In his first interview since leaving Wolves, Julen Lopetegui discusses his exit, what changed and what comes next
Adam CraftonJulen Lopetegui sips a cup of tea and peers out over the boats docked at Chelsea Harbour. In this oasis of calm, he becomes briefly reflective.
To those who do not follow Wolves so closely, Lopetegui’s dramatic exit on the eve of the Premier League season may have come as a surprise. Wolves were bottom of the table when Lopetegui took charge of his first game for the club on Boxing Day and the turnaround was so dramatic that his team ended the campaign in 13th place, securing top-flight status with three games to spare. “A lot of colleagues and friends told me, ‘You are crazy, you do not need to go there’,” Lopetegui recalls.
Lopetegui had seen a series of players leave the club. Ruben Neves left for Saudi Arabia, Nathan Collins joined Brentford, Raul Jimenez went to Fulham, Ryan Giles signed for Luton Town and Conor Coady moved to Leicester City, for a combined £88million . Joao Moutinho, Diego Costa and Adama Traore reached the end of their contracts.
“So you ask me what kind of project, and all coaches want good players, but sometimes you can have good players, but maybe you don’t have the conditions.
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