Julen Lopetegui: Rayan Ait-Nouri's Wolves future will be at full-back

The 21-year-old has always been praised for his attacking intent and as Wolves battled a hectic schedule with a small squad, Ait-Nouri took his chance and impressed at left wing in games of late.

Lopetegui, however, sees his future at left-back if he can improve his defending and battle with Hugo Bueno.

When asked if Ait-Nouri will be a left winger or left-back permanently, Lopetegui said: “It depends on what you want for your team.

“For me, I think he can be a very good left-back. He has quality but he has to improve in the defensive phase, as does Hugo and the young players.

“All of the players have to improve, but when you are young you have to improve more.”

When asked if Ait-Nouri has a preference on his position, Lopetegui said: “No, all of the players want to play.”

As well as improving his defending, Lopetegui also needs the player to ‘adapt’ to his style of play – indicating the reason why the head coach has not started Ait-Nouri in any Premier League games since taking charge.

Lopetegui added: “Rayan is a good player. With the ball he has a big quality but he has to adapt to playing in our way, too.

“Without the ball he knows he’s going to improve a lot. He is very young and if he improves without the ball, he will be a very good left-back.

“He’s involved in the daily work to understand and have a big demand on himself to improve without the ball, but it’s the same with Hugo and all the full-backs.”

Another player who has had his position up for debate is Pablo Sarabia.

The new signing perfectly fits Wolves’ 4-2-3-1 system, as he can play out wide or as a number 10.

His best work last season while on loan at Sporting came from the right wing, and Lopetegui believes his versatility will only benefit Wolves as they look to avoid relegation from the Premier League.

“He has his strengths and can add to different positions,” Lopetegui said. “He has played more as a winger but he can play as a number 10. The most important thing is to take good decisions, play well and work hard without the ball.

“He is an experienced player who can help us. Of course he has to adapt to the rhythm in England, which is one of the most different things.

“We have to do all our work quickly, as soon as possible, but he wants to be here a lot and he will work very hard to adapt very quickly.”

Sarabia is one of five signings Wolves have made in January so far as they look to add more competition and leadership to the squad for the rest of the season.

When asked how close he is to the squad he wants, Lopetegui said: “I don’t know what is going to happen with the market.

“When the market is open, everything is possible.

“For me, what is more important is to improve the current squad and be able to do better in different matches.

“The players that are here will be the main actors in our success or not, this is the most important thing.”