Wolverhampton Wanderers head coach Nuno Espirito Santo has suggested that he will manage the minutes of Helder Costa after the winger missed pre-season through injury.

On Wednesday night, Costa was handed a surprise start for the Championship fixture at Sheffield United, but Conor Coady's dismissal led to an early withdrawal.

However, Nuno has indicated that while he feels that Costa is ready to make an impact, last season's player of the year may have to remain patient before featuring for 90 minutes.

The 43-year-old is quoted by the Express & Star as saying: "We'll see what decision we make but we can count on him and he's ready to go.

"You should take care of the minutes these players have, but he's ready to go much beyond the 20 minutes that he had. Helder is doing quite well, we have to manage that he didn't have a pre-season but since he joined the group he's working very hard."

Wolves sit in fourth place in the second-tier standings ahead of Saturday's trip to Burton Albion.