Zenga clears his desk after just 87 days

Wolverhampton Wanderers are looking for a new manager, after Walter Zenga packed his bags and left Molineux after only 87 days in charge at the club.  It’s easily one of the shortest reigns in English football management and you must go back to Steve Coppell in 1996, who lasted just 33 days at Manchester City, to find a shorter tenure. There was also Brian Clough’s infamous stint at managing Leeds United. He was at Elland Road for only 44 days, back in 1974.

For Wolves, they will now begin the search for their third manager in as many months, after four defeats in five matches saw the club slide towards the Championship relegation zone.  However, the Italian’s dismissal still must come as somewhat of a shock, as although the start to the season hasn’t been great, there is not a great deal between 18th and the play-off places in the Championship. Zenga, with all his experience would surely have steadied the ship and moved the club in the right direction.

In fact, it was not long ago Wolves were celebrating wins over top of the table Newcastle United and Brentford. Had something changed behind the scenes since those results, which had an impact on performances and forced the owners to act?  Who knows but now Wolves are left with a period of uncertainty, as to who will step into the managerial hot seat next, in an attempt to steer Wolves towards a return to the top flight.

There seems to be a thought amongst many of those in football, that because a club enjoyed some success in the past, they should be doing much better now. It doesn’t work like that, just ask Leeds United fans and surely changing manager every few months, is not going to lead to the desired outcome.

Interestingly, Zenga is a man who does not seem to stick around in place for too long and since starting out in management at New England Revolution in 1998, the Italian has managed 16 different clubs, all over the world, with just over two years being his longest time in charge of any of them. So, a pattern is starting to emerge in terms of his managerial record and whoever decides to employ Zenga next, better be prepared for the fact he will not be at the club for a very long time.

As for Wolves, they need to act and get a manager in place, who the new owners are confident will see out the season. Former Wolves striker and Nottingham Forest manager, Dougie Freedman is the bookies favourite but he has also been strongly linked with the Wigan job.

Disgraced England manager, Sam Allardyce is also in the running but whether he would want to return to management in England so soon and at a club near the foot of the Championship, remains to be seen. An interesting name in the mix, is Marco Silva, the young Portuguese coach who guided Olympiakos to the Greek title last season and led them to victory over Arsenal in the Champions League.  He quit the club in the summer for personal reasons and may not want to make a return to management just yet.

In the meantime, first team coach, Rob Edwards, has been placed in temporary charge but has little hope of landing the job permanently. The Championship is a long, hard season with games coming thick and fast. How long can Wolves realistically wait, before appointing a permanent manager?