Sunderland host Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.
Wolves boss Vitor Pereira has revealed that his side could be without first team duo Jean-Ricner Bellegarde and Hwang Hee-chan for their trip to the face Sunderland at the Stadium of Light this weekend.
Wanderers are unbeaten in three games across all competitions, but are yet to win a game in the Premier League and are currently rooted to the bottom of the table. Their two points to date came from draws in their last two outings, against Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton and Hove Albion.
By contrast, Sunderland have taken 11 points already this season, and could open up the gap between themselves and their visitors to 12 with a win on home soil on Saturday afternoon. And the Black Cats’ cause may be bolstered by the possible absences of two Wolves players.
What has Wolves boss Vitor Pereira said about his side ahead of Sunderland clash?
Speaking in a press conference on Friday afternoon, when asked if his side were facing any fitness issues, Pereira said: “For tomorrow, we have some small problems with injuries. [Hwang] Hee-chan and [Jean-Ricner] Bellegarde are sick. We'll see tomorrow if it's possible to have the players with us.”
The Wolves boss was also asked about Jorgen Strand Larsen, who has featured in five of Wanderers’ seven top flight outings so far this term, but who is yet to complete a full 90 minutes. When asked if a complete performance was on the horizon, Pereira responded: “He's trying, he's trying his best. It's not easy to be at the best level with pains, I understand. And until now he has pains, he has pain, and he's trying to help the team. I hope he can help us again.”
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Pereira also took the time to discuss the prospective impact that this month’s international break may have had on players - both in his squad and beyond. He said: “This is a problem for me and for every manager in the Premier League, I believe. If we have a lot of players in national teams, it means that we have quality in the squad. It means that we have quality, we have character... And we have this quality on the group.
“Each training, I feel that we are improving. We are more connected. We are improving the communication between the players, between them, without me, without the coaches, without the command. Because I cannot, in the middle of a game, it's difficult to have this command every time, to communicate with them. They need to communicate between them inside. This is something that we can build. We are building now.”
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