Julen Lopetegui departed Wolves in acrimonious circumstances last summer but the Spaniard has now claimed what challenge ‘excited’ him at Molineux.
Lopetegui will be remembered fondly by Wolves supporters for turning their season around in 2022/23.
When the Spaniard tookover in November 2022, the Old Gold were battling for Premier League survival and entered Christmas bottom of the table.
The 57-year-old managed to turn their season around by securing nine victories, including famous wins over Liverpool and Tottenham, to clinch survival and a successful 13th-place finish.
Lopetegui wanted to build on that by bolstering his squad in the transfer window, although he cut a frustrated figure when he wasn’t backed and ultimately walked out of the club.
Now, despite leaving the club in difficult circumstances, the former Real Madrid manager has said what challenge enticed him to take his first job in England.
Julen Lopetegui says what challenge ‘excited’ him about Wolves
Lopetegui managed several European giants before he took the job at Wolves, but he’s most remembered for his time at Sevilla.
He led the Spanish side through a golden era, winning the Europa League in 2020 by beating Inter Milan in the final while qualifying for the Champions League knockout stage.
Despite his success in Seville, he was sacked by the club in October 2022, joining Wolves a month later.
This was his first taste of working in England and Lopetegui was ‘excited’ about the prospect of this new challenge.
In an interview with ESPN, Lopetegui explains why: “For me it was wonderful. I was clear that I had to communicate with them in English. First, out of respect for the country and the league. Second, because players perceive that effort, the respect, and you communicate much more to them that way.
“In football, you can communicate everything you need [even in English]. Sometimes even better in fact because you’re more vehement. And you get better daily.
“That was one of the challenges I was excited about: to see if I could do my work in English. The way you work isn’t so different but of course your capacity shifts. And with time you develop a depth of language you didn’t have at first. And then there’s French, Portuguese, Spanish: it’s important to be able to talk to a player individually in his own language.”
Lopetegui enjoyed learning multiple languages during his time in Wolverhampton and is now on the verge of securing another Premier League job.
Julen Lopetegui is closing in on West Ham job
Eight months after walking out on Wolves, Lopetegui is on the verge of landing his first job.
Although the Spaniard was reportedly pushing to land the AC Milan job, The Guardian now claim West Ham are close to agreeing a deal for Lopetegui to take over as their new manager to replace David Moyes.
Talks with the former Wolves boss are said to be gathering pace, though negotiations are yet to be concluded.
For many Wolves supporters, they’ll be happy to see him return to management after the solid job he did at the club, whereas others will not be as keen.