Wolverhampton Wanderers will be playing Premier League football next season after an impressive campaign in the Championship. The Midlands side winning promotion was not a major surprise, as they have been at the top of the table for much of the campaign.
It there previous spells in the English top-flight, the Midlander’s have struggled to make an impact. However, this time it looks to be a very different picture for the top-flight new boys.
Boss deserves immense credit
In Nuno Espirito Santo, Wolves have a highly rated and promising head coach, who stands by his football philosophy, even in the notoriously tough Championship. The Portuguese boss showed promising signs at both Porto and Valencia.
However, the question was how would the in-demand boss cope with the style of the Championship? The answer was simple very well. Before making the move to the Midlands, he asked himself if he believed his style of play would be successful in the second tier.
He had enough belief in his own methods to know that he could be a success in the second tier of English football, not always the easiest place to manage, especially for a boss not accustomed to the game in England.
However, his style has transferred to the Championship with great success. Wolves have looked the strongest team for much of the campaign and currently have more points (95) than any other team in the football league.
Wolves are by far the best team in the second tier, scoring the most goals and also keeping the most clean sheets in the Championship this season. It is fair to say that Nuno Espirito Santo has been a massive success at the Midlands club.
Club now backed by the boardroom
I remember when Chinese owners around the same period bought both Wolves and Aston Villa. A local journalist stated that he believed that Wolves would be win promotion to the Premier League quicker than Aston Villa would.
That statement raised eyebrows. However, that wise judgement was based on the respective clubs owner’s history. While much has been made of the fact that super-agent Jorge Mendes is a club advisor to the owners, the Wolves hierarchy has backed their boss to win promotion this season.
The signing of majestic midfielder Ruben Neves from Porto for £15.8m was an example of the club owners putting their money where their mouth is, so to speak. The youngster has been a standout player for Wolves this season.
In truth, the 21-year-old probably could have played in the Premier League with ease this season. Despite rumours over a move elsewhere, Neves has stated he is happy to stay with the Midlands club. He will get his chance to play English top-flight football next season.
No doubt, the clubs Chinese owners will back their Portuguese boss once again in the transfer market to strengthen his already exciting team.
Will be strong in the Premier League
Wolves have been fantastic in the Championship. In terms of quality on and off the pitch, they were just too good for everybody else. In the past Wolves have had problems surviving in the top-flight and they are already odds of 5/1 to suffer relegation from the top-flight next season.
Having watched Wolves on a few occasions this season, it would take a brave man to back the Midlands outfit for the drop. Even without signing new players, Wolves look equipped to play in the Premier League, they would certainly give most top-flight teams a game.
There will be additions to the squad and Nuno Espirito Santo will be able to strengthen his squad. Everything is now set-up for Wolves to establish themselves as a Premier League club and it is about time too.
