Wolves skipper Conor Coady targets a Euro return
Proud captain Conor Coady is out to help Wolves get back in the Europa League as soon as possible after bowing out in the quarter-finals.
Having started out in the qualifying rounds last July, the journey ended on Tuesday with a 1-0 defeat to five-time Europa winners Sevilla in Duisburg.
Coady is gutted it is over, especially as the seventh-placed Premier League finish was not enough to seal a European spot for next season, but is now determined to get back in the ‘amazing’ competition.
“More than ever. I’ve loved every part of the competition,” he said. “The competition is amazing. If people say otherwise, they’re wrong.
“It’s an incredible competition, to travel around Europe how we have. I take a lot of pride in how our club has gone about it this year.
“We could’ve gone about it in different ways, but we took it in our stride.
“We said from the start we didn’t want to make up the numbers.
“We got the last eight, which is an incredible achievement for a team that was in the Championship three years ago.
“We want to get back more than ever. It’s a bit mad that we’re not in again after getting more points than last year, but we’ll go again next season and try to get better.”
Wolves’ 2019/20 campaign lasted a whopping 383 days, playing 59 games along the way.
Now they have just a matter of weeks to prepare for the beginning of the new top-flight term in the middle of September.
In the Europa, they made it through three rounds of qualifiers, finished second in their group and made it past Espanyol and Olympiacos in the knockouts before being sent out by Sevilla in Germany.
Reflecting on what has been achieved over the last 13 months, Coady added: “It’s pride in this club.
“I’m proud of every single person involved in this club and how they’ve gone about the season.
“Every single player has left everything out there over the last year.
“We said we wanted to do something special, and we were very nearly there. But it wasn’t meant to be. We’re absolutely gutted.
“How many games was it, 59? We’ve taken Sevilla all the way. We’re gutted, but it’s an amazing achievement.”
Meanwhile, Jordan Graham has signed for League One Gillingham after leaving Wolves.
