The front doors at Compton broke one Friday afternoon.
For a few minutes a number of people at Wolves' training ground were locked out before the problem was fixed. It feels like an appropriate metaphor for the club's season.
Wolves were broken and manager Rob Edwards has been trying to piece them back together since November. Handed a near impossible task, he has been unable to save them.
Relegation from the Premier League was confirmed by West Ham’s 0-0 draw at Crystal Palace on Monday.
Failure to replace their best players after selling Raul Jimenez, Diogo Jota, Ruben Neves, Matheus Cunha and Rayan Ait-Nouri over the past few years has been central to Wolves' downfall.
None of the summer 2024 signings is a regular, with only Rodrigo Gomes and Sam Johnstone part of the matchday squad.
Emmanuel Agbadou, Nasser Djiga and Marshall Munetsi joined in January 2025 to help keep Wolves up, but Agbadou was sold to Besiktas last month with Djiga and Munetsi sent on loan this season.
Of last summer's signings, winger Jhon Arias has been sold to Palmeiras in Brazil for just over £20m after arriving from Fluminense, while Fer Lopez returned to Celta Vigo on loan.
It is evidence of the regret surrounding the transfer business, with no Premier League experience added after losing Cunha to Manchester United and Ait-Nouri to Manchester City, with Nelson Semedo and Pablo Sarabia leaving for free.
That point was made to former director of professional football Domenico Teti, who left days after Victor Pereira's sacking, but he signed off on the signings.
Pereira was unhappy at how slowly business got done and felt he did not get his first-choice players – to the point where he regretted staying and signing a new contract – but they were still players he approved.
At the time Wolves felt there was value in the European market – Ladislav Krejci's loan from Girona has been their best business – but David Moller Wolfe, Tolu Arokodare and Jackson Tchatchoua arrived for a combined £45m with minimal impact.
There was certainly no expectation Wolves would tank this season because of the transfer business, but sources say the lesson has been learned and there is a sense of relief for a clean slate and a desire to avoid making the same mistakes again.
Read more from Nick on why Wolves’ relegation had been coming
