Wolves are in talks with Bruno Lage as they prepare to replace Nuno Espirito Santo.
Lage has flown into England for talks with the Wolves board, with Jorge Mendes’ trusted deputy Valdir Cardoso, of agency Gestifute, assisting chairman Jeff Shi and technical director Scott Sellars on the new appointment.
Valdir was at Molineux for the 2-1 defeat against Manchester United on Sunday and plans to stay in England this week as the club move to name a successor to Nuno.
Mendes and his Gestifute stable have been hugely influential at Wolves since Fosun, the Chinese conglomerate, completed their takeover in July 2016.
Nuno is departing Wolves after four years in charge and Lage, the former Benfica manager, is widely expected to take over in the next few weeks. However, Wolves sources insist a deal is not yet done.
Lage, 45, is a free agent after his contract with Benfica was terminated last July and Mendes has been determined to land him a job in the Premier League.
It is understood Lage was being considered by Aston Villa last year if Dean Smith had failed to avoid relegation, but the club survived on the final day and have now improved to finish 11th this season.
Nuno has reflected on his magical period in charge of the club, which came to an end after the 2-1 home defeat by United on Sunday.
He said: “I’m positive and I’m sure, because the foundation is there, the quality and talent of the players, the commitment of the players, the way they work with each other for the club. I only can see good things.
“I always like to look at things as a whole, and now we have a chance to reflect on four years, four seasons that we were together.
“The highlight is how we finish – we finish with the same spirit, the same unity, and proud of ourselves because it is amazing what the players have done since day one. We must really value what we have built.”