- Wolves have appointed former Real Madrid and Sevilla boss Julen Lopetegui as the new head coach.
- Julen Lopetegui has succeeded Bruno Lage, who Wolves sacked in October.
Wolves have appointed Julen Lopetegui as the new head coach. The Spanish international previously managed Real Madrid and Sevilla.
Wolves had earlier approached Julen Lopetegui, but he turned down the Premier League side’s offer due to personal reasons.
Wolves new head coach Julen Lopetegui. Photo/ talkSPORT.
As a result, Wolves approached Queens Park Rangers manager Michael Beale to succeed Bruno Lage, who was sacked in early October.
Michael Beale was close to joining Wolves but changed his mind in the last minutes as he chose to remain with Queens Park Rangers.
Wolves decided to back caretaker Steve Davis to be in charge of the team until the end of the year as they look for other options.
However, they had to approach Julen Lopetegui once again since the team languishes in the relegation zone. And this time, the Spanish international accepted Wolves’ proposal.
According to Wolves chairman Jeff Shi, Wolves were interested in signing Julen Lopetegui from the beginning. Shi praised the 56-year-old, saying that he is a top coach with excellent experience at an elite level.
“Julen is a top coach with excellent experience at an elite level of the game, and we are very pleased to have agreed 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.” Jeff Shi said, as per Sky Sports.
Wolves interim manager Steve Davis said that Julen Lopetegui is the right choice for the team. Julen will officially take over as Wolves boss on November 14 before the World Cup begins.
“It’s a top appointment and someone who we’ve been trying to get in for a while now. I’m just pleased that they’ve managed to get the person they wanted a while ago. He’ll arrive here at the end of next week. He’s a great appointment, and he’s somebody the club needs going forward.” Steve Davis said, according to Sky Sports.
Julen Lopetegui’s Managerial Career
Julen Lopetegui began his managerial career after retiring from professional football. During his soccer days, the Spanish international played as a goalkeeper for Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Logrones, Las Palmas and Rayo Vallecano.
Julen Lopetegui worked as an assistant manager of Spain U17 for several months before joining Rayo Vallecano in 2003.
He managed Real Madrid B between 2008 and 2009 before returning to Spain’s youth team, where he coached from 2010 to 2014.
Julen Lopetegui managed Porto from 2014 to 2016, then took over as Spain’s head coach. He left the national team in 2018 and joined Real Madrid.
The Spanish international coached the Los Blancos for several months before joining Sevilla in 2019. Julen led Sevilla to win the UEFA Europa League in 2020.
Sevilla parted ways with Julen Lopetegui at the start of October this year.
Julen Lopetegui. Photo/ TEAMtalk.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login