STEVE Price is the Jurgen Klopp of rugby league and his honesty and integrity are the mark of the man according to the Wolves chief executive.

Karl Fitzpatrick first met Price last when we he flew over to interview him after Tony Smith left the head coach role following a disastrous 2017.

A year on with Price at the helm, Wire have made it to the Challenge Cup Final and are back at Old Trafford on Saturday – aiming to end a 63 year wait for a championship crown.

And Fitzpatrick believes Price's working class upbringing has made him a perfect fit at The Halliwell Jones Stadium.

"When I went through the interview process in Australia he was the outstanding candidate. It was clear that how he had been brought up in that he was honest and worked hard," he said.

"And that was clear when he came over for about six months on his own in November last year, without his wife and family to get to know the club, the players and the town.

"That is the mark of the bloke and what he wanted to achieve."

And he said during the interview, it became clear the former St George head coach was a man made for Warrington.

"It quickly became apparent through the interview process that we had a very smart coach," Fitzpatrick added.

"When we spoke it was clear his philosophies matched those of the club.

"It means so much to him.

Price quickly became a fan favourite. Straight talking and his honest, his demeanour on the touchline and in the coaches box was in stark contrast to the previous decade under Tony Smith.

None more so than at St Helens on Thursday night when he was living every pass and tackle, and in an early season game with Saturday's opponents Wigan, when he smashed his walkie talkie in frustration – captured on the Sky cameras.

Fitzpatrick said: ""He is the Jurgen Klopp of rugby league.

"You can see when you watch what it means to him, it is hard to keep his emotions in check.

"He wants to repay the fans for the support."

And another Premier League inspiration played a role on the win at table-topping Saints at Leicester City keeper and former title winning goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel came to talk to the players.

And Fitzpatrick said his two key themes of being the underdog and sticking to the process resonate with the team.

"The first was being the underdog, which Leicester were when they won the Premier League," he said.

"We were clearly underdogs in the semi final and it will be the same on Saturday against Wigan.

"And we are happy with that tag.

"The second was about sticking to the process.

"This was something Steve Price has spoken about throughout the year.

"Stick to the process and we are an excellent football team. "If we do that, then results will follow.

In the Challenge Cup Final, we started to push plays, went away from the process and came up on the wrong end of the scoreline.

"Kasper said at Leicester, everyone knew their role and stuck to it. And look what they achieved."

Kasper Schmeichel met the Wire team at The Halliwell Jones Stadium