Stephen Hunt leaves with a warning for Wolves

The winger fought his way through the Molineux grumbles to be one of the few players to emerge with credit from the shambolic drop into League One.

Hunt, 31, admits he would now be talking about a new deal had the team stayed up but relegation spelled the end of his Molineux career, as his contract finished.

He leaves genuinely hurt by the failure of the last two seasons – and desperate for the club to seize the chance to make a fresh start under new leadership.

But, having played under four managers in 15 months, Hunt said: "The next appointment is going to be crucial, in terms of getting the right man in to do the rebuilding job.

"It's a case of getting the right man in and then sticking with him through the bad times and the good times and not panicking.

"Sometimes you need to come through the bad experiences like Wolves have had to start again and rebuild to bring back the good times.

"I imagine there will be a clear-out of players. I think a few have become stale and need a new challenge elsewhere.

"When you get relegated, generally, a lot of players leave and the club rebuilds, although last year there was only really three or four who left Wolves.

"It's the right time to rebuild the team but you must make sure there is the right blend of experience and young players, because you can't just go in with young players alone.

"Whatever happens there is a good nucleus from which to build."

Hunt already has offers from the Championship and one German club to ponder during the close season, but refuses to rule out a return to Molineux one day.

He added: "I wasn't really looking to move anywhere else. My family had settled and, had we stayed up, I might well have been here next season.

"I plan to do my coaching badges and hopefully become a manager when I finish playing. Maybe one day I can come back to Wolves in another capacity – I wouldn't rule it out!

"Stranger things have happened and I did love my time there."