The possibility of Gary O’Neil returning to Wolves has come as a massive surprise to fans following the sacking of Vitor Pereira, but for Jamie Carragher, he is not shocked.
The Englishman was let go by Jeff Shi last season after putting Wolves in a similar scenario to the one they are in now.
However, despite that, Gary O’Neil is leading the race to become head coach at Molineux.
It is news that has not excited fans, and supporters shared their concerns about O’Neil online.
Not everyone is in the same boat, and Jamie Carragher believes the former Wolves man would have a big advantage that other candidates do not have.
Jamie Carragher believes Gary O’Neil’s experience is an advantage for Wolves
Gary O’Neil has experience with clubs at the bottom of the Premier League. He managed Bournemouth to 15th place, and his Cherries side was the last promoted side to stay in the league.
Next, he took over at Wolves in a difficult situation. Julen Lopetegui abruptly left the club just days before the season started.
All of this combined has made Jamie Carragher believe it would not be the worst idea to bring him back to Molineux.
Speaking ahead of Monday Night Football, Carragher said, “People will look at Gary O’Neil and say ‘Ok, he lost his job in similar circumstances to Pereira last season’ but they won’t an unknown who knows nothing about the Premier League, doesn’t know the squad, so straightaway that gives Gary O’Neil sort of an advantage over any other candidates.
“He knows the squad really well, he knows the club, he knows the hierarchy, the people at the club. He did a brilliant job at keeping Wolves in the division initially but what he did at Bournemouth actually is maybe a similar situation to where Wolves find themselves in now.”
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While O’Neil is leading the way, a decision on the next Wolves manager is not expected soon.
However, Carragher’s comments open the door to scrutiny, as his reasons behind bringing O’Neil back do not exactly hold up.
Gary O’Neil does know the Wolves squad but that is not a positive
Gary O’Neil knowing the Wolves squad might be an advantage in most cases, but after the comments he made last season, that is far from the case.
He bemoaned the lack of quality in his squad, and after losing Matheus Cunha, Rayan Ait Nouri, and Nelson Semedo, the Old Gold are much weaker now.
The new signings have not inspired one bit, besides Ladislav Krejci, and if O’Neil felt his side was not good enough, it would be interesting to see how he views the one Pereira built.
Although, Liam Keen does say O’Neil is well liked by many players in the squad.
It would likely be a negative outlook.
Bringing in a manager with fresh eyes on the team and who does not already have a poor perception on the level of players he has would be a much better idea.