Wolverhampton Wanderers will be relegated from the Premier League this season. That is, according to the record books, who are unable to provide evidence of a greater escape in English top-flight history.
Across their last four Premier League fixtures, Wolves have accrued eight points. That's half of their total throughout the campaign. The previous 26 matches yielded the same returns.
Credit must be handed to Rob Edwards, who chased a dream and left a good thing to return to a club he holds close to his heart. Middlesbrough may make their way into Wolves' top slot next season, but Edwards believes he can make something at Molineux and is already starting to show that.
Wolverhampton Wanderers manager Rob Edwards applauds fans after the match
Recent wins over Aston Villa and Liverpool have reminded the English game of the quality within this squad. Such players could thrive at the highest level, and it's clear that, barring the great escape, there will be several high-profile departures in a few months time.
Who could leave Wolves this summer
Wolves sold Matheus Cunha to Manchester United last year. The Brazilian is one of the most talented players to wear the old gold colours, and he left for a £62.5m fee.
A maverick and a maestro, deployed up front or out wide, where he could dance around the danger area and confuse and frustrate opponents, Cunha was always going to be difficult to replace, but Fosun and the board could have done better.
Since 2020/21, the Midlands side have slowly slid down the table. Now, the situation has worsened. A slide has to end up somewhere, and it's going to send Wolves, still 13 points from safety after their recent purple patch, tumbling into the Championship.
Improvements have been made, though, and it's no surprise that Edwards' success has coincided with the emergence of Mateus Mane, who, aged 18, has been projected to become a "superstar" by pundits such as Paul Merson.
Liverpool's Milos Kerkez in action with Wolverhampton Wanderers' Mateus Mane and Andre
Liverpool and Manchester United are keen on the £50m-rated prospect, but Edwards wants to keep him at the club and build. However, some cuts are going to have to be made, and Wolves could cash in on this season's Cunha to ensure they have balanced books and space to add to a team of stars capable of making their mark in the Championship.
Wolves must sell this season's Matheus Cunha
In Joao Gomes, Wolves have one of the most underrated midfielders in the Premier League. Thus, the 25-year-old is not going to want to hang around after three-and-a-half years of committed service.
It's hardly a surprise that he's been on all the top clubs' radars in recent years. Tenacious, good on the ball and endowed with a vicious bite, Gomes is a troublemaker in the middle of the park, hailed as a "warrior" by talent scout Jacek Kulig for obvious reasons.
Gomes isn't consistently good, but he's good all the same. In fact, he's been a brilliant anchor at the beating heart of Wolves' pitch since joining from Flamengo in January 2023.
This season, with Wolves in real trouble, Gomes has won three tackles and 6.3 duels per game, relatively creative with his passing and only too eager to march forward and into dangerous positions.
Last season, the Brazil international won 119 tackles in the Premier League, nine behind the champion of that individual statistic - Idrissa Gana Gueye, who recorded 128 across 2024/25.
Most Tackles in the Premier League (25/26)
Player
Joao Palhinha
James Garner
Joao Gomes
Elliot Anderson
Tyrick Mitchell
This year, he's kept it up, steady in jousting for the ball and making such a difference in the engine room.
It goes without saying that Wolves would be in a deeper crisis without Gomes' presence in the middle of the park, but equally, it would be a big risk to keep him at Molineux next season.
Interest in his signature over the past several years has been constant. Trawl through Wolves forums for transfer news and you will find any number of rumours linking him with big clubs. Namely, Manchester United.
Wolverhampton Wanderers' Joao Gomes in action with Brentford's Yehor Yarmolyuk
Gomes could link up with Cunha, his countryman, at Old Trafford next year, and who could blame him for having his interest piqued by that possibility?
With Italians Napoli also registering their interest in the £50m-rated talent in January, it's clear that Wolves should cash in. Andre, for example, is a tough tackler in his own right, and the pros of selling and signing a suitable replacement outweigh the supposed advantage of keeping him to cushion the fall into the second tier.
Andre-Joao-Gomes-Wolves
Criticisms pertaining to Wolves' savviness in the transfer market in recent years have been on point. The Old Gold have been unassuming in plodding along, but that lack of ambition means their fans can assume they will be playing Championship football next season.
Who will remain is anyone's guess. Someone like Gomes should be sold to fetch a pretty penny, but the mistakes of the past must be learned from, and while he will become this summer's version of Cunha, the cheque must be cashed in and turned back toward the transfer market, else the Wolves will find themselves stuck on the other side of an impassable river.
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