Don Goodman: Nuno turning players into stars

Goodman spent four years at Molineux from 1994 until 1998 and has watched with delight as Nuno has guided his old club from the Championship to the Premier League.

Now as Wolves eye the January sales, Goodman says the development of Romain Saiss, Conor Coady and Matt Doherty from second tier players to Premier League regulars is proof of Nuno’s coaching ability.

The trio were at Molineux when Nuno took over in 2017 and have improved to play key roles in promotion and gaining a spot in the last 32 of the Europa League.

For Goodman, coaches like Nuno and Manchester City’s Pep Guardiola deserve praise for how they improve players.

He said: “I love modern coaches who can get players and make them better.

“That is what Nuno Espirito Santo does.

“I don’t think Pep Guardiola gets the credit he deserves because he turns £50million players into £100m players. But it is still improving players.That is what he has done.

“With Nuno, I’ve looked at Matt Doherty, Conor Coady, Saiss – players that were here before. I look at how much better they are, how much he has improved them.

“That is testament to him as a coach. Not just on the training field, but also the man-management.

“It is a small squad, getting players to play in a variety of different positions.

“But most importantly he is getting players to buy into his beliefs, because his beliefs are proven to be the right ones.”

It was Nuno who moved Coady from a midfielder to a central defensive role.

Two-and-a-half seasons later, the 26-year-old is still one of the first names on the teamsheet.

And Goodman says consistency is key.

He said: “Conor was always a good footballer and Conor is now a consistent performer.

“Week-in, week-out ,you do not get less than a seven out of 10 from Conor Coady.

“I think Nuno has worked to get consistency out of him. He’s taught him how to defend.

“It was not something that came naturally while he was a midfielder, but now you would never know.

“Obviously his range of passing has improved. He’s encouraged him to play the switch balls out to the wing-backs.

“That diagonal ball has been a massive part of Wolves’ success in opening teams up. He is a key part of that.”

Another player that Goodman has seen develop under Nuno is Adama Traore.

Traore arrived for £18million from Middlesbrough in 2018 as a winger, but has added another two positions to his bow.

He’s mainly featured at wing-back and in attack this term, and it is that right-forward role that has seen him earn plaudits across the land.

And for Goodman, Traore has reached a new level due to his own hard work, his manager and the support of the team.

He said: “I said to a lot of people, my son included, about Adama (when he arrived).

“I said don’t expect him to come to Wolves and perform miracles straight away. Give Nuno time to work out what motivates and how to get the best out of him.

“I think we have seen that this season, I think he has gone to another level.

“He’s finding an end product and again the credit has to go not only to himself, but to his team-mates and the coaching staff.”

Teams have opted to double up markers or foul Adama in a bid to stop him this term. And, for Goodman, his advice is to take that as a compliment.

He said: “You get up, get on with it and trust in the system – which is the referee and the officials.

“Wolves have some fantastic dead ball specialists anyway so if he is getting fouled in the final third of the pitch it represents a chance.

“It is cynical, blatant, but a compliment to him and how much he has improved.”