Julen Lopetegui admits that people told him he was ‘crazy’ for taking the Wolverhampton Wanderers job last year with many considering them a lost cause at the foot of the Premier League table. Six months later, Wolves have all but secured a sixth successive campaign in the top flight after hitting 40 points with three matches remaining. Lopetegui allowed his emotions to come to the fore in front of the jubilant South Bank.
Julen Lopetegui said: “They are very important points for us. To arrive to 40 points, it’s not mathematical but we’ve achieved our aim. I’m very pleased for the club, our fans, the players. It’s been a hard year of progression. We arrived in November with ten points, after 15 matches. It was a very bad situation, a lot of people said to me you’re crazy to go there, but I believed. It was a challenge in my life as a coach, it has been the most difficult achievement I’ve achieved, much more so than the Europa League and putting Sevilla three times in the Champions League. To stay in the Premier League after the difficult situation, I am very happy for the players and after our reaction to the last defeat against Brighton, which was a big disappointment. It was a hard week, for the fans too, but they showed that they are better players than they showed at Brighton. Congratulations to them.”
