Who are Wolves' captaincy candidates for 2026/27?

Rob Edwards has admitted Wolves will need to address that as part of the squad rebuild in the coming months, ahead of a likely relegation to the Championship.

Jose Sa has been wearing the armband of late but is not captain material, while he is expected to depart when the transfer window reopens.

But who are the candidates to take over as captain?

Ladislav Krejci

Krejci has not been made part of the leadership group in the squad but has shown signs of being someone that could fit the bill.

He is clearly he best of Wolves' summer signings and has had a solid season, in a struggling side.

Alongside that, he is loud on the pitch, a strong character and happily speaks to the media in bad times, proving he can face the music when Wolves fans deserve answers.

After paying a £6million loan fee for him, Krejci will become a permanent Wolves player for an additional £20million at the end of the season and could stay with Wolves in the Championship, although it remains uncertain.

If he was to stay, Krejci will be one of the strongest candidates from the current squad to take the armband.

Toti Gomes

Toti is one member of the leadership group alongside Sa, Matt Doherty and Joao Gomes, but he started the season as club captain and had the armband.

He recently returned from more than two months on the sidelines due to a hamstring injury, but Edwards chose to keep Sa as captain, despite Toti also starting.

The head coach was questioned about that decision but brushed it off as unimportant, while Toti himself was also asked by the Express & Star about the captaincy, but said it did not worry him.

Toti is another player that could stay with Wolves next season, depending on interest in him, and he has to be seen as a candidate for the captaincy.

The defender is not a particularly big character and instead leads by example. Wolves may need a change, but in lieu of an obvious option, Toti must be considered.

Matt Doherty

Doherty is the only senior Wolves player who will be out of contract this summer and it remains to be seen if he signs a new deal.

In what is expected to be a big summer rebuild, a clean break may be deemed necessary, but there are a lot of reasons to keep Doherty around.

He is vastly experienced, can play in several different positions and knows Wolves inside out. The club could do a lot worse than giving Doherty a short-term deal as a squad player.

Doherty has also not found it natural as a captain, but he has grown into the role and in December earned headlines for calling out his team-mates.

If he does stay, Doherty will need to be given a big role off the pitch.

Summer signing

Despite the options discussed, Wolves' squad needs an overhaul and leadership has to be an area to give serious attention to.

As a result, a summer addition may be the answer to Wolves' captaincy conundrum. 

Edwards knows the importance of addressing the shortage of leaders in the summer and it will form part of the club's plans.

He said: "I'd love a team of leaders. It'd be great to have a settled one, but it's not the most important thing. It's not the be all and end all to me. 

"Clearly with our recruitment and what we'll look for going into the summer, will be more leaders and people that are more natural doing that. I think that's something that's really important to me and to us as a football club as well, it's something we need to do."