Wolves manager Vitor Pereira delighted fans by turning up at the pub to celebrate after his side beat Tottenham on Sunday. Wolves overcame Spurs 4-2 to all but secure their place in the Premier League for next season with a fourth straight win – and Pereira was in the mood to celebrate.
Goals from Rayan Ait-Nouri, Jorgen Strand Larsen and Matheus Cunha, and an own goal by Djed Spence, saw Wolves pick up a fourth straight top-flight victory for the first time since January 1972. They moved past West Ham into 16th place in the Premier League and are 14 points clear of the relegation places with six matches left to play.
Pereira took over at Wolves in December, when they were 19th, and has taken 26 points from 16 league games, guiding them away from danger. As well as getting results, the Portuguese coach has won the fanbase over with his openness and passion – and his approach was summed up by actions on Sunday.
After delighting the Molineux faithful with their first four-goal home performance since March 2022, Pereira wanted to join the supporters. His quip to a journalist after their Premier League win at Bournemouth has been adopted by Wolves fans, who displayed a banner in the stands vs Spurs which read: “First the points, then the pints”.
And asked if he would have a pint to celebrate, Pereira told BBC Sport: “Every time. Work is work, but after work we need to celebrate together. I need to feel the energy of these people and to feel part of the family.”
The 56-year-old came through on his promise, too, with footage on social media showing him inside the Moon Under Water – a Wetherspoons pub in Wolverhampton – on Sunday evening.
He shared some hugs with the fans after coming through the front door before later conducting some cheering with the delighted supporters.
Pereira clearly feels comfortable enough to celebrate avoiding the drop, but his words in the post-match press conference showed his ultimate goal. Asked whether Wolves were safe from the drop, he said: “If I start to speak about being safe, I don’t show my ambition.
“I didn’t come to England to work just to avoid relegation, I’m not this kind of coach. Mentally we are strong. We feel that we can win and compete with the other teams.
“Football is not only about tactics or technical. Football is about to connect the people. We need to tactically be consistent but what we try is to connect everyone and we are connected.”
Wolves have six league games left this season, and with Spurs just two points ahead of them and Manchester United just a point better off than them, they could continue to climb the table. Next up on Sunday they play United, who were thrashed 4-1 by Newcastle over the weekend.
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