All about helping team for Wolves' red-hot Diogo Jota
Wolves attacker Diogo Jota is glad to be back among the goals – but insists he was still helping during his barren run.
Jota has shone in recent weeks, with six goals in his last three games.
He grabbed a treble against Espanyol at Molineux. a brace against Norwich, and then struck in last Sunday’s 3-2 win against Tottenham.
The Portuguese had previously gone eight matches without finding the net, but he said: “I think that the team’s and the players’ form varies throughout the season.
“Right now, I’m being able to help the team. Even though I wasn’t scoring in the other matches, I think I always helped the team defending and attacking and that’s what’s most important.
“We’re like a family inside the pitch and we want to keep going like this, seeking to get more wins.”
As well as his goals, Jota’s work-rate has shone through.
A tenacious, skilful run from deep helped create Raul Jimenez’s winner against Spurs, and the 23-year-old says the willingness to put in the hard yards is shared by his Portuguese compatriots at Wolves – Ruben Neves, Joao Moutinho and Pedro Neto, to name a few.
“Even though it’s a small country, I think we work well and above all, we are very ambitious,” said Jota.
“All the people involved possess a great ambition, a desire to go far, not only the players, but also the managers, fitness coaches, doctors.
“I think everyone has that desire to go as far as possible and think that’s what’s happening and is going to continue to happen.”
Wolves’ victory last weekend was quite the statement in the race for Champions League football, but Jota insists they are not treating it as extra special.
“Every game counts, no matter the opponents.
“Every game you could win three points and we always think game by game, so whoever we play against, we want to win and that’s what we want to keep doing,” said Jota.
“They started the game very well, playing at home, with a tactical system that locked us a bit in the first minutes, playing with high intensity and I think we tried to withstand that pressure.
“Even though we suffered the first goal, we responded well and had a very positive performance in the second half, both defensively and offensively, turned the score around.
“In the previous games we were not conceding in the Premier League, but we conceded, this happens in football, but the most important thing is to never give up and always go searching for the win.
“I think the second half was almost perfect, and we fully deserved the win.”
Matt Doherty, making his 250th Wolves appearance, set up Jota’s goal.
On Doherty’s milestone, Jota added: “Every game is special, it doesn’t matter the number, and he will want to keep adding to that number.”
