The latest news on Wolves’ search for a new manager is far from welcome news at Middlesbrough.
While Boro officials remain confident that Rob Edwards will be remaining at the club, and are yet to have received any enquiries from Wolves, the Boro head coach doesn’t just continue to be linked to the vacant Molineux post, he’s an overwhelming favourite.
For Boro, the hope would have been that Wolves had their manager situation sorted quickly, so as not to distract too much from Boro’s push for Championship promotion. However, the latest news out of the Midlands is that Wolves are likely to show patience in their search for Vitor Pereira’s successor, and will extend their recruitment process into the international break.
That’s bad news for Boro, as it means the uncertainty over Edwards’ future at Boro will extend, until the very latest, until Friday afternoon, when the Boro boss will hold his latest pre-match press conference ahead of Birmingham City’s visit. At a time when focus must be on Boro’s forward issues and getting back on track after a bit of a blip of late, the Wolves links linger overhead like an unwanted dark cloud.
In Edwards’ defence, Tuesday night’s draw at Leicester showcased his focus and passion for the role at Boro still. His emotions throughout the game were clear to see, as was his jubilation when Luke Ayling headed home his late equaliser.
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Be that as it may, we’ve seen this before. Edwards may be able keep his focus, but it’s undoubtedly now become a growing concern for supporters. When Chris Wilder left the door open to a move to Burnley a few years back, it not only distracted players and affected form at the time, it caused irreparable damage to many players’ trust in the then-boss. History cannot repeat itself.
Edwards’ answer to the questions ahead of the Leicester game may have been a bit more polished than Wilder’s back in April 2022, but the fact remains, on two occasions now, he’s not completely quashed the links. Whether intentional or not, and until he does otherwise, it’s hard not to adjudge that he’s leaving that door open.
That is, of course, his prerogative. And, to an extent, it would be understandable why it might appeal to Edwards. It’s a club he knows well, they’re still Premier League even if it doesn’t look like they will be for much longer, and they’re based very close to his family home too.
At this stage, it must be stressed that there are no indications that Edwards is interested in the Wolves role. Simon Jordan was pretty clear with his thoughts on why the role at Molineux is not worth leaving Boro for. Even with Boro-tinted glasses, it’s hard to disagree.
So far, Edwards has said enough, while getting away with not completely ruling it out by dismissing it as nothing more than speculation. There is no smoke without fire, however. If, as now appears the case, the situation carries on to Friday afternoon when he’s next in front of the media, then he will have to be pressed further.
In that scenario, it becomes very black and white. He either completely rules out the move and reiterates his commitment to Boro, or the only plausible assumption is that he is interested, whether he admits as much or not.
The trouble for Edwards is, it feels like we’re approaching a point where he has to kill this once and for all, if he doesn’t want to damage all the goodwill he’s built in his short time on Teesside.
From the moment he walked in at Boro, he stressed the importance of connecting with supporters, and of all being in this together. Fans have heeded his call to arms and got behind the players at every opportunity. But if Edwards continues to let the Wolves speculation linger, the position of power he’s built himself on Teesside could quickly fade with supporters.