The Blues boss was particularly delighted with the telepathy and interplay between Emmanuel Adebayor and Carlos Tevez who started a game together for the first time in today’s 1-0 win over Wolves.
Adebayor claimed the only goal of the match, his second in successive outings, leaving his manager purring with delight but acknowledging that sometimes attack is not always the best form of defence!
“It is important that strikers get off and running and I thought the interplay between Emmanuel and Carlos was good in that first half,” praised the manager.
“It was important to give Carlos some more game time. He formed a promising partnership with Emmanuel. We have technically adept players and there is a mutual respect from the pair about what each other can produce.
“We have made lots of changes this summer and to have two wins on the bounce is very important for us. Maybe we would have been better keeping the ball and possession against Wolves but those are the kind of players that I have.
“We are early in our development as a group and still learning about the talent and quality of each and every one of the players. That is a learning process that will continue. I admit that sometimes it is difficult to rein in the attacking instincts because we have energy and guys who just want to score goals.
“I think we should always encourage attacking play but sometimes the lads have to recognise where we are in a game and just hold on to the ball!”
What pleased Hughes, too, was the size of the opening day crowd and its positivity towards the side. It was a record attendance for the stadium on the opening day of a campaign.
“There was a bit of a carnival atmosphere in the ground which was packed and the fans were brilliant they all came to enjoy themselves. I am sure they did, though possibly not the last ten minutes,” he smiled. “But credit to Wolves; they chased every lost cause.”
