New Delhi: Just hours after Gary O’Neil’s sacking frm the Wolverhampton Wanderers side, reports have been afloat about Vitor Pereira being in talks with the club as the next manager. The 56-year-old has a long list of managing clubs since the early 2000s, taking thirteen managerial jobs so far in his career.
It has been reported that Wolves are ready to meet the Portuguese manager’s release clauses and personal terms. Retiring from professional at the age of 28, Pereira’s coaching tenure over a span of two decades is marred with both successes and catastrophic results as well.
🚨🐺 Wolves are closing in on the appointment of Vitor Pereira as new head coach, deal almost done.
Details being fixed on exit clause from Al Shabab as @David_Ornstein reported.
It’s all set to be signed. pic.twitter.com/UxJGekkEXV
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) December 16, 2024
Vitor Pereira’s lifelong ambition for Premier League
His career includes successive titles for Porto, and he is currently with the Al Shabab side, joining in February 2024. What his long career does miss is a stint at the Premier League, which has been a lifelong ambition for Pereira. Before going to Saudi Arabia for the second time, Pereira had mentioned his desire to be part of a club in the top leagues.
However, it won’t be the first time that Pereira has been linked with a Premier League club, after having been shortlisted for the Everton job in 2022 only to be surpassed by Frank Lampard. While he has taken Shanghai SIPG to Chinese Super League glory and Olympiacos to Super League Greece title, he has also been part of the 1860 Munich relegated.
Pereira worked his way through the hierarchy of the league. Many feel that despite the decent amount of success across the football world, the reason for never being part of the top-five leagues in the world is his intense and controversial side. On their hand, Wolves will have a manager who is passionate but needs to take them to the safety zone.
His stint with the Brazilian club Corinthians kind of sums up his style, which is disorderly and unpredictable. He took Corinthians to the fourth in the table and was tactically very flexible, going from a direct style to a more organised, possession-based game. However, the senior players at the club were unhappy with Pereira’s temper, which has been a problem throughout his career. For him, there is no window leniency or moving away from his style.
Still, his stint at the club ended on a good term, and despite being offered a new contract, he chose not to stay due to personal problems. He then ended up taking a role at Flamengo a month later but didn’t last long, taking the 2022 Copa Libertadores winners to a shadow of the past as the side lost important matches. He even lost a Club World Cup semi-final to Al-Hilal.
While he is open to trying new formations, it is to be seen how he will turn Wolves’ fortunes in the Premier League. What he does need to decide is if he wants to have a side more dominant on the ball or less vulnerable as a defence unit.
After Gary O’Neil was terminated as Wolves manager, here’s a look at Vitor Pereira, the Portuguese deemed to succeed at Molineux. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
