Wolverhampton Wanderers have drawn La Liga strugglers Espanyol in the knockout stages of the Europa League but despite their league positioning, sporting director Kevin Thelwell has issued the club a warning ahead of the two-legged tie in February.
What’s he said?
The west Midlanders qualified for the last 32 by finishing as runners-up to SC Braga in Group K and they have been gifted an easy-looking fixture, on paper.
Espanyol sit rock bottom in La Liga after winning just two of their 17 league matches.
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Meanwhile, Wolves have been performing on a sky-high level for the past 18 months, if not more, as they breezed through the qualification stages having finished a record-high seventh in the Premier League last term.
Their form has continued this season as defeat on Sunday to Tottenham Hotspur stopped an 11-game unbeaten run.
Despite all of this, Thelwell has talked up the difficulty of the tie, he said:
“We understand their league form has not been as good.
“But they have some very good players and they are winners of their group, so again I’m sure they will be very committed to getting towards the last 16.
“There are no easy games at this level.”
Priorities
There are several months until the two meet in the knockout stages of the Europa League, so a lot can happen, especially with January soon on the horizon.
Wolves are expected to strengthen according to manager Nuno Santo, while the Spanish outfit could quite easily do the same as they try to change their fortunes domestically.
However, the team should look at this competition as a priority regardless of how dangerous their opposition may seem to Thelwell.
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There is no guarantee on when they will be granted another opportunity to compete on the European stage – going on to win the whole competition would certainly aid that, tenfold.
Wolves are currently eighth in the Premier League and that’s even after enjoying a lengthy run without defeat, so it shows there’s plenty to be done to break into the illustrious top six.
Nuno’s men must go for glory here.
And in other Wolves news, this Molineux ace who was dribbled past five times must be dropped this weekend…