Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Bruno Lage is the "frontrunner" to become Wolves' next manager.

Nuno Espirito Santo announced last week that he would be leaving the club at the end of the season, and he ended his four-year stay at Molineux with a 2-1 defeat to Manchester United on Sunday.

Now, the search is on to find his replacement. It was reported earlier this week that Wolves were set to hold talks with Lage about the vacant position, and Romano has now offered an update on how likely it is that Lage lands the job.

What did Romano say about Lage?

Speaking on The Here We Go Podcast, Romano clarified that talks were at an advanced stage between Lage and Wolves, and that the 45-year-old is closing in on joining the Premier League club.

Romano said: "Bruno Lage is really the frontrunner. He’s the big favourite to be the new manager of Wolverhampton. The agreement is really close.

"He’s Portuguese, former Benfica manager, they are working on the agreement but he’s the main candidate and he’s set to join Wolves."

How have Wolves acted so quickly?

Given that Nuno departed the club a matter of days ago, Wolves seem to have acted remarkably quickly to find his successor. However, they may actually have been planning to bring in Lage for a while.

Last month, it was reported that Jorge Mendes, who represents both Nuno and Lage, had offered Lage to Wolves to take over at the club this summer.

This suggests that Wolves may have been considering the option of hiring Lage for a few weeks now, and once Nuno had walked away, they were well-positioned to turn to him almost immediately.

How important is it for Wolves to appoint a new manager soon?

Extremely important.

This summer looks set to be an intriguing one for Wolves, as they appear to be at risk of losing some of their key players.

Goalkeeper Rui Patricio has been linked with a move to Serie A, while the club are reportedly willing to listen to offers for Ruben Neves.

Wolves' next manager, which looks likely to be Lage, might like these players, though, and be desperate to keep them. By getting someone in as soon as possible, this gives the new manager time to assess his squad before deciding who he is happy to sell.

The club will also need to bring in reinforcements after having a disappointing campaign where they finished in 13th place.

If a manager can be appointed prior to the transfer window opening next month, he will then be able to identify his main transfer targets for this summer, which would give Wolves the best chance of climbing back into the top half next season.