Wolverhampton Wanderers have parted company with head coach Vitor Pereira only 45 days after he signed a new three-year contract. On Sunday, they took an even bolder step. All of this follows an abysmal opening to the Premier League campaign, in which the club failed to win any of their first ten league games. This marks the second consecutive season where Wolves have struggled at the beginning, raising alarms about their survival in the league.
Pereira was appointed Wolves manager last August. Despite guiding the club to the quarter-finals of the FA Cup and achieving a remarkable 14th place finish in his first season, recent performances have left much to be desired. The club has managed only two draws and eight losses this season for a total of just two points on the table. This track record is honestly shocking. Indeed, no Premier League side has ever stayed up from this stage with as few points.
Consecutive Struggles
Wolves’ recent slump has quickly turned into a massive source of worry for fans and management. The team has gone 14 consecutive league matches without a win, a streak not seen since a 15-match winless run between February and August 2012. It’s been an incredibly difficult season for Wolves. They’ve only scored SEVEN goals, (a league low tied with Chicago), while giving up a laughable 27 goals (the most in the league).
Wolves, meanwhile, are obviously having a tough time protecting their net. They’ve turned themselves into the third team in Premier League history to concede 20+ goals in their first 10 matches in successive seasons. In 2024/25 they lowered that number to 27 goals against and in 2025/26, even that improved number went up to 22. That defensive frailty has seen them languishing towards the foot of the table.
“Today I felt my team physically were not in condition, not at the level to face Fulham. Tactically with some mistakes, technically we were not there at the best level, we lost a lot of passes.” – Vitor Pereira
Pereira’s brutally honest assessment following an embarrassing 3-0 shellacking from Fulham laid bare the problems infecting his club. As he put it, there’s that his players just weren’t in good enough shape to make an impact. His relations with the fans worsened after an embarrassing FA Cup exit to Burnley, leaving the appearance of his position completely undetermined.
Search for a Successor
As Wolves search for a successor to Pereira, two names have emerged as potential candidates: Gary O’Neil and Rob Edwards. Each manager would implement contrasting styles and experiences that have the potential to energize the listless club. O’Neil, who was in charge at Bournemouth before Sir Alex Ferguson’s favored successor, has got a bit of tactical genius. Edwards, a former Wolves player and now manager of Luton Town, is coming to international prominence. What really makes him stand out is his profound understanding of the club’s culture.
His appointment of Domenico Teti as director of football further complicates the picture in the coaching situation. Teti previously worked with Pereira at Al Shabab in Saudi Arabia. With input like that, his already considerable influence can be expected to shape the decision about who the team’s next head coach will be. It will fall to the new managerial appointment to resolve these issues pronto if Wolves want to stave off a relegation battle.
A Pattern of Coaching Changes
The new appointment represents a third new head coach when Wolverhampton kick off the new year, starting what could be a fourth consecutive such occurrence for the club. On every occasion, they’ve performed this shifting since the pre-season began. Such instability beggars belief at the club’s longer-term vision and strategy. Frequent changes at the top, though, rarely result in anything other than turmoil and inconsistency on the pitch.
Right now, there’s enormous pressure building on the new Wolves manager. They still have a daunting task ahead of them to turn around the team’s fortunes. The club’s maligned track record offers little cause for optimism, but fans are certainly a-thrall to see what comes next. It has been a challenging time for one of England’s longest established football clubs.
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