Vitor Pereira sacking: Why a perfect match at Wolves turned sour
Pereira signed a new three-year deal just 45 days ago after guiding Wolves to safety last season.
He replaced Gary O’Neil last December – O’Neil had managed another 10-game winless start – and went on a six-game hitting streak between March and April. This was the club’s best top-flight run since 1970.
It looked like a perfect match (Pereira was nominated for the Premier League manager of the year award) but cracks began to appear in the summer, making Pereira regret not leaving Molineux at the start of the season.
The former Porto coach, who has won the Portuguese championship twice, wanted to continue his success after finishing last season in 16th place, 17 points above the relegation zone.
The temptation to do so was huge, yet he was unhappy with the way transfers were planned and Wolves signed five senior players, spending around £100 million, but none had Premier League experience and Pereira was disappointed not to land first-choice targets.
He ultimately gave his blessing to those who came, including striker Tolu Arokodare, and were often his picks, including shepherding the transfer of winger Jhon Arias.
They lost significant top-flight know-how in the summer with captain Nelson Semedo leaving on a free transfer and Matheus Cunha and Rayan Ait-Nouri joining Manchester United and Manchester City respectively, meaning Wolves brought in around £120m in revenue, including other departures.
Cunha’s £62.5m transfer was a club record after United triggered his release clause, but Wolves were unable to replace his 15 goals and all-round talent.
Wolves scored 63 goals last season but the players who scored 32 goals are no longer at the club.
The club is considering changing its strategy and will target more domestic players in the future to increase its quotas and will feel they are at the beginning of a new cycle, aware of the risks this brings.
There is a long-term view at Molineux that Wolves can be successful and that even if they were relegated it could be sorted out; Fosun’s owners do not want to sell the club, but are instead open to minority investment in Fosun Sports Group.
But perhaps long-term planning has taken their attention away from the short term, leaving the club facing another battle against relegation, this time looking deadly.
The players were mentally exhausted after recent goals that denied them wins against Tottenham and Brighton.
Last week’s 3-2 final defeat to Burnley, which saw fans turn to Pereira for the first time, saw Wolves lose to a team that appeared to be playing for a point with 15 minutes remaining.
These results proved fatal to the team’s confidence, and the Clarets’ victory at Molineux meant Pereira was beaten by every promoted team this season.
The players’ failure to respond under Pereira, along with poor results, is believed to be one of the factors behind the decision to sack him.
The way Joao Gomes casually walked the ball into his own half late on at Craven Cottage on Saturday or Ki-Jana Hoever tipped the ball across the field and into touch was indicative of the mentality of the players.
