Matt Jackson wants Wolves’ statement signing of Kieran Trippier to ‘set the tone’ for what is to follow this summer as the club begins its rebuild towards an exciting future.
Trippier arrives at Molineux as the club’s first signing of the summer, and the vastly experienced 35-year-old brings a wealth of knowledge and know-how to Rob Edwards’ squad ahead of a season in the EFL Championship.
But with the pressure and expectation of making an immediate return to the Premier League, technical director Jackson feels bringing Trippier into the club will have an enormous impact, both on and off the pitch.
On signing Trippier for Wolves
“We’re really pleased to have brought Kieran to Wolves. It’s been a good joint effort between Rob, Nathan and myself, and I think he’s had conversations with all the senior members of the football club, which is great.
“He’s really bought into the project, and we’re delighted that he’s committed to Wolves.”
New signing x new shirt 😮💨 pic.twitter.com/iYMMiZCaca
— Wolves (@Wolves) June 8, 2026
On his commitment to the cause
“He had options to go elsewhere, so it’s really pleasing to us that he’s decided to commit to Wolves.
“But I think it’s testimony to everybody at the football club, the supporters, as well as the people internally, that the thrill of this football club can appeal to someone who’s had the career that Kieran has had.
“The city can take great pride from that, and I think he’ll represent us brilliantly.”
On adding leadership and experience to the squad
“I think it is a real sign of intent on what we want to achieve next season. We’ve talked up about that need for leadership for more of a ‘British core’. With the international experience that he’s had, the games that he’s played and the type of character he is, we feel he fits that mould perfectly.
“Creating a new culture within the dressing room is vital to us. We need to change, and he will be very important for the parts of the squad we’ve been missing. Alongside other characters that we will either bring in or will remain with us in the football club, we want lots of different voices and lots of leaders.
“Everyone can lead in their own way, but Kieran’s a vocal type and he’ll be good in the dressing room. He’s been very impressive in the meetings that we’ve had face-to-face, and we expect him to really take a grip of the team and drive us forwards.”
Getting our first deal done early ✍️ pic.twitter.com/IUFYSGWDCN
— Wolves (@Wolves) June 8, 2026
On Trippier’s signing setting the tone
“We want that winning mentality that he’s had for the majority of his career. He is used to being in high pressure situations and I think he’ll hit the ground running for us and be an exceptional signing.
“These are the kinds of signings we need to ensure we return to the Premier League as soon as possible, however, there needs to be a mix of experienced heads and leaders with exciting young talent.
“But Kieran was very much the number one target for us and managing to bring him here early in the window, where we can plan, and then have him join us on the first day of pre-season was vitally important.
“We really want him to make his mark early on with those leadership qualities we’ve talked about and set a tone that we hope will then take us through the whole season.”
On supporting plans for the summer
“Bringing Kieran into the club early in the summer will definitely help our recruitment going forwards this summer. We saw the reaction to Andre signing and I think Kieran signing for Wolves will do the same thing.
“We can say that we’re serious, and people will know that we are, but our actions obviously speak much louder than that, and I believe these two signings early on are absolutely great for us.”
