Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves has spoken to Portuguese radio station Antena 1 this Monday. The 20-year-old still gets big attention from the local press, so there was a lot to talk about Porto, Wolves and even FIFA’s best player prize.
Especially about his time at Wolves, Neves was asked about the idol treatment he’s been receiving from fans. The midfielder claimed it’s just how things are in England.
“It’s already the English culture, the way they see football. Because they live the football, they are completely in love with the sport. So I think any player that does everything for the good of the club, that delivers everything on the pitch, they will like.”
Despite having just left Porto this summer, Neves was already asked if he would fancy a return to the club. But he claims this is not something on his head right now.
“My expectation right now is to be able to help Wolverhampton get to the place it deserves, and it’s only in that sense that I have to work. Then in the future we will see what will happen. Right now I’m focused on Wolverhampton, I honestly don’t think beyond that, because as I said this championship is very difficult and we have to stay focused every moment.”
On his compatriot Cristiano Ronaldo running for the best player in the world, Neves claims there isn’t much of a competition against him: “Ronaldo made an excellent campaign. Won all titles. He is back to scoring huge goals. He was decisive in many games and many competitions. There will be no doubt about the awarding of the prize.”
The Wolves player also talked about the chances of Portugal winning the World Cup next year, even though he’s only been in the U23 squad: “The team has the ability to beat any opponent. I will not say that there is full favouritism to win the competition but we have a great group and we can do something good in Russia.”
