Wolves v West Ham preview: Matheus Cunha working hard in bid to make first start

The Spaniard will look for his side to bounce back from their midweek Carabao Cup defeat to Nottingham Forest in the huge clash between the two struggling Premier League sides this weekend.

Cunha, who made his Premier League debut against Villa, started on the bench for the Forest game, and Lopetegui says the Brazilian is ‘working very hard’ to be considered for the starting XI.

“Step by step, he’s closer to starting,” said Lopetegui. “He came here not in the best way physically because he was more or less on his holidays. We have to work very hard with him. He is working very hard, and he has to improve to be able to keep the rhythm that we demand of the team.”

A win this weekend could see Wolves climb out of the relegation zone as West Ham sit a point above them in 17th. Wolves were beaten 1-0 by the Hammers on the first day of October last year and Ruben Neves recognised the importance of this fixture as they look for their fourth league win of the season.

The skipper labelled tomorrow’s game: “A massive game at home in front of our fans.”

Wolves dominated the cup tie with Forest on Wednesday, with missed chances proving costly on the night.

Lopetegui preferred to focus on the defensive success of his team, hoping for more clean sheets in the Premier League.

“I don’t want to put the focus on the chances that we didn’t score, I prefer to put the focus on needing clean sheets to win matches in the Premier League,” he said. “We have to improve on this. We suffered a goal in the first half, which was key, and after we deserved more.

“In front of us, we have a very important match against West Ham and we have to be ready. It was a hard match (against Forest) and we fought a lot. I will highlight this with the players.

“It was a pity for the players and the fans that we have to accept. We are disappointed.”

Joe Hodge and Ruben Neves missed penalties in the cup tie leading to Wolves’ exit from the competition, but Lopetegui backed his players and complimented Hodge for his bravery.

“We will support Ruben and Hodge, who is very young,” said the boss. “He has the character to be the last player to take a penalty and I think he will learn a lot from this experience.”

Lopetegui welcomed the possible return of Pedro Neto in the coming weeks, with the winger sidelined since October last year with an ankle injury.

The Spaniard said: “We want him as soon as possible because he’s a very important player for us.

“He is working very hard and he’s in the last part of his recovery. We are waiting for him.

“But medically, I hope that in maybe two weeks he will be able to start working with the team.”