MATCH PREVIEW: WOLVES V CRYSTAL PALACE

Edwards confirmed Matt Doherty is “not quite ready” to face Palace, with Rodrigo Gomes and Dan Bentley also unavailable, however, it is likely weeks they will be out for rather than a “sustained period”.

The new Wolves boss said it “feels amazing to be back” and he is “really, genuinely proud” as it has been “an aim of mine since I got the under-18s job – it is something I’ve always wanted to do”.

On what he has taken away from his 10 days in charge: “That they are up for it, that they are ready for the challenge themselves. Every one of them when I’ve spoken to them has been enthused by what we want to try and do and what we want to try and bring, which has given me a lot of belief and confidence. A lot of them have talked about those words – belief and more confidence. Those are things that no-one else is going to give us.”

Edwards said he “didn’t see any of the reaction” after leaving Middlesbrough after five months but is “aware” he was in a great job at the club. He explained: “This was something that I’ve wanted to do for a long, long, long time and I didn’t know if this job would ever come up again for me”.

He added: “I didn’t want to ever look back in 10 years, 15 years, 20 years and think I’d turned down a chance to manage Wolves in the Premier League. That’s it. I didn’t want to regret that. Here I am now and I know the scale of the task but I’m really enthused by it, I’m excited by it. Now the games start, let’s see.”

Asked about the gap between them and the teams above them and how to bridge that, he said he was “not looking at the table right now” and added: “I’ll make it really clear to the lads what that [hard work] looks like to me and what are our non-negotiables, what we must see every single day. So it will be very demanding, but the players want that. But we will also support them and we believe in them and I’ve told them that. We can’t look too far ahead.”

On if he will get more time because of his connection with the club and fans: “Who knows? That’s not something I’ve thought about right now. I hope that the supporters are on our side and my side but again, I’m not stupid. They are going to want to see good performances and results and there’ll be some unrest because we’ve not had that for a while.”

Edwards also confirmed his backroom team are “assembling” and should be in place within the next week.