Nuno Espirito Santo is a former Portuguese footballer who was born on January 25, 1974. During his career, he was a goalkeeper and the head coach of Premier League team Wolverhampton Wanderers. In those five years, he played for three different teams in Spain and made a name for himself for the first time.
Later, he represented Porto in Portugal and also played professionally in Russia. He was a member of the Portuguese squad at Euro 2008, but he did not earn a cap for the national team due to bad luck.
He also became a manager in 2012, and in 2014, he led Rio Ave to the domestic cup finals. It was shortly before assuming control of Valencia.
Here are some of his famous quotes:
“In Portugal, seeing a black cat is a bad sign; it’s bad luck. But they tell me if it crosses from left to right, it’s good luck. But I don’t like black cats!”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I truly believe you have to take things as they come, win or lose, and keep believing in how you want to do things and how you want to play.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“In Portugal, seeing a black cat is a bad sign; it’s bad luck. But they tell me if it crosses from left to right, it’s good luck. But I don’t like black cats!”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“Time is always important; sometimes time doesn’t always go along with patience. It is always important. You have to deal with it. It’s part of football. Every decision is judged.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“My interpretation of football is to stay humble, work hard, and things will come.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“All coaches say, ‘We want to control the game. We want the ball. Blah, blah, blah, blah,’ but it’s impossible to have the ball all the time.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“YOU HAVE TO BE READY FOR ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING AND ACCEPT EVERYTHING THE WAY THINGS ARE.”― NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO
“What we are here for is to improve, to work as a team, stay humble and work hard, trying to achieve the best performance that we can in every game.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I want to thank everybody for every day that I have spent at Valencia CF. It has been an honor and a source of pride for me.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“OUR AMBITION IS TO WIN EVERY GAME REGARDLESS OF THE OPPONENT.”― NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO
“Every game is a chance to improve.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I LIVE IN PEACE.”― NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO
“Sometimes a polemic tweeter is more important than a normal view.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“What you have to become is really strong in what you do. That’s the point of building a team. You don’t know any other way – it would be absurd to do it any other way.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“What sells more, criticism or compliments? What do people like more? They enjoy blood.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I’m a coach who likes to have the ball, but what I really think is, ‘How can you be in charge of the game?’ I think, but maybe I am the only one, that the defensive process can take care of the game. Why is that? Because teams wait to defend. If you create something where you go to defend, to steal the ball where you want, it’s different.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I HAVE THIS ABSURD FEELING THAT I CAN WIN EVERY GAME WITH ANY TEAM.”― NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO
“I love watching the Premier League.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I learned a lot from the coaches I played for.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“IT IS TOUGH: SOMETIMES THE PAIN THAT YOU FEEL MAKES YOU GROW.”― NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO
“When you sign a contract, you must respect that.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“At Porto, under Jose Mourinho, we won everything with a fantastic group of football players. Mourinho built that. He made us succeed, won everything. This has a big impact.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I bought some land in Portugal, on the highest hill in Guimaraes, because I pictured that I wanted to build my house there. I said, ‘What a perfect place this would be,’ but I forgot to ask the council if I could build a house there. When I did, they said, ‘No!’”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“When you try to build an identity based on one idea, the easy part is to stick with the good things that you do.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“The first introduction I had with English football was in the FA Cup in the early ’80s.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“Every team and club has its own personal goals and objectives, and I’m only concerned about mine.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“As a kid, Liverpool was big for us.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I respect the people who work with me, and I respect the crowds in the stadiums – I just live the game and try to advise my players in the right moments. If that means I have to raise my arms and jump, I will raise my arms and jump if that is the best way to help them.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“Football is a passionate game, and the emotions are intense. As long you respect the people around you, I don’t see any problem with that.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I am not obsessed about making an impression on the Premier League.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“When you win, you want to repeat it.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“One of the things that is most difficult for a manager is reversing bad results and keeping going.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“I know that if I have come to Britain, I must adapt, and I will try to.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“Football is an emotional game, and that is why we love it, but part of the work I have to do is to control that emotion both for me and my players.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“PRINCIPE IS PARADISE.”― NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO
“We will never play for a draw, as it doesn’t make sense. Come on, you make a 0-0 plan, you get one goal after five minutes, and it’s finished. The players look and say, ‘Now what?’”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“ALL I DO IS CHALLENGE THE PLAYERS TO PUSH THEMSELVES TO THEIR LIMIT.”― NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO
“I was late, as a player, many times. If you have bad traffic, what are you doing to do? Make a miracle? Sometimes it happens.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“To be called up to the national team is what you want.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“Representing your country is what you want.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“There is no point staying on the past.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“When you have someone that manages, coaches you, and you follow, and you believe, and you do everything that you can because you believe in that idea in your leader, that stays forever. That is the impact Jose Mourinho had on me.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“Life is continually changing. This is what makes people better.”― Nuno Espirito Santo
“WHEN YOU SPEAK ABOUT JOSE MOURINHO, PERSONALLY, HE HAS AN IMPACT ON ME.”― NUNO ESPIRITO SANTO
