It’s been a whirlwind few months for Wolves who have been transformed under the guidance of Vitor Pereira.
Pereira made a record-breaking start at Wolves by going his first three Premier League games unbeaten. Since then, the Wanderers have been dragged towards safety.
The Old Gold were stranded in the bottom three by four points when Gary O’Neil was sacked in December, and now, they are nine points clear of the bottom three.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 15 |  EvertonEverton | 29 | 7 | 13 | 9 | 32 | 36 | -4 | 34 |
| 16 |  West HamWest Ham | 29 | 9 | 7 | 13 | 33 | 49 | -16 | 34 |
| 17 |  WolvesWolves | 29 | 7 | 5 | 17 | 40 | 58 | -18 | 26 |
| 18 |  IpswichIpswich | 29 | 3 | 8 | 18 | 28 | 62 | -34 | 17 |
| 19 |  LeicesterLeicester | 29 | 4 | 5 | 20 | 25 | 65 | -40 | 17 |
The turnaround in such a short space of time has been magnificent, with Pereira outlining his Wolves ambitions in the Premier League.
He wants to continue creating a special atmosphere at Molineux and continue to lead his side up the table, something he could have been doing with a divisional rival instead.
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Why Vitor Pereira rejected the Everton job in 2019
When Pereira was managing Shanghai SIPG in 2019, the Portuguese boss was approached by Premier League side Everton, who identified him as their number-one replacement for Marco Silva.
But despite being offered the chance to manage in England’s top-flight, he rejected the opportunity to remain at Shanghai, claiming they were ‘close to his heart’.
“It’s an honour and I’m grateful to be considered by a club I have so much respect for but I am still coach of SIPG and SIPG is a club close to my heart,” Pereira said.
“It means that in this moment I’m not in a position to make any other commitments. I need time to think and plan my future by looking at the options I have.”
Unai Emery was the other main candidate to take over at Goodison Park but it was legendary manager Carlo Ancelotti who replaced Silva in the dugout in December 2019.
Everton wanted Pereira to replace Rafael Benitez in 2022
Everton were long-term admirers of the Portuguese tactician, who has now managed 12 different clubs across his managerial career.
| Club | Country | Matches |
| Espinho | Portugal | 1 |
| Santa Clara | Portugal | 69 |
| FC Porto | Portugal | 93 |
| Al-Ahli | Saudi Arabia | 37 |
| Olympiacos | Greece | 27 |
| Fenerbahce | Turkey | 86 |
| 1860 Munich | Germany | 20 |
| SH SIPG | China | 117 |
| Corinthians | Brazil | 63 |
| Flamengo | Brazil | 20 |
| Al-Shabab | Saudi Arabia | 30 |
| Wolves | England | 16* |
In January 2022, it was reported that the Toffees came within touching distance of hiring Pereira after Farhad Moshiri sacked Rafael Benitez.
At the time, Pereira was dreaming of managing in the Premier League and he revealed to GIVEMESPORT last year that a move to Merseyside nearly came to fruition before they hired Frank Lampard instead.
“I was very, very close to signing for Everton. I was ready to start working there,” he said. “I travelled over and stayed for one week. I had four meetings with the club, but in the end it was not to be.
“My career so far has been a big journey, and I am in love with beautiful football. I really believe my next move will be to a top league in the world: the Premier League, LaLiga, or Serie A – one of these places. This is my target for the future and I think it’s just a question of time.”
Wolves fans are perhaps glad he didn’t get the Everton job, as it could changed the course of his future and they could have been denied his brilliance.