Collins on injuries, Pereira and ‘unbelievably receptive’ players

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Collins on injuries, Pereira and 'unbelievably receptive' players

Wolves interim boss James Collins has been speaking to the media before Saturday’s Premier League game against Chelsea at Stamford Bridge (kick-off 20:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

On team news: “We’ve got a couple of injuries. Matt Doherty is injured, and so is Rodrigo Gomes. The rest are fully available. We might get a couple of young boys around the group and make our decisions from there.”
Collins believes “this group has been tinkered” with so often that it has lost its “continuity and shape”, but said that establishing those elements is now the new manager’s job to “work out and implement”.
On the club’s chances of avoiding relegation: “I told the players on the first day – when you’re in it, you feel like you are listening to the outside noise. But there are 28 games to go, nearly 90 points to play for, and if you listen to everybody out there, it’s like Wolves are down. I don’t see it that way. We just need to put some results together. It starts now – 28 games to go and let’s get some points.”
Collins revealed that the message from the board is that he will be “taking the game this weekend”, but said he is unsure how long that arrangement will last, adding that his “focus is on the team and our week’s work”.
On former manager Vitor Pereira: “Vitor and his staff were brilliant with me. They welcomed us to watch training, they welcomed us to be around it, they welcomed us into meetings. They were enthusiastic about the under-21s and getting players through. I can’t speak highly enough of them. They were brilliant people and good coaches. Sometimes in football, it is dictated by results. In the end, if you keep losing, you lose your job. They understand that, but they did their job diligently. Great people and they treated me with great respect. I wish them well.”
Collins also said he has held conversations with players and coaching staff, explaining that “you have to take the bits from that” and use them to improve the team. However, he reiterated that “you can’t do everything in a week”, so his priority has been to ensure that “at least three or four main principles are added to their week”.
On his hopes for this weekend’s match at Chelsea: “We were determined it’s not a week’s holiday and a new manager comes in. We had to make sure that we prepared properly for the game this weekend. It’s a Premier League game that can be won. That was the message to the players and they’ve responded brilliantly. They’ve been unbelievably receptive to what we’ve done with them.”