Express & Star

Stale Solbakken is blaming Steve Morgan

Published
Last updated

Former boss Stale Solbakken today pointed the finger at Wolves owner Steve Morgan as the club faced relegation to League One.

more

Saturday's 2-1 defeat against Burnley left Wolves doomed to third tier football next season unless an unlikely sequence of results can drag them out of the mire.

Wolves couldn't recover from goals from Danny Ings and their recent loan target Martin Paterson either side of the break.

It was despite Burnley going down to 10 men after the sending-off of Michael Duff, with substitute Nouha Dicko's 88th-minute effort their lone reply.

It left Wolves facing the prospect of becoming the first English team to twice suffer successive drops from the first to the third tier.

Wolves owner-chairman Morgan, who has presided over four managers in 16 months, was today blamed by one of them.

Solbakken accused him of failing to give new culture he introduced with the Norwegian's appointment last May more time to succeed.

He left Wolves 18th in the table before he was sacked on January 5 and said: "I have no confidence in the owner.

"He's a fantastic businessman and he could be a good owner if he had someone competent to deal with the footballing side of things.

"Morgan hired me because he wanted to build a new culture, create a new identity and make sure the club wasn't ridiculed if given another chance in the Premier League.

"It was surprising that he thought this would be done in 15 minutes. My intention was to build a team over three transfer windows and get the right balance in the squad.

"But he got tired and went back to the previous culture. It still hurts."

Meanwhile, Solbakken's successor, Dean Saunders today insisted he wants to carry on as manager.

He said: "Yes, I want to stay. I got the team going again, but the injuries have done us – we are struggling to score.

"The chairman picks the manager and I stay as long as he wants me.

"Whether we stay up or go down, we'll have to do this together.

"It's a question of juggling four managers' groups of players - even if you work in Boots the chemist, your staff wouldn't know whether they were coming or going.

"I'm devastated we're in this position but we're not dead yet."