Edwards 'energised' by prospect of future success at Wolves

  /  autty

Wolves boss Rob Edwards insisted he is "energised" by the prospect of succeeding with the club in the future.

Edwards joined Wolves in November, looking to steer them to safety after a poor start to the season, but was unable to keep the club in the Premier League.

Wolves were the first team to be relegated from the top-flight this term, with Edwards winning just three of his 24 league games in charge (D7 L14).

Up next for Wolves is a trip to Brighton; a defeat for Edwards' side in this match would mean they have lost against all other 19 Premier League clubs this season.

It would be just the second time a team has lost to every side they have faced in a single campaign, after Sheffield United in 2023-24.

Nevertheless, Edwards is optimistic about Wolves' future, but admitted it will take some time to turn things around.

"Look at what we came into. We were on two points, and we hadn't won for God knows how many months," said the Wolves boss.

"It was always going to be hard, so it's not going to be a great feeling around. I knew that, but we've got to continue to work hard and make sure we're able to turn things around.

"I'm confident when I speak to Matt Jackson or speak to Nathan Shi, that we're going to be able to do that.

"In a strange way, I'm really energised with it, and I’m really looking forward to when we're able to sit here, and we've won a number of games in a row, and we're able to talk in a really positive manner about it, but it's always going to take a bit of time."

Brighton, meanwhile, saw their five-game unbeaten run in the league come to an end following a 3-1 defeat to Newcastle United last time out.

The Seagulls are two points behind sixth-place Bournemouth with three games to go, while they are eight off Aston Villa in fifth.

Fabian Hurzeler has backed his Brighton side to bounce back from their defeat to Newcastle, with a European spot well within their reach.

"When we just focus on performance and how we tried to play our football, then I think the players did everything that they can do," said Hurzeler.

"They showed great effort always to believe they can win. We will take the positives away, and we will analyse it, then we bounce back."

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Brighton – Danny Welbeck

Danny Welbeck has been involved in 14 Premier League goals this season for Brighton (13 goals, one assist), the most by a player aged 34+ in a season since 2021-22, when both Cristiano Ronaldo (18 goals, three assists) and Jamie Vardy (15 goals, two assists) did so.

It is also the joint most by Welbeck in a campaign, along with 2024-25 (10 goals, four assists).

Wolves – Adam Armstrong

This game could be Adam Armstrong’s 100th Premier League appearance.

His current total of 14 wins is the second fewest of any player in their first 100 games, ahead only of former West Brom midfielder Andy Johnson (12), while his 63 defeats are the most of any player in their first 100 games.

MATCH PREDICTION – BRIGHTON WIN

Brighton are unbeaten in their last eight league games against Wolves (W5 D3) since a 1-0 home loss in December 2021.

The Seagulls have only lost one of their last 16 Premier League games against sides starting the day in the relegation zone (W5 D10), but that defeat came against current Wolves boss Edwards when he was manager of Luton Town in January 2024 (0-4).

Wolves are winless in their last 19 away Premier League matches (D5 L14) – they last had a longer away winless league run between April 2003 and August 2004 (23 games).

Wolves have scored just seven goals in 17 away top-flight games this season, an average of just 0.41 per game. Only Norwich City in 2019-20 have averaged fewer goals per away game in a single season (seven in 19 games, 0.37).

However, Wolves have lost just one of their last six away league games against Brighton (W1 D4), going down 6-0 in April 2023.

OPTA WIN PROBABILITY

Brighton – 69.2%

Draw – 17.3%

Wolves – 13.5%

Related: Wolverhampton Wanderers Brighton & Hove Albion Al Nassr FC Ronaldo Welbeck Fabian Hürzeler
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