Wolves brutally sack Rob Edwards with replacement agreed as club risk anger | Football | Sport

Wolves have taken the shock decision to sack manager Rob Edwards despite the former Middlesbrough boss spearheading their plans to restructure the squad following their relegation. Edwards, 43, was only brought in last November after leaving Boro, who were performing strongly in the Championship at the time. Despite having been unable to spark a revival – Wolves having dropped out of the Premier League in 19th position following a catastrophic campaign – it seemed that the hierarchy were determined to persevere with him.

The Black Country outfit had even begun their summer recruitment with Edwards said to be instrumental in the signings of Kieran Trippier and Raul Jimenez, while midfielder Andre had pledged his future to the club with the manager also key to that deal. However, it is understood he has been dismissed just seven months into his tenure with Gil Vicente manager Cesar Peixoto anticipated to be installed as his successor. An official announcement from Wolves could come later today.

The Portuguese tactician has been at the helm since March last year and has previously managed Academica, Moreirense and Pacos Ferreira.

Wolves’ decision is a perplexing one, given that Edwards had played a pivotal role in securing the signings of Trippier and Jimenez, both of whom have acknowledged his influence in bringing them to the club.

Speaking following the arrival of the former Newcastle defender, Edwards appeared to indicate that he was the man earmarked to spearhead the club’s bid to secure an immediate return to the Premier League.

He said: “We have to be up there this season, and I’d rather be there with good players! This doesn’t add any more pressure, it just actually makes me feel better that we’re building a squad that I’ve been banging on about and saying that we’re going to need to do.

“We need to have a better and stronger squad than we had last year because we weren’t able to compete well enough last year, and so we’re working really hard to make sure we’re competitive. Pressure is going to be there anyway because we’re Wolves in the Championship after eight years of Premier League football.

“We know the pressure’s going to be there, but I’d rather have the pressure with players like Tripps and then be able to turn around and know I’ve got a really good and strong group of players behind me.”

Somewhat ironically, former Wolves manager Gary O’Neil could also be on the verge of a move in the coming days, with his name being linked to the managerial vacancy at Ipswich Town following Kieran McKenna’s exit.