’s skills.
“He’s coming out of the box well to control
space behind the defenders. His contribution in those situations is very important.”
Wolves have 15 games left to better their clean-sheet total.
Their last four wins have pushed them to within two victories of the top four. They have conceded just three goals in their last seven topflight fixtures.
However, Lage is insistent he is not looking at the bigger picture.
But he admits that his players will need to show character during the run-in if they want to qualify for a European competition next season. “We have a solid base,” he added, “now it is about what we want for our careers. What Jose wants.
“What all my players want.
“It’s about what we can do in these remaining 15 games for this massive club. “But it’s about concentrating on now. And not dreaming. If you start dreaming without the hard work, it won’t happen.
“That’s why we need character.
“When I was at
Benfica, I only thought we might win the cup in the last minute of the last game.
“It’s so hard in the
Premier League. You cannot think any
differently.”