Wolves ready for Torino test

Nuno Espirito Santo says Wolves will be ready to compete when they face Serie A side Torino in the Europa League qualifiers on Thursday evening.

The game comes hot on the heels of a hard fought 1-1 draw with Manchester United in the Premier League on Monday. Wolves have had just 72 hours in which to recover and travel to Italy but their manager says their pre-season efforts have been geared toward dealing with the turnarounds European football can present.

“We’ve been preparing since the beginning of the season for these kind of cycles,” he said. “Having three days, it’s difficult, but we are ready to play. We’ll decide [the team on matchday]. We’ll have a strong XI and we’ll compete.”

Wolves are closing in on a first ever appearance in the group stage of the Europa League, a reward for last season’s excellent Premier League campaign that saw them finish in seventh spot.

The Italians are yet to kick off their domestic season, but have disposed of Hungarian side Debrecen and Belarussian outfit Shakhtyor Soligorsk, scoring 13 goals in the process, in their European qualifiers already.

After defeating Crusaders of Northern Ireland and Armenia’s Pyunik, Nuno firmly believes this is the toughest test yet for his Wolves side in their European adventure. “Torino is a very good team, very organised, good players and manager. It’s going to be tough for us. It’s a very good team and a very tough challenge for us.”

Wolves are 2.88 to win in Turin, with the home side marginal favourites at 2.50 and the draw 3.00.