Even though Nuno Espírito Santo’s exit from Wolverhampton Wanderers had been the subject of rumours for a while, it was surprising to see the club announce the manager’s departure today.
After three seasons in the job, the coach leaves Molineux after a disappointing year in charge, as Wolves currently stand 12th in the Premier League table.
The club’s strong bonds with Jorge Mendes are the rightful reason why a few other Portuguese coaches will now be among the favourites to take Nuno Espírito Santo’s position.
Last month that a couple of reports from Correio da Manhã and Jornal de Notícias both claimed that Wolves wanted former Benfica boss Bruno Lage should they part ways with their manager.
Represented by Jorge Mendes, Lage has been unemployed since leaving Benfica last summer, and was claimed to be the number one option on the list to replace Nuno.
It was pointed out he could ‘‘develop the young talents’, and that’s one of the reasons why he ‘leads the list of possible successors’ to his compatriot.
Now we should probably consider a few more names whose move to Molineux would make sense. One of them is Rui Faria, the former José Mourinho assistant who decided to become a manager when leaving his job at Manchester United in 2018.
Faria worked for a year in Qatar, where he managed Al-Duhail in 27 matches, winning 15 of them. He hasn’t taken a new job since January 2020, and is certainly looking for a good opportunity to get back to action. He’s still represented by Gestifute as well.
Then moving to the North of Portugal, surprising reports from the local media today claimed that Sérgio Conceição is wanted by West Ham and Lazio. The Porto manager isn’t sure he’s staying at the club for next season, and after winning two Portuguese league trophies, but falling short this year, he’s now wanted by clubs from abroad. It would be no surprise to see him linked to Wolves in the coming days.
There’s also another obvious choice in Portugal, which is Ruben Amorim. The 36-year-old has proven his quality this season by winning a league title with Sporting following the club’s drought of nearly two decades. However, he’s been promising the Lions he’ll stay for at least one more season, so it would take a lot to convince him to leave Alvalade this summer.
