Boro are understood to be considering their response to the request from the Premier League club, having spent all week insisting they do not want to lose their head coach after just over four months in the role.
However, with sources in the Midlands claiming that Wolves officials are confident Edwards is interested in taking over at Molineux despite repeatedly claiming that his ‘sole focus’ is on Middlesbrough, it is becoming increasingly hard to see how Boro can retain the 42-year-old.
Wolves want Edwards to succeed Vitor Pereira, who was dismissed last weekend with his side rooted to the foot of the Premier League table after failing to win any of their opening ten league matches.
The Midlands club initially spoke to Gary O’Neil, who was sacked to pave the way for Pereira’s appointment, but the former Middlesbrough midfielder rejected the opportunity to rejoin Wolves.
They were then linked with former Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag and Portuguese coach Rui Vitoria, but appear to have concluded earlier today that Edwards was their preferred option.
The Boro boss boasts extensive links to Wolves, having made more than 100 appearances for the club as a player. He also led Wolves’ Under-23s team and briefly stepped in as interim boss prior to embarking on his own managerial career.
He was born in Telford and his family still live in the West Midlands, but despite the potential appeal of a return to his roots, Boro officials had previously been confident that he would not walk away from his current position on Teesside.
Edwards was out of work when Boro appointed him as Michael Carrick’s successor this summer, having been dismissed as Luton Town boss after he presided over the Hatters’ relegation from the Premier League. He left Luton with his side in the bottom half of the Championship table, a situation that would eventually result in them being relegated to League One in May.
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Boro offered him a chance to restore his reputation, and the early stages of his Teesside tenure have been successful. Edwards quickly built up a strong rapport with Boro’s fans, and while his side might only have won two of their last eight matches, they remain well-placed, sitting in third position in the Championship table ahead of Saturday’s home game with Birmingham City.
It is now uncertain whether Edwards will still be in charge for that game, with the situation expected to develop rapidly in the next 24 hours. While Wolves have confirmed that their current interim managerial team, comprised of Under-21s head coach, James Collins, and Under-18s boss, Richard Walker, will take charge of Saturday evening’s Premier League game at Chelsea, the hierarchy at Molineux would ideally like to have a new permanent manager in place as early as possible in the international break. That would then give the new boss two weeks in which to prepare for his first game in charge.
Boro’s executive team could opt to reject Wolves’ approach for Edwards, although they will almost certainly want to clarify the head coach’s position in relation to a possible exit. Edwards is contracted to Boro until the summer of 2028, having signed a three-year deal when he was appointed, so if he was to leave, the compensation sum that would have to be paid would be significant, stretching to many millions.
Edwards has been asked about the Wolves job on two separate occasions this week, and both times, he insisted his “sole focus” was on Middlesbrough without ruling out the possibility of a change of job.
Speaking on Monday, ahead of his side’s draw with Leicester City, he said: “I was told about it [the Wolves speculation] by my daughter yesterday. So that probably tells you where I am with it all.
“I can understand it, with my links to the club, but my full focus is on this job here, which is a brilliant job, and trying to turn things around from the weekend in what is a really big game against Leicester. It’s speculation stuff, so it’s hard for me to comment on anything other than Middlesbrough Football Club, which is where my focus is.”
Asked again about the situation in his post-match press conference at the King Power, he said: “It’s exactly the same, nothing has changed,” said Edwards. “As I keep on saying, it’s my wife and my daughter that are keeping me abreast of it all, I’ve not paid any attention to it at all myself.
“I’m just concentrating on my job here at Middlesbrough. That’s absolutely my only focus, and I’m really pleased with what we’ve delivered over the last couple of days.”
It now remains to be seen whether Boro’s 1-1 draw turns out to be his final act as the club’s head coach.