Wolves blog: Nuno's men have answered their doubters

Wolves’ (comparatively) poor form coincided with the teams below them picking up win after win, meaning the gap was at its lowest since it was opened up.

But the convincing 3-0 win at Leeds was the perfect answer at the first attempt to any nagging questions that had begun to creep in.

It seems anything the teams below Wolves can do, they can do better.

The ten-point gap over Aston Villa going into a huge game this weekend is a source of comfort – and Wolves know if they beat Villa and open the gap on them to 13, it becomes an almost unsurmountable chase for them with ten games to go.

After a few below-par performances, what Wolves did to Leeds during the midweek felt like they were back to their old selves.

Lovely passing moves, being able to change the tempo at the flick of a switch and marauding full backs contributed to a game where Wolves could, and should, have doubled the scoreline.

Nobody underperformed and, despite a dodgy touch and lack of finishing for Leo Bonatini, even he didn’t warrant dropping to leave Nuno with an easy decision to make this weekend, with Helder Costa and goal-scoring Benik Afobe waiting in the wings.

Alfred N’Diaye and Romain Saiss equally left another quandary for the boss, with Ruben Neves available at Villa Park – I wouldn’t know which of the pair to drop for the Portuguese maestro.

Danny Batth’s return coincided with a renewed set piece threat and solid display at the back, although Leeds were largely toothless – but the defence dealt with any issues and John Ruddy looked calm and collected when called upon.

Ultimately, three points at Leeds gave Wolves and their fans a sigh of relief and the mood seems far more uplifted than it had a day or so prior.

On to this weekend’s game, the rivalry with Aston Villa seems to have intensified over the past two seasons – obviously this is down to the two teams meeting each other once again and being more direct rivals than any time in recent history.

Even in the last Premier League spell, while Wolves for the most part performed well during trips to Villa Park, the game felt far less intense than playing Blues or the Baggies.

Now both teams are competing for Championship promotion, the aggravation between the two sets of fans is far higher, especially on social media.

Like the Leeds owner Andrea Radrizzani, Villa’s boss Tony Xia and chief executive Keith Wyness have cried out about Wolves and their Jorge Mendes connection.

It smacks of sour grapes, especially mentioning it now when Villa are struggling to force Wolves from their perch – why not bring this up in the summer?

It will be satisfying and a real kick in the teeth for them if it is Mendes’ boys who put Villa to the sword.

Nuno – who has repeatedly stated he ‘doesn’t care’ – will have had his team talk written for him.