Sean Dyche reacts to Rob Edwards' big Middlesbrough decision | OneFootball

Rob Edwards made the jump from Middlesbrough to Wolves last November

Middlesbrough are firmly in the mix for promotion to the Premier League with just a few games remaining.

Even if the Teesside outfit can’t clinch a place inside the top two, then Kim Hellberg’s side will have the play-offs to fall back on.

Boro haven’t competed in the top flight since 2017, but this will be their best chance at a return since their play-off loss to Coventry City in 2023 under Michael Carrick.

The current Manchester United interim manager oversaw eighth and 10th place finishes in the subsequent campaigns, which led to his departure last summer.

Rob Edwards arrived as his replacement, but the 43-year-old lasted just a few months in the role before being poached by Premier League side Wolves.

Hellberg took over in his place, and has carried on the club’s push for promotion, while Wolves look set to be relegated from the Premier League.

Sean Dyche defends Rob Edwards’ Middlesbrough decision

Sean Dyche has defended Edwards’ decision to move to Wolves after just a few months in charge at Middlesbrough amid criticism from Simon Jordan.

The former Nottingham Forest boss has claimed that it wouldn’t have been an easy decision for him to make, and that the lure of the Premier League is too great when there are no guarantees of gaining promotion when working in the Championship.

“I know Rob a little bit and I spoke to him when he played," said Dyche, via Talksport.

“It’s very difficult that situation, there’s no guarantee in the Championship.

“He’s at Boro and they’re going well.

“But now look, they’re having a wobble all of a sudden from being right up there.

“If that doesn’t work, you might never get another crack at the Premier League.

“He went in there [Wolves], eyes open because he knows it’s a tough one.

“Tough start and then they’ve just turned it around, funny enough when we [Nottingham Forest] drew with them, and they’ve gone on a good run.

“I think it’s a really tough one, but the Premier League is the place to be.

“It’s as simple as that.”

Dyche also highlighted the personal reasons why a move to Wolves in particular made sense, but that even as a manager it was a reasonable choice to make the move to Molineux.

“He’s got family [there] and all that sort of stuff,” he added.

“I’m not going into that world, that's a different opinion.

“I’m talking as a manager. I don’t think he’s taken that decision lightly by the way. Not remotely.”

Edwards previously played for Wolves from 2004 to 2008, and he made over 100 appearances for the club in that time, which played a role in his decision to jump ship from the Riverside.

Dyche is currently out of work, but he managed against the 43-year-old in this year’s relegation battle in his role with Nottingham Forest.

Edwards took over the Midlands outfit in November, and he has been unable to guide the team out of the relegation zone.

He replaced Vitor Pereira, who is now working at the City Ground as Dyche’s replacement, with the Reds targeting survival in the Premier League.

Meanwhile, Middlesbrough are still in the mix for a top two finish in the Championship under Hellberg.

The Swede arrived in November from Hammarby IF after he led the team to a second place finish in Allsvenskan.

Middlesbrough survived Rob Edwards’ move to Wolves

Edwards made a great start to life at Middlesbrough, and it was a disappointing decision from him to leave the club when he did because of their early promotion hopes.

However, Hellberg has proved an inspired replacement and the loss of the head coach to Wolves hasn’t had the impact some supporters would’ve feared.

Edwards looks set to be back in the Championship next season, but Wolves will be aiming to fight for promotion back to the Premier League straight away, and they will have greater resources than at Middlesbrough, if they’re in the same division.

The emotional factor also has to be taken into account with Edwards, and the chance to go back to Wolves would’ve been very difficult to turn down, even with the team rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table.