Exclusive: Wolves close in on Nuno Espirito Santo as next boss
Wolves are in talks with Nuno Espirito Santo as they close in on their next boss, the Express & Star understands.
It’s believed Nuno, who left Porto earlier this week, is Fosun’s preferred candidate to replace Paul Lambert.
If talks go to plan an announcement could be made in the coming days as the club brings to an end more than two weeks of managerial uncertainty.
Lambert remains in post but Fosun decided earlier this month it was necessary to undertake a comprehensive review to determine whether he was their man going forward and have been searching for potential replacements ever since.
If, as looks likely, Wolves land former Valencia and Porto boss Nuno it will represent a coup for the club.
The former goalkeeper has enjoyed an impressive five-year stint in management since landing his first job with Portuguese side Rio Ave in 2012.
He led them to two domestic cup finals in 2014 as the club qualified for the Europa League for the first time in their history. Rio Ave finished sixth and 11th in his two seasons in charge.
From there Nuno moved to Spanish side Valencia and qualified for the Champions League with a fourth-placed finish in 2015.
He resigned in November of that year with the club ninth in La Liga and returned to management with former club Porto at the start of this season.
Under Nuno the Dragons finished second, six points adrift of champions Benfica despite only losing two games all season.
They reached the last 16 of the Champions League, beating Leicester 5-0 along the way, before being knocked out 3-0 on aggregate to finalists Juventus.
Nuno left Porto by mutual consent on Tuesday. As reported by the Express & Star Wolves were keen to talk to the 43-year-old following his departure and they have now moved quickly in a bid to bring him to Molineux.
Nuno, who speaks good English, is a client of Jorge Mendes. The Portuguese agent’s first ever deal in football was a transfer involving the ex-goalkeeper.
He has previously expressed his desire to work in English football.
In an interview with the Guardian late last year Nuno said: “(England) is the league that I enjoy most. I love watching the Premier League. One day I am going to coach there, I am sure of it. I love it, I want to be there.
“If it takes longer, I don’t know. If it takes less, maybe. But one day.”
Find out more about Nuno Espirito Santo with our fact file on the former Porto boss.
