Julen Lopetegui
Wolves boss Julen Lopetegui has confirmed that he intends to meet chairman Jeff Shi to discuss the club’s plans for the summer. The former Sevilla manager has overseen a remarkable transformation at Molineux. Wolves were bottom of the table when Lopetegui arrived but the Spanish coach has guided the team to safety and ten points clear of the relegation zone with three games to spare.
After taking charge of his first game on Boxing Day, Lopetegui made several key signings in January and a run of four wins in their last six games has seen Wolves retain their Premier League status. However, the Europa League winner has admitted he is keen to speak with the chairman to ensure that the club receives the necessary investment this summer.
Julen Lopetegui said: “I need to have a long meeting with our chairman to hear from him and hear what his ideas are for the next year because it’s going to be key for me to make my decision. We have to be ready if we want to improve, we have to take advantage in the summer. If not, we know the level of the Premier League. The first step is to hear from him and after we are going to take our decision about a lot of players. Of course, I am not going to discuss the different futures of the players.”
Despite lifting the Europa League trophy and competing in the Champions League, Lopetegui described keeping Wolves in the top-flight as his “most important achievement”. However, the 56-year-old is not accustomed to relegation battles and is hoping that the threat of dropping out of the Premier League serves as a warning to the club’s hierarchy. Asked what would happen if the club’s transfer plans did not match his vision,
Julen Lopetegui responded: “I am not going to talk about this before our meeting, afterwards we will have more information. All of us we have to be together in the same way because I think we want to improve. Not to keep (in the same place). I think in football you have to want to increase your performance, improve your squad and it’s about investment too. You already know what the rest of the Premier League are going to do so we have to be ready. This year has been a really hard year and maybe it can serve as a lesson for all of us.”
