Wolves boss Nuno admits this is most challenging season yet

Nuno’s pack are returning to action at Leeds on Monday after what he feels was an ‘absurd’ international break.

And as Wolves have to play games without fans and constantly worry about potential positive coronavirus tests, Nuno said on 2020/21: “Definitely, it’s the toughest one.

"It has got more challenging because of the disruption of preparation due to the international games.

“So, all of these things together, it’s a big challenge for us. It’s a big challenge for everybody.

“The load on the players, the short period, everything – plus the tough and hard opponents we have in front of us every week, competing in the Premier League.

“I would say, yes, it’s definitely the toughest season that we have had.”

Nuno had a scare as five of his players – Rui Patricio, Nelson Semedo, Joao Moutinho, Ruben Neves and Daniel Podence – were away on Portugal duty while Cristiano Ronaldo tested positive for Covid.

But they were able to train at Compton after club tests on Thursday, and are hoping to get the go-ahead for Leeds after another another round of tests.

“You cannot plan. It’s impossible to plan,” added Nuno.

“You just follow the normal routines and expect things to be OK, so they don’t affect your decisions.

“But even the protocol is not totally clear. It says you have to have 14 players available – but that 14 includes all the players that have professional contracts with the club.

“We could be talking about under-23s, under-18s, so that says, no matter what happens, you will always play. Clearly, teams will have to play with players that were not the first thoughts of the manager.”