Romain Saiss cut an emotional figure after returning to Molineux for the first time in four years on Sunday, describing the place as his “second home”.
The Moroccan was a key figure in the group which took the club from the Championship to the Europa League last eight, playing more than 200 games during a hugely successful period for the Old Gold.
On Sunday he returned to Wolverhampton with his family and stepping on the pitch to greet the fans, and reuniting with the likes of Matt Doherty and Raul Jimenez, brought the memories flooding back of an era, and a dressing room spirit, which he’s never experienced elsewhere.
The 36-year-old, who left the club in 2022, has since played in Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, but watched from the stand as former side drew with Fulham and visited Compton Park in a quest to bring the good memories back.
On being back at Molineux
“It was honestly very emotional, because it's a big part of my life, six years, so it was very, very emotional. I was so happy to come back here, because now it has been four years since I left the club. I always said I would come back one day, and I was really excited all week because I knew I would come back to see some old friends, to visit the training ground, the stadium, so I was like a kid.”
Great to have you back, Romain 💛 pic.twitter.com/L5J8rOeyKA
— Wolves (@Wolves) May 17, 2026
On a special place
“They are only good memories. We shared here an incredible moment, and it just reminded me of all the good times I had with the lads, the staff, and all of the people working for the club, because we felt here like a family, so it was really important for me, and also for my family, my wife, and my kids. It was a good, good time here, and they were very happy to come back and to spend some days here.
“They [his kids] still remember that time, the games, coming with me sometimes to the training ground, so they were really excited. I'm glad to share this moment with them also. I know this place will always be like my second home, so anytime I can come, I will do it in the future.”
On seeing some of the lads
“It brought me fantastic memories, seeing Raul [Jimenez], Doc [Matt Doherty], also some of the staff are still here, so we created something really special at that time, which helped us on the pitch to have fantastic results. We still have contact with a lot of players from that time, because it was really special. We had a dressing room that I never found at other clubs, it was really special, what we created. What we had outside of the pitch, we put the same energy on the pitch, and that's why we did amazing things for this club.
“I cannot keep one memory in my mind, because I have so many from the Championship to Europa League, and the most important thing is this link we created between the players, and we still have today, so that's the most beautiful things.”
On the Nuno years
“When we got promoted, we were not scared about anything, we just had confidence in ourselves to play our game, and we made sure the players who came stuck to our dressing room, to our identity, and that's what we did.
“We got through to the quarter-final of the Europa League, semi-final of the FA Cup, we finished seventh in the league twice. We knew we were Premier League because we deserved it, and then we just had to show our quality and character on the pitch, and it was amazing.”
