New hero Leo Bonatini: Wolves are big in Brazil
Debut match-winner Leo Bonatini says he jumped at the chance to join 'famous' Wolves – and is confident the team will make big improvements under Nuno Espirito Santo.
The 23-year-old Brazilian striker made an instant impact just a few days after joining from Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal on loan for the season, scoring the winner against Middlesbrough.
It was a whirlwind week for the former Estoril player. And he hopes it's the first goal of many for his new club, which he described as 'famous in Brazil'.
"One week ago I was in Austria (with Al-Hilal) so I didn't know nothing (about the move)," he said. "I came here to play, to enjoy and my team mates helped me a lot.
"Wolves is a very important club and very famous in Brazil also. This is a very big league – in Brazil we watch a lot of the Championship.
"We love football there. They show a lot of games. This is a very good stadium and the fans support us. I was very happy to come here and play in this league for this club.
"I'm here on loan, I just want to help. We have many games, we have to work, to improve.
"I hope my family sees my goal. I have no family here, only my friend who's here with me."
Wolves created few chances against Boro and were under pressure in the final 20 minutes, with boss Nuno stressing that improvements would have to be made.
That was a sentiment Bonatini agreed with.
"We have to improve more, to train what we didn't do well," he added. "We'll be better for sure.
"We don't want to suffer like in the last minutes. We want to win the games easier. But we know the opponents were very good.
"The coach knows exactly what we have to do. The ambition is go to the Premier League but we don't have to think about that. We have to win the games, to enjoy them.
"It's game by game and step by step."
Bonatini spoke impressive English, which he learned last year when with Al Hilal. He said the multicultural Wolves dressing room could all speak English.
"My accent is not very good but in Saudi Arabia I used a lot of English there because it's difficult to learn Arabic. This is one thing I want to improve.
"We are like a family here and this is very important because we have a long season with many games.
"We will travel a lot and stay more than (with) our families."
* Meanwhile, Cameron Borthwick-Jackson has signed a season-long loan deal with Leeds United.
The Manchester United defender is not in Jose Mourinho's imminent plans and will be hoping for more game time after a disappointing spell at Wolves.
