Lopetegui to remain as Wolves head coach

Julen Lopetegui was announced as Bruno Lage's replacement at Wolves in November 2022

Wolves have dismissed speculation surrounding Julen Lopetegui's future and say he will remain as their head coach next season.

However, the Spaniard's future had been uncertain because of the club's financial situation.

On Thursday sporting director Matt Hobbs said Lopetegui was "committed, he loves the area and the club".

The former Spain and Real Madrid coach, 56, had previously said it would be "difficult to compete" in the top flight without investment and mentioned Wolves' Financial Fair Play "problems".

However, Hobbs says he "never saw a situation" where Lopetegui, who won nine of his 23 league games after replacing Bruno Lage, was not in charge next season.

"There's been a lot of chat about the club on the back of Julen's press conferences before the season finished," the sporting director said.

"What's important is we've been in constant contact throughout. I was never in any doubt that he would remain at Wolves, but we have to acknowledge the project is different to what he thought it was.

"We had to allow him time to understand it and get his head around how to build a squad to be competitive in the Premier League.

"He's committed, he loves the area and the club. You can see the affinity he has built with the fans, and I never saw a situation where he wouldn't be our manager.

"We've been working on our strategy for the summer, and while it may be slightly different to what we thought it would be six months ago, that's football and we have to react to it.

"What is fair is that his understanding of the project was different to what it is now, so you have to allow time for that to settle, especially with a manager at his level."

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