Wolverhampton Wanderers

Image source, Getty Images

Liam Keen – Wolves writer for the Express and Star - speaking on BBC Radio WM: "Vitor Pereira - this is a manager who captured the imagination of Wolves fans six or seven months ago. He was able to be that firefighter. There was a genuine connection there that I think was real between supporters and manager. Of course, relationships like that are built upon results. When results aren't there, that relationship starts to fade. He was a very good person to work with and I think he had his heart in the right place."

On fans being frustrated on social media over links with a return for O'Neil: "You think you have seen it all and heard it all and all of a sudden a manager sacked a year ago is back in contention. It is absolutely accurate that he is a strong contender to get this job. It's not a surprise that he would be interested in the job. He's not got a job, it's a Premier League job. It's a good opportunity regardless of Wolves' position in the Premier League.

"The inherent problems at Wolves run a lot deeper than the managerial casualty.

"There will be other names available that are spoken about internally. Whether they will take the fans' reaction into account I don't know. From Gary's perspective he will have to consider it. From Wolves' perspective - if they were to bring him back in, they have to consider what he has learned and will do differently because things clearly didn't work towards the end of his tenure."

Former Wolves attacker David Kelly speaking on BBC Radio WM about the exit of Vitor Pereira: "As we all know, you just can't have a record like that and stay in your job.

"Is the squad full of quality? Not it's not. Is it one you can put a few quid on to stay in the league? No it's not. Whoever comes in and takes over the role, there'll be big names and slightly smaller names, they have one heck of a job to do.

"Gary O'Neil, Kevin Muscat, Robbie Keane, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, Brendan Rodgers, Ange Postecoglou have all been mentioned. There are names out there that would absolutely love the Wolves job.

"There will be hundreds of applications for this job because it is a huge club and it is a fantastic job on offer. As head coaches and managers, we all believe we can make a big difference and stop the club from getting relegated.

"But whether whoever comes in will be given any money in the January window, we are yet to see. There is a massive task ahead for whoever takes over."

Listen to Kelly here

The Vitor Pereira era is over and further down this page you'll find some words from our readers on whether his dismissal was the right move.

On Saturday, goalkeeper Sam Johnstone said "we should be embarrassed" after defeat to Fulham in London.

Less than 24 hours later, the club acted, sacking Pereira and placing Under-21 head coach James Collins and under-18 head coach Richard Walker in charge of training for now.

In a statement on Instagram, Pereira has said: "It has been a privilege to manage Wolverhampton Wanderers and experience unique moments with this club and its supporters. I would like to thank the club's owners for their trust, the players for their hard work and commitment over these months, and all the staff for making me feel part of the family. I wish the club all the best for the rest of the season."

While it's brutal to say goodbye and move on so fast, these things tend to move on quickly, so who should be appointed next?

Get in touch with your views here

Listen to BBC Radio WM take calls from fans from 16:15 GMT on Sunday

Wolves scored 63 goals last season but the players who scored 32 of them are no longer at the club.

The club is looking to change strategy and will target more homegrown players in the future, to help their quota, and feel they are at the start of a new cycle, aware of the risks it brings.

There is a long-term view at Molineux that Wolves can succeed and even if they are relegated it can be handled, with owners Fosun not looking to sell the club, instead being open to minority investment into Fosun Sports Group.

But perhaps the long-term planning has seen them distracted from the short term and has left the club facing another battle against relegation, one which looks terminal this time.

Players have become mentally drained after conceding late goals which denied them wins over Tottenham and Brighton.

Last week's late 3-2 defeat by Burnley, in which fans turned on Pereira for the first time, displayed Wolves losing to a team that appeared to be playing for a point with 15 minutes left.

Those results were fatal for the confidence of the side and the Clarets' win at Molineux meant Pereira had lost to all of the promoted sides this season.

The former Olympiacos and Fenerbache manager labelled the Fulham defeat the worst performance under him and there was a debrief planned on Monday for both the head coach and players to air their feelings.

Pereira wanted to understand the nature of the performance, but he will not get the chance after his last orders on Sunday morning.

Read more from Nick on Wolves here

Image source, Getty Images

We asked for your views on Wolves sacking head coach Vitor Pereira after the club failed to pick up a single win in their first 10 Premier League games of the season.

The 57-year-old signed a new three-year contract in September but heads through the exit doors at Molineux after just 11 months in charge.

Are you shocked by the decision? Should the board be trusted to line-up a suitable manager?

Here are some of your thoughts:

Chris: The only surprise is that it took so long! It was clear that Vitor Pereira had run out of ideas with this new crop of players, however whoever is appointed is going to need a huge slice of luck to stay up. Jorgen Strand Larsen was just a distraction and I would've sold him for the monies being offered. These last few games have shown that he's not that good. We should've kept some of our more experienced players like our captain. He wasn't the world's best player, but he was head and shoulders above some of those brought in.

Greg: Well, every dog has his day and Vitor Pereira has certainly had his. Unfortunately the current squad are top half Championship quality only, which we will see next season.

Richard: It's not all his fault, Fosun have to take the majority of the blame. They have run the club down and sold our best players, but then they wonder why the players that come in are not Premier League standard. If they go down, who will stay and who will they sell?

Ken: That's five managers Fosun have let down with their idiotic ways of doing things. We must now hope that they get someone in who knows how to run a football club, or that they give in and sell the club. If you think this is the worst it could get, think again.

Graham: It is the asset strippers that need to go, not the managers who have their hands tied behind their backs.

Stu: Same old Wolves. They never blame the players or the chairman, just the manager. The players need to take a good look in the mirror. He was one of the better managers Wolves have had.

Saturday's defeat was a performance and a result which gets managers the sack and teams relegated.

Wolves needed to take something from Fulham, who had lost their previous four games, but delivered their worst performance under Pereira.

It is therefore no surprise Wolves have sacked the 57-year-old.

Wolves wanted stability and consistency but are now searching for their fifth permanent manager in four years.

• Send your thoughts on Pereira's sacking

Pereira started to sound like a beaten man after defeat at Craven Cottage, and a change became inevitable.

Asked how Wolves could become the first Premier League team to survive relegation after taking two points from 10 games, he was unable to deliver a convincing answer.

Pereira is a good man, an honest person and an experienced coach, and he knew the situation was unlikely to turn in his favour.

A trip to Chelsea on Saturday does not appear to give Wolves a chance to end their winless start.

Going into the international break, Wolves must regroup quickly or they will drop into the Championship.

Image source, Getty Images

Wolves head coach Vitor Pereira has been sacked after his side failed to win any of their first 10 Premier League matches this season.

The decision comes just weeks after the 57-year-old was handed a new three-year contract at Molineux.

However, Wolves are currently rooted to the bottom of the table and suffered their eighth defeat of the 2025-26 campaign against Fulham on Saturday afternoon.

The club has confirmed all eight of Pereira's backroom staff have also left the club, with under-21s head coach James Collins and under-18s head coach Richard Walker set to take training while a replacement is appointed.

Wolves' executive chairman Jeff Shi said: "Vitor and his team worked tirelessly and helped guide us through a challenging period last season, for which we are grateful.

"Unfortunately the start to this season has been a disappointment and, despite our strong desire to give the head coach time and matches to find an improvement, we have reached a point where we must make a change."

Wolves fans, what do you make of the decision?

Did you expect the board to act this quickly? Do you think a new manager has already been lined up?

Send us your thoughts here

Pundits Alan Shearer and Ashley Williams join host Gabby Logan to bring you the action and talking points from Saturday's Premier League fixtures.

Watch on BBC iPlayer here

And listen back to full match commentaries on BBC Sounds:

• Burnley 0-2 Arsenal

• Nottingham Forest 2-2 Manchester United

• Tottenham 0-1 Chelsea

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Wolves do not want to part company with Vitor Pereira and there is a firm belief they have time to save themselves, yet this season now matches the last, where Wolves did not win any of their opening 10 games under Gary O'Neil.

The former manager clung on for another six games and Wolves recognise they kept faith with him for too long before replacing him with Pereira last December.

It is a mistake owners Fosun want to avoid but their faith in Pereira cannot continue indefinitely while Wolves appear doomed and their patience, however admirable, could ultimately make them look foolish.

Already eight points adrift of safety at the foot of the table, there is no comfort in the club's desire for consistency and stability.

Defeats to newly-promoted trio Leeds, Sunderland and Burnley came before Saturday's limp loss at Craven Cottage, against a side who started the day 17th in the table.

If wins are not coming against those who they could rank as relegation rivals - Sunderland aside after their excellent start - then the question is: when will the victories arrive?

A disastrous defeat against a relegation rival, including a red card and an own goal, made it a nightmare afternoon.

Wolves head coach Vitor Pereira has been speaking to BBC Match of the Day following the defeat: "That might be the worst performance from my team. It was maybe the worst technically, tactically and physically. We suffered. I didn't see my team playing at the level we can play at, the level we showed in the last game.

"I don't know if that was because we didn't recover [well enough]. I changed some players to find that energy. When it was 11v11, it was a mistake when we conceded the goal. After the red card, it was very difficult for us.

"I'm trying to understand it. We need to have a conversation to understand how it's possible to play like we did in the second half of the last game and then play like this today."

On whether he was worried by the performance: "It is difficult because two days ago we played at a different level. We are not showing consistency, this is something that might be mental. To be honest, we were not at our level."

On the fans chanting 'you're getting sacked in the morning' towards him: "I'm not proud of our work today. I don't need anybody to judge my work, I judge my work and I judge myself. I know my team can play at a better level but today it wasn't the case. Everyone must assume responsibility."

On whether he is worried about not being given time to turn things around: "I'm not worried about myself, I'm worried about my team. What we showed today, we need to talk about it. I cannot accept what we did."

Wolves goalkeeper Sam Johnstone also spoke to Premier League Productions about the disappointing performance: "It's just not good enough. We need to do better. We should be embarrassed. They might not want to hear it, but we have to apologise to the fans. We are trying our best, but we have to keep going.

"We have got good players and we just need to turn this around quickly."

On the current mood in the dressing room: "I think it's difficult to find words [to describe it]. There are a lot of emotions. It is very difficult."

On what went wrong in the game: "Pretty much everything. We went down to 10-men early and we conceded early. It's difficult in the Premier League to go a man down and try to get a result. I think pretty much everything went wrong."

Did you know?

• Wolves have failed to win any of their opening 10 league games in the past two seasons (D2 L8 this season and D3 L7 in 2024-25), as many times as in their previous 125 campaigns in the top four tiers (1926-27 and 1983-84).

Whether you were at the game or following from elsewhere, we want to know what you learned.

Have your say on Fulham's performance

What did you make of Wolves' display?

Come back on Monday for a selection of your replies

Fulham boss Marco Silva makes four changes from the defeat to Newcastle, as the Cottagers look to end their run of four straight league defeats.

Kevin - who is making his full Premier League debut - Joachim Andersen, Harry Wilson and Josh King start for the hosts.

Sasa Lukic, Adama Traore and Emile Smith Rowe drop to the bench, but there is no place for Issa Diop.

Fulham XI: Leno, Tete, Bassey, Andersen, Sessegnon, Berge, Kevin, King, Iwobi, Jimenez, Wilson

Substitutes: Lecomte, Castange, Cairney, Smith Rowe, Muniz, Traore, Lukic, Cuenca, Chukwueze

Emmanuel Agbadou and Toti Gomes return for Wolves, who are winless in their opening nine Premier League games.

Vitor Pereira drops Andre while fellow midfielder Joao Gomes is also on the bench for the second straight Premier League game.

Winger Rodrigo Gomes is also left out after suffering a groin injury.

Wolves XI: Johnstone, Hoever, Agbadou, S Bueno, Toti, H Bueno, Krejci, Munetsi, Bellegarde, Arias, Strand Larsen

Substitutes: Sa, Tchatchoua, Mosquera, Wolfe, Andre, J Gomes, Lopez, Hwang, Arokodare

There are seven games in the Premier League on Saturday and BBC Sport will bring you every moment.

• Brighton v Leeds

• Burnley v Arsenal - listen on BBC Radio 5 Sports Extra 2

• Crystal Palace v Brentford

• Fulham v Wolves

• Nottingham Forest v Manchester United - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Tottenham v Chelsea (17:30) - listen on BBC Radio 5 Live

• Liverpool v Aston Villa (20:00)

Kick-off times 15:00 GMT unless stated

Follow all of the action and reaction here

You can also listen to today's 5 Live Premier League commentaries on most smart speakers. Just say "ask BBC Sounds to play Burnley v Arsenal" or "ask BBC Sounds to play Tottenham v Chelsea", for instance.

Find out more about how to listen to Premier League football on BBC Sounds

This is massive, for both teams.

Wolves thumped Fulham here last season, winning 4-1 in one of Gary O'Neil's final games in charge before Vitor Pereira took over - and boy how Pereira could do with a similar result this time too.

It doesn't get much worse for a manager than arguing with your own fans, which is what happened after Wolves lost to Burnley last time out, and Pereira's side are bottom without a league win this season.

Fulham are on an awful run too, suffering four straight defeats. They haven't always played too badly, but you can just sense the confidence sapping out of them.

Wolves' problem is they are conceding too many - currently their average is more than two goals a game - and I don't think you can stay in the Premier League doing that.

Pereira shored things up when he first came in - O'Neil's Wolves conceded 40 from their 16 league games last season before Pereira took charge, then only let in 21 goals in their next 16 under him.

That's what he has to do again, but it is clear they have not replaced the players they sold in the summer with the same quality, and there is no sign he will stop them leaking goals.

This is the sort of game where I actually fancy both teams to lose but I am going to back Fulham to edge it at home.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

Jordan Butler
BBC Sport journalist

Winless Wolves travel to struggling Fulham for a massive match at the foot of the table. BBC Sport examines some of the key talking points ahead of Saturday's fixture.

Fulham results 'not good enough'

Fulham's penalty shootout win in the League Cup over Wycombe Wanderers on Tuesday night helped alleviate a few of the dark clouds starting to gather around Craven Cottage.

The Cottagers have lost four successive league games for only the second time under Marco Silva – the joint-worst run of form in the division - although it is worth noting that three of those were on the road, while the other was a 1-0 defeat to league leaders Arsenal.

Silva's side have mustered just nine goals from their opening nine games and only the bottom three sides have scored fewer. Combine that with their propensity to concede – they've kept just one clean sheet this season – and it's easy to see why results have been lacking.

"The results haven't been good enough for us, even in difficult circumstances and against some difficult opposition as well," said Silva in midweek. "But we have been very, very competitive, even in difficult moments.

"In this moment, the confidence is not something you can buy anywhere. We need all of us even more together, and our fans with the team as well."

A return to the Cottage should provide welcome relief as seven of their eight points have come at home. However, they haven't won any of their last five home Premier League matches against sides starting the day in the relegation zone (D3, L2), a run which includes a defeat to Wolves.

Winless Wolves

Saturday's opponents are one of just two sides in the top seven tiers of English football without a win, along with Stamford in the Southern League Premier Central Division.

It's a case of history repeating itself for Wolves as they failed to win any of their opening 10 games last season (D3, L7) and this weekend they could become the first top-flight side to start consecutive campaigns with a 10-match winless streak.

They ended that barren run in 2024-25 with a 2-0 triumph over Southampton and followed that with a 4-1 win at Saturday's venue of Craven Cottage.

Wolves will also be buoyed by the fact that they've won eight Premier League games against Fulham, drawing six and losing only four. They've only beaten Tottenham and Southampton more in the competition, with nine wins against each.

Head coach Vitor Pereira was subjected to chants of "you're getting sacked in the morning" at Molineux on Wednesday, but the heart and spirit displayed by his side in their second-half comeback against Chelsea quelled the toxic atmosphere by the final whistle.

Wolves lost the game 4-3 but they were 3-0 down at half-time and Pereira was upbeat about their chances of climbing off the foot of the table.

"This is maybe one of the best groups of players in my career, with spirit and character, to try to change the situation," said the Portuguese.

"We just need a win to believe and move on. I don't have any doubts that we can do it [stay up] and turn around the situation by the end of the season."

Millie Sian
BBC Sport journalist

Wolves boss Vitor Pereira has been speaking to the media before Saturday's Premier League game against Fulham at Craven Cottage (kick-off 15:00 GMT).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• He addressed the altercation that happened following his side's last-gasp defeat to Burnley: "Jorgen [Strand Larsen] went over to thank the supporters. I felt my players gave everything to win the game, but right at the end committed a mistake to lose it. I went over to explain that we are fighting and fighting, but we must fight together. I understand the frustration because I'm also frustrated."

• However, Pereira was pleased to feel "a connection between the supporters and the team again" after being knocked out of the Carabao Cup by Chelsea on Wednesday night.

• On that team performance against the Blues, he said: "In the second half, we showed that we have quality and ambition and that we are united. We are trying everything to get a win so this is the spirit I want to see, not just for 45 minutes but also for 90 minutes."

• Rodrigo Gomes and Matt Doherty will be unavailable for the trip to Craven Cottage after picking up injuries in the midweek fixture.

• Wolves cannot concede "easy goals" against Fulham if they want to claim their first Premier League win of the season this weekend. Pereira explained: "If we want to win, we cannot concede goals and we have to score more than our opponent. We are conceding a lot of easy goals at the moment, and that's something we need to correct."

• When asked what he would say to supporters ahead of the match, he replied: "I know a way to change the current situation and the answer is to work hard every day. We have to go into the next game against Fulham with ambition. We have to increase our tactical organisation. We need to keep fighting."

• Pereira is working with the club's owners to be "connected and united in this difficult moment", as well as "trying to find solutions" to help his players from "7am to 7pm" every day.

• He added: "This is the first time in my career that I'm facing this situation, but I'm resilient and I've got confidence in my work and my players. Together we are confident that we can turn this situation around."

Follow all of Friday's Premier League news conferences and the rest of the day's football news

Nick Mashiter
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Wolves are edging closer to a mirror image of last season.

Fail to beat Fulham at Craven Cottage on Saturday and they will match last season's 10-game winless start.

That is one of the reasons why Vitor Pereira replaced Gary O'Neil in December.

After Sunday's damaging 3-2 defeat to Burnley there is reluctance at Molineux to part with Pereira and there is still a belief he can turn it around. The players remain onside and both Shi and Fosun feel there is a way out of trouble.

Wolves also want to stop the revolving door of managers in the last three years after Bruno Lage and O'Neil lasted 14 months and Julen Lopetegui stayed for less than a year.

However, the winless run cannot continue indefinitely without consequences, everyone is aware of that and not naïve to the situation.

Pereira faces the media on Friday afternoon and, strangely for a side winless and bottom of the table, his future is not top of the agenda.

Purely finding a way to win, however they can, remains the priority for Wolves.

This - it seems - is the season of the set piece.

The Premier League debates are more about dead balls than ever before, with some sides enjoying immense success from corner kicks, throw ins or well-worked free-kicks.

What fine timing then for BBC Sport to launch a column with former manager Tony Pulis, a man who seemed to finely extract the fine margins from the game.

You can take in Tony's column on set pieces here