Nice guy Edwards out to prove he won’t finish last with Wolves

Rob Edwards’ name is already on Compton’s wall.

The new manager has 111 games to his name, which is on a list of Wolves players at the club’s training facility that lists players who have made at least 100 appearances.

Former Wolves defender Edwards is the club’s 11th manager in 13 years, and their fifth since Nuno Espirito Santo left in 2021 when he takes over for the first time against Crystal Palace on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

Only three other players, including Mick McCarthy and Kenny Jackett, have managed more than 100 games for Wolves in the last 21 years.

The list since Nuno’s departure barely improves reading because Walter Zenga, owners Fosun’s first appointment in 2016, only lasted 17 games.

Before being fired this month, Vitor Pereira managed only 38 games while Bruno Lage managed 51, Julen Lopetegui 27, and Gary O’Neil managed 63.

Since Nuno left, who helped Wolves reach the Europa League quarter-finals and two seventh-placed Premier League victories, the team has been looking for the right man to lead them.

With only two points from 11 games, Edwards joins the struggling club in search of inspiration.

Opta claimed that Wolves “deserved” to be sitting on 11 points, and Pereira felt that conceding late goals against Tottenham, Brighton, and Burnley, which resulted in five points, had irreparably damaged the team’s mindset.

After leading Luton to a surprise Premier League promotion in 2023, Edwards has previously engaged in relegation battles.

The Hatters fought back against the Premier League drop two years ago, which became more heartfelt as a result of Tom Lockyer’s cardiac arrest on Bournemouth’s pitch in December 2023.

After previously collapsing in the play-off win over Coventry in May, the defender had recently recovered from heart surgery.

Lockyer, who is currently playing for Bristol Rovers, remains connected to Edwards and believes he can help them connect with the Wolves squad and rekindle their confidence.

The 30-year-old said, “He really cares about his players.” When I went off in the play-off final, he discovered I was okay while he was having an interview and burst into tears.

I didn’t just want to send a text when I saw he’d joined Wolves. Because I was anticipating his phone going crazy, I decided to give it a few weeks and call him.

He called me on Sunday after we played at Accrington last weekend. He just called to check on how I was doing, how I felt during the games, how I was training, and how my family was doing. He merely wanted to check in with me; there was no other agenda.

I didn’t quite believe it, but it just sums up what he had going on.

He’s a winner, though, because he’s not always kind. He occasionally flips his lid, which makes it have a bigger impact when it does happen.

Although Luton eventually fell, Edwards left in January of this year before League One Hatters fell for it again, Lockyer saw what the 42-year-old can bring to a survival struggle.

According to Lockyer, “The work ethic was unwavering and there was this underlying conviction that we would continue to play in the Premier League.”

He ended up having a hell of a fight even though he didn’t receive any support during the [transfer window] in January. I’ve always said that we would still be in the Premier League today if he had had some backing.

Wolves are vying for survival in the Premier League.

In open play, they have scored just four goals, ten more than they did last season.

Wolves are eight points clear of 17th-placed Burnley, who defeated them 3-2 last month, after five straight defeats, nine of which came from Premier League 11 and nine of them.

The promoted teams have lost to Edwards’ new team, and it has been more than six months without a top-flight victory.

With Edwards putting his reputation in danger after switching Middlesbrough’s promotion search for a relegation battle, the average tenure for the current Premier League managers is just 312 days, down from last year’s 439 days.

He has already reached the milestone of his century in Old Gold, ensuring that they can finally enjoy the stability that the club so desperately craves.

Your entire life is a gamble when you work as a football manager. I take risks because it’s a big risk, Edwards said.

There is a belief and ego that “I can be the one who can stick around for a while” that we all take these jobs for granted because of it.