Nuno warns against Wolves distractions as fans dream of FA Cup run
Nuno Espirito Santo has warned Wolves against taking Shrewsbury Town lightly tonight – as he called for a big Molineux crowd to help see them through to the FA Cup fifth round.
Victory against their League One opponents will see Wolves reach the fifth round for only the fifth time this century.
A tie at Championship side Bristol City a week on Sunday is the prize for the winner.
But with several big clubs already knocked out of the competition, fans are dreaming of much more than that.
Nuno has called for his players to ignore any hype or expectation.
"(The fans) are confident and optimistic – we're very happy with that," Nuno said.
"But we cannot get distracted.
"They players are aware it's going to be a very tough game. We expect a very organised Shrewsbury who will try and reduce the spaces. It's going to be a very tough task."
Wolves put up to 2,000 extra tickets on sale last night to cater for unexpected demand. A crowd in the high 20,000s is expected.
"I'm delighted, it says a lot about the support that the fans are giving to us," Nuno added.
"We expect a full pack and a noisy Molineux to help us go through."
Young starlets Niall Ennis and Ryan Giles are set to be involved, with Ruben Vinagre and Diogo Jota missing out.
Nuno is pleased to hand opportunities to his under-23 youngsters.
"I don't recall one training session we didn't use somebody from the under-23s,because they give you real moments during the training sessions that we can use for the competition," he said.
"If you work with the same guys every day you don't see different actions happen.
"It doesn't have to be an injury (that leads to one of them playing). Sometimes it's just the game plan.
"They know their group is the under-23s, they're working there, and after that it's the situation of who really deserves to be involved with the first team.
"It's a clear communication between the technical staff."
