With 10 starts from a possible 11 in the Premier League this season, it’s fair to say that Rayan Aït-Nouri is one of the first names on the team sheet these days at Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The Algeria international took the long road to get there, failing to fully convince Gary O’Neil’s predecessor, Julen Lopetegui, but he’s now fully embedded in the starting line up at Molineux, and delighted about that.
The 22-year-old sat down with DZ Foot for a chat about his career to date and his time with Wolves, and he couldn’t be more chuffed at how things have finally panned out in England.
Explaining that the arrival of O’Neil was good for him, it did, however, take him a bit of time to get back up to speed after his long time away from the team during the previous campaign.
As for his decision to sign for Wolves despite teams such as Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain being after him when he was at Angers, he made it clear that a move to England was always on the cards for him because that’s where he wanted to take his next step.
He said: “Wolverhampton are a club with a lot of ambition. There’s always been good players here, and it was a dream for me, since I was a kid, to play in the Premier League. When I arrived, I immediately told myself that I had done the right thing to come here! Mentally and physically, I’ve progressed a lot, even if it hasn’t only been good moment.”
In fact, when he arrived, Wolves were under Nuno Espirito Santo’s guidance and were in the top half of the table, which did help him in his choice.
He added: “That’s what motivated me, and I don’t regret that choice.”
