Jason Shackell is a no-nonsense defender – 6ft 3ins and sent off on his last appearance at Molineux for scything down Karl Henry.
But the 24-year-old cut a figure as accommodating as he is towering when he checked into sunny Molineux yesterday.
And considering the size of his fee – believed to be £1m – the former Norwich captain’s ambitions are modest.
For the moment, Shackell is looking no further than biding his time for a place in the team – and winning over Henry!
“I suppose I’ll be crawling into the changing room and might have to keep my head down for a bit,” said Shackell, who was shown an instant red card for his late challenge on Henry in Wolves’ 2-0 win against the Canaries last September.
“That was the only time I’ve ever been sent off in my career.
“I’ve managed to get a message to Karl (Henry) so I’m sure I’ll be OK!”
Shackell comes into a central defence containing Richard Stearman, Neill Collins and Darren Ward.
And while he is seen as a replacement for captain Jody Craddock, who has broken his foot, he knows he faces a battle to get in the team ahead of Collins, who was awarded a four-year contract in the summer, and Ward, whose professionalism has seen him taken off the tranafer list.
“I’m not guaranteed a place at all – I’m not expecting to come here and be in the team,” added Shackell.
“I’m just going to get my head down and wait for an opportunity to arise and whenever that may be, make sure I grab it.
“I’m very lucky – Wolves are a huge club with a great ground, and the training facilities and pitches are lovely too.”
In keeping with his determination not to burn his bridges – and a nod to the difficulties of the muk-and-nettles Championship, Shackell believes his past and previous clubs both have as much chance as anyone as getting promoted.
“Norwich haven’t started anywhere near as good as Wolves but they still have their aspirations,” he said.
“They’re still trying to bring in a couple of players to add to the good players already there I’ve left behind.
“If they can get on a little roll then you never know where they might finish and they could be there or thereabouts.
“The league has got harder over the last few years – there’s a lot of teams who will be looking towards the top half and beyond.
“It’s not easy, so I’m just happy to be here. We just need to work hard individually.
“The boys have had a great start and we’ll be working hard to continue that for as long as possible.”
For the moment, Shackell wants to use the international break to get to know Henry and Co.
But having played against most of his new team-mates before, he has already formed positive impressions of his bew colleagues.
“I don’t know many of the lads so it will be nice to get in, meet a few of the boys and get a few days’ training under my belt,” he added.
“It will give me a bit of time to get to know the lads before we travel down to the first game at Charlton.
“I’ve played against a few of them to be honest and I know there are boys here with a lot of ability.
“That can only be good for me and I’m looking forward to training with them day in, day out.
“I played against Sylvan (Ebanks-Blake) when he was at Plymouth and he caught the eye – he won the Golden Boot last season and he’s a very talented player.
“But you can say that about nearly all of them. We’ve got four or five very good strikers, there’s strength in depth in midfield and at the back – and you can’t leave out the keeper!
“There are a lot of good players and I’m looking forward to getting involved.”
Shackell was joined last night by fellow new arrivals Matt Hill and George Friends, both left-backs from Preston and Exeter respectively. At 27, Hill immediately becomes one of the more experienced players behind Craddock, 34-year-old Michael Gray and Chris Iwelumo, 30.
And the former Bristol City defender is determined to add to the leadership skills already at the club to guide Mick McCarthy’s squad to success this season.
“There are a lot of leaders in the side anyway,” said Hill.
“At 27 I may be one of the older lads in the group but a lot of the squad here, even though they’re fairly young, have played a lot of games in the Championship.
“The amount of games played sometimes passes for experience more than age.
“They certainly look like they’ve got a lot of young lads with the legs to run around the park. Hopefully I can certainly bring something to the side.”
Known as an athletic, quick full-back with Don Goodman-like spring and a strong tackle, Hill wants to fill the sizeable gap left by the injured George Elokobi.
“I’m a very committed and hard-working player,” he said.
“I like to think from a defensive point of view I can bring something to Wolves and I’m looking forward to it.
“I know ‘Jonah’ (David Jones) from Preston but also playing against the lads a few times I know what they’re about.
“Wolves have started really well – I watched them on Saturday and they were fantastic.
“Seeing how well they were doing made me wonder if I was going to get in the team!
“It was a great display which was all done and dusted in the first half and the confidence seems to be flowing.”
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