A Real Madrid star recently mentioned Vitor Pereira when reminiscing about his rise to the top in Europe.
Pereira has had a record-breaking start at Wolves, earning the trust and love of fans both on and off the pitch.
The former Al-Shabab manager arrived at Molineux as a coach who had never experienced the English game, but fortunately, his suitability to the task quickly became clear.
Before joining the Old Gold, Pereira had faced several Premier League managers in other leagues, as the Wolves manager has a lengthy history of coaching abroad.
Arda Guler reminisces on Fenerbahce debut thanks to Vitor Pereira
Pereira left Al-Shabab in Saudi Arabia to join Wolves and had spent some time away from coaching in Europe prior to his Premier League arrival.
Before moving to the Middle East, the Portuguese coach took on jobs in Brazil, overseeing things at Corinthians and Flamengo.
Prior to Pereira’s controversial time in Brazil, the Wolves boss was manager of Fenerbahce, where he unearthed an absolute gem in Arda Guler.
Pereira gave Guler his senior debut for Fenerbahce, which was something the Real Madrid starlet mentioned in his piece for The Players’ Tribune.
“I think it was August 2021 when Mr. Vitor Pereira called me up for my first competitive game, at home to HJK Helsinki.
“We had a lot of injuries, and when one of our players had to go off in the second half, Mr. Pereira turned to the bench, and he saw that he had three players left.”
Guler reminisced that despite looking like a ‘ball boy’, Pereira trusted the forward to impact the game for the Yellow Canaries.
“One was a goalkeeper. The second was also a goalkeeper. The third was a 15-year-old kid who looked like a ball boy.
“Arda, get ready.” [Pereira said]. My heart was beating so fast. When it’s PlayStation, it’s just the controller that’s shaking. In real life, it’s your whole body!”
The rest was history, as three days after giving the 16-year-old his debut in the Europa League Qualifiers, Pereira handed minutes to Guler in the Super Lig.
Wolves starlet Mateus Mane must note Pereira’s time with Guler
Now at Real Madrid and with a Champions League winners medal to his name, Guler has become one to watch in Europe, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the Wolves manager.
When speaking about Guler, Pereira admitted that he ‘immediately noticed’ the 2005-born star’s potential.
“When I came to the team, I wanted to see the academy players in the first training. Arda was 16 years old,” Pereira told Fanatik.
“When I saw him, I immediately noticed his maturity, his talents, his self-confidence, and what he did with the ball. He was different from the others, and I knew he would be a first-team player.”
What’s interesting about the comments is that Pereira is keeping a close eye on Wolves’ academy, doing the same thing he did at Fenerbahce by testing youngsters in first-team training.
Already, rising stars are benefitting from the coach’s commitment to bringing players through, as Mateus Mane made his Premier League debut for Wolves on matchday 35.
Having seen what Pereira’s impact on Guler did to the starlet, Mane will surely be paying close attention to how he can continue to impress his manager.
It remains to be seen how Mane’s development goes, but already, the boss has shared the promise he has in the forward’s potential, just as he did with Guler.