Wolves appoint Julen Lopetegui as manager

Wolverhampton Wanderers have hired former Sevilla and Real Madrid boss Julen Lopetegui as manager, according to the club’s official website.

He will succeed Bruno Lage at the Molineux. Lage was sacked on October 2 after collecting just one win in his final 15 games as manager of the Midlands club.

Wolves have finally landed their number one coaching target despite him rejecting their advances last month. Lopetegui rejected the job because his father was reportedly sick.

Wolves pursued other targets such as Queens Park Rangers’ Mick Beale, but he rejected their interest and stayed at the Championship club.

They also interviewed Peter Bosz, Rob Edwards and Anthony Barry for the job.

Lopetegui has now done a U-turn and accepted the job. The Spaniard will officially begin work on November 14, two days after Wolves’ final Premier League game before the 2022 World Cup.

Wolves chairman Jeff Shi said: “Julen is a top coach with excellent experience at an elite level of the game, and we are very pleased to have agreed on a deal to bring him to Wolves.

“Since the very beginning, Julen has been our number one choice to manage Wolves, and we look forward to welcoming him and his team when they join us in the coming weeks.”

Lopetegui will have the World Cup period to prepare for his first game in charge of Wolves on December 26.

Sevilla sacked Lopetegui at the beginning of October following a Champions League group game defeat by Borussia Dortmund.

He led Sevilla to their sixth Europa League title in 2020 after they hired him in 2019. He also brought the Andalusians to the Champions League for three consecutive seasons.

The former Spain boss must drag Wolves out of the relegation zone with the club struggling to score this season. They have netted only six goals in 13 games.

Interim manager Steve Davis will remain in charge until November 12. The club does not want to rush Lopetegui as they are considerate of his personal situation.