Wolverhampton Wanderers had a busy winter transfer window, but the Premier League outfit's greatest coup of the season comes in the form of head coach Julen Lopetegui.

What's the word?

Having largely impressed since clinching promotion from the Championship in 2017/18, qualifying for the Europa League in their first season back in the top-flight and reaching the quarter-finals, Wolves have been exceptional in grinding out results and maintaining a largely unwavering level of resilience.

This season, however, past concerns of mid-table mediocrity were replaced by genuine worry that a relegation scrap might be on the cards, concerns that proved true and resulted in the dismissal of head coach Bruno Lage in the season's early phase.

With the ensuring managerial appointment of Europa League winner Lopetegui in November, the Old Gold were presented with a first-rate manager who could turn the fortunes around, and thus far results have been promising.

It is unsurprising, therefore, to hear transfer insider Dean Jones suggest they are in a far better position with the 56-year-old at the helm.

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, Jones said: "They’ve reached their target for the month; the squad is in much better shape now. Speaking to the club, they feel like a completely different club now from two months ago.

“They feel that this transfer window has been a real success, and they’re very confident not only of steering clear of relegation now, but actually trying to push their way up towards the mid-table.”

A game-changing appointment

Having clinched seven points from a possible 15 with the Spaniard at the helm, the Midlands outfit now perch outside the league's relegation zone on goal difference, having previously languished within the bottom three.

And while the six acquisitions made this January - notably on-loan Matheus Cunha, who could be tied down to a permanent transfer for an eye-watering €50m (£44m) - all possess the calibre to make a meaningful difference to the combative nature of the squad, it is the manager pulling the strings that will prove to be the difference in the fight to maintain coveted top-flight status.

Having lost only to Manchester City and Manchester United in the league since assuming his role, the Spaniard will be comprehensively impressed with the strides made across the maiden period of his tenure.

And indeed with a pedigree that stretches his influence over former outfits such as the Spanish national team, Sevilla - where he won the Europa League - and Porto, it is clear that given the right tools, he will be able to craft success with any side.

And with Wolves having entrusted him with the job of securing survival, providing a raft of fresh faces to spearhead the new chapter at Molineux, a promising period of football for the side's owner Jeff Shi awaits.

The 56-year-old, should he succeed in guiding the English outfit away from their current mess, will strive for a return to prominence in the Premier League, having recorded a top-four finish in all but one of his full managerial campaigns to date, which bodes well for his new team's aspirations.

Wolves will undoubtedly be delighted with the acquisitions made over the past several weeks, but it is in fact the man running the dugout that will have the most decisive say in their trajectory over the coming years.