Wolves are on the verge of announcing Al Shabab boss Vitor Pereira as their new manager.
Pereira will sign an 18-month contract at Molineux, with an official announcement expected on Wednesday after Wolves dismissed Gary O’Neil.
O’Neil left the Old Gold in a position of peril at the bottom of the Premier League table – currently five points from safety after 16 matches played.
It hands the experienced Portuguese boss a steep mountain to climb as he aims to rescue a side that are trending towards relegation.
The 56-year-old will arrive at Compton having never managed an English club, although Pereira has faced Premier League managers, including Pep Guardiola and Nuno Espirito Santo.
So, upon his reign at Wolves beginning, Chris Sutton is confident the experienced manager can turn their season around.
Chris Sutton says why Wolves could survive in the Premier League
Speaking on the BBC’s Monday Night Club podcast, Sutton said: “But the one beauty, I think, of coming into the Wolves job is, I think, that he has a group of players who are really capable of staying in the Premier League.
“And that’s why, essentially, I think Gary O’Neil got the sack because I know that, you know, he did well last season, the mess which he took over, got them to 14th, 46 points. This season, you know, we’ve spoken about how difficult is the promoted sides.
“But Wolves, we know they lost Kilman and they lost Neto. And there’s an argument to say they didn’t replace them. But they still have enough experienced international players, quality within the squad, to be performing much better than they have done.”
There is a sense that, while Fosun failed O’Neil at Wolves, the Englishman should have performed better with the squad he had to choose from.
Having finished 14th last term, Wolves were expected to at least match or exceed that position in the table, with the Wanderers instead going on a downward spiral.
O’Neil will blame the departures of Pedro Neto and Max Kilman but ultimately, not getting the best out of a squad of internationals reflects badly on him, and Pereira will be looking to instantly improve their fortunes.
Wolves will only survive with a successful transfer window
While Wolves have talented players across the pitch, the Old Gold won’t survive unless their defence is drastically improved in January.
Wolves have conceded 16 goals from set-pieces – and 40 in total – putting them on track to break the record of the worst defence in the Premier League era.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 18 |  IpswichIpswich | 16 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 16 | 28 | -12 | 12 |
| 19 |  WolvesWolves | 16 | 2 | 3 | 11 | 24 | 40 | -16 | 9 |
| 20 |  SouthamptonSouthampton | 16 | 1 | 2 | 13 | 11 | 36 | -25 | 5 |
Pereira will need to work miracles to turn their current back three of Craig Dawson, Santi Bueno and Toti Gomes into a solid defensive unit, with more pace and mobility needed.
Wolves have eyed a transfer for Ben Godfrey, the former Everton defender who now plays for Atalanta, and he could help fix one major issue for Pereira.
But, the manager must ultimately implement a style that best protects his backline, as making the Wanderers harder to beat holds the key to survival.