Almost four months after his unexpected departure as Wolverhampton Wanderers manager, Julen Lopetegui is still living in the city where, for many fans, he worked a miracle. In just nine months, he pulled a team back from the brink of the abyss, bottom of the table when he took over, to 13th place at the end of the season. However, disagreements with ownership over a lack of investment grew last summer. The club, under financial pressure, sold some of its best players as Matheus Nunes, Ruben Neves, Conor Coady, Adama Traore and Raul Jimenez all departed, prompting Lopetegui to stick to his guns and follow them out the exit door. "Wolves is part of the past,” the Spaniard exclusively told The Independent. “A recent and beautiful past of which above all I have fond memories of the fans. They made me feel at home. From there I can only wish them the best because they will always be in my heart. Without the pressure of full-time management – temporarily at least – Lopetegui now takes the opportunity to squeeze the good things out of living a quieter life: "I don't miss many things about the routine. I had been working for many years and it was healthy to do a reset. “Now I have more time to spend with my family and we are enjoying England, its culture and all its corners. I really liked the south of the country and I was also pleasantly surprised by Scotland.” For a manager, however, it is impossible to completely disconnect. Lopetegui met Howard Webb, head of referees, a few weeks ago and has also recently shared some experiences with people at an LMA Masterclass and with the PFA. And, of course, he also travels often to watch matches and to meet other managers. Friends, as he likes to say. With Guardiola? "I'm not going to say any names," he adds with a smile. In the four months he has been out of the circuit, he has received several offers from different leagues, but none has convinced him to return to the sideline. Yet... "You always prefer to start from scratch, with a pre-season to prepare everything, but sometimes those circumstances don't work out. I know how this world works," he argues. A few weeks ago, after Nuno Espirito Santo was sacked by Saudi Pro League side Al Ittihad, The Independent understands that Lopetegui received a call to take charge of the team – which includes players such as Karim Benzema. He refused to be tempted however, instead content to view the way the Saudi market is growing from afar. “Saudi Arabia is a league that is here to stay and to continue growing because the potential is unquestionable,” explained Lopetegui. “A lot of interesting things are happening and its commitment has to do not only with the present but also with the future because on the horizon, although still distant, is the 2034 World Cup. “There is a passion, a fervour and a chance to do important things and I can see the proof because top footballers and managers are going there. In any case, I have always expressed my interest in continuing to work in the Premier League.” That's the point: Lopetegui is still keen to return to coaching in England. That is his current dream, convinced that there is no other place in the world more attractive for his profession. Despite how much he has won in Spain, his face lights up when he talks about the Premier League and its prestige. "The competition creates an almost addictive demand on clubs, players and managers,” he said. “The fact that six games are played at the same time on a Saturday speaks well of an organisation that encourages attendance at the stadiums and that has a direct impact on the atmosphere. “The value of going to the stadium is tremendous because it generates a special energy and I think we all feel that way. I've really enjoyed the Premier League and I hope to continue to do so.” Although Lopetegui does not like to flaunt it, he knows that his name is on the potential manager list of a number of sporting directors at English clubs. "I aspire to take charge of a club where I can be happy and where I can lead a project that I feel I can develop,” he added. “I consider it fundamental that I can have a direct impact on the improvement of a dressing room with my ideas and my work. We all like to be at the top, to occupy the benches of the best clubs, but what I really want to see is that I can contribute and make a step up in level. The former Real Madrid manager, a perfectionist by nature, knows that in England he has all the ingredients to grow: "The Premier League has been nourished for years by the best and the league is the one that comes out of it all stronger. “It's a win-win situation for everyone. The more competitive you are, the more you learn. England forces us not to relax and to always look for nuances. England makes us all better.” Read More VAR costing ‘livelihoods and reputations’ fumes Wolves boss after latest problems FPL Gameweek 13: James Ward-Prowse, Luca Koleosho and five players to consider for transfers Gary O’Neil unpacks Wolves secrets on MNF to show the future of football punditry

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On a night of thrilling sensory overload, it is Internazionale left with the feeling that matters most: victory, and in the match that matters most. That it was 2-0 at the San Siro, from the most thrilling of starts, went some way to finishing this Champions League semi-final when it had barely begun, putting Simone Inzaghi’s fine cup team on the brink of the grandest final in club football. It still could have been much worse for AC Milan, who badly missed their best player in Rafael Leao. It meant they had no answer – either at the back or front – to Inter’s individual stars. Edin Dzeko and Henrikh Mkhitaryan plundered lightning bolts of early goals. One of a few remaining hopes for Milan is that Leao’s return can spark a comeback that had some embers in that second half. There was also the almost irrational manner that Inter started the game, as much borne of the emotion of everything that was happening as any imposed idea. The same can happen in the second leg, especially since Milan were the “home” side here. Stefano Pioli at least has to ensure they believe that. That’s what much of this came down to, as the entire occasion ratcheted up to something that went beyond a sporting spectacle. These two teams didn’t just come together for a historic derby in the most prestigious of competitions. They came together for something bigger. This was in truth a deeply rich cultural occasion as much as a sporting fixture, the profound history of the latter context enriching the former. It was also a truly sensory experience. The noise and colour were of another plane, vintage sights and sounds like those huge Italian banners being waved like battle flags amid raucous chanting afforded a new air. There is something important to that. These are two grand clubs who had largely been left behind by the forces enveloping the wider game, but who were still picked off by such interests. It was understandably cast as a semi-final that only happened due to the luck of the draw, with the prize for the winner being the misfortune to get well beaten by the victor of the “real” final in the actual final. Even some of the players had a Europa League feel, a combination of Premier League has-beens and Premier League yet-to-bes. And it still produced an occasion unlike anything the Champions League has experienced in recent years. It was deafening. It was also, fittingly for something so sensory, entirely organic. The owners of major clubs – be they equity firms, states or industrialists – may be seeking to buy this but it is something that can only come from the history and context. Imbued in that stadium-wide roar that greeted the final “champions” of the competition theme was the shared history of 10 European Cups each. As to the present, and who will enjoy the prize of that next Champions League final, it was Inter who initially attacked with that atmosphere much better. They were going with the vivid flow of it all, actually playing to the occasion in a way that arguably better suited them. The two opening goals were vibrant illustrations of this, Milan apparently unable to even impede a briefly unstoppable force. For the first, a Hakan Calhanoglu corner was acrobatically turned in by Dzeko in what felt like one unbroken move. For the second, the effervescent Federico Dimarco just surging through to set up Mkhitaryan for the finish to a flowing move that just seemed to sear through Milan. It was at that point that Inter looked like they would score with every attack, the physical force of their individual stars looking better equipped for the occasion than Milan’s more methodical system. That system was also frequently at the brink of breaking down, like when Simon Kjaer and Fikayo Tomori again got themselves into the most awful mess dealing with a Lauturo Martinez run. It was just as well the Argentine decided to go down, ensuring the penalty was ruled out, and Milan were not yet out of the tie. Mike Maignan did a good enough job of that himself, producing at least two brilliant reactive saves. The contrast between the approaches did condition the game further, though, and actually ensure Inter weren’t far out of sight too early. With Inzaghi’s side primed to respond to Milan with individual bursts, it was little surprise that Pioli’s system began to assert itself more in general play – even if he did have to bring Junior Messias on for Ismael Bennacer to ensure that. Brahim Diaz started to run the game. Sandro Tonali hit the post. Messias shot when he should have passed. This was where they were missing their own star in Leao. The Milan crowd behind Andre Onana’s goal could sense something. They tried to draw with more sensory overload, the end glowing demonically with red flares, a firecracker loudly exploding. There was no late eruption from Milan, though. They kept to the system without ever cutting through. Their fans still roared encouragement at the end. Inter’s players ran to theirs. This isn’t over. It might just take a while for anyone watching to get over. Read More The Milan derby crowns Serie A’s return - here is why it means so much more AC Milan are back – but not as how you remember them Man City vs Real Madrid is the ‘real’ Champions League final Milan derby creates thrilling sensory overload that shows how football should be AC Milan vs Inter Milan LIVE: Champions League semi-final result and reaction False 9? Edin Dzeko shows the value of an old-fashioned centre-forward

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