Wolves fell to their 10th Premier League defeat of the season against West Ham as more questions regarding Gary O’Neil’s future emerged.
Heading into the match at the London Stadium, Julen Lopetegui and Gary O’Neil were under immense pressure to secure a positive result after a testing start to the season.
Of course, Lopetegui got the better of O’Neil as Wolves remained 19th in the table, yet the 41-year-old wasn’t sent packing as a result.
To the dismay of many supporters, Fosun are fully supportive of O’Neil despite the poor job he’s doing, sparking further concerns towards the terrible ownership at Molineux.
Rather surprisingly, former Wanderers boss Mick McCarthy agrees with the current stance the club is taking.
Mick McCarthy wants Gary O’Neil to remain as Wolves manager
McCarthy knows all about the hardships of football management, having taken charge of nine clubs across three decades.
One of those was Wolves, spending five-and-a-half years at Molineux from July 2006 before being relieved of his duties in 2012.
The veteran manager led the Old Gold to the Championship title in 2008/09 and then managed to keep them in the Premier League in the two seasons that followed.
McCarthy was sacked in February 2012 with the club in the bottom three after they were thrashed 5-1 by Black Country rivals West Brom.
Now, after experiencing what life can be like at the bottom of England’s top flight, the 65-year-old has urged the Wolves board to stick with O’Neil despite him only winning two league games since April.
McCarthy told talkSPORT: “I think he did a great job last year. I think he’s right with what he’s said; he’s had players taken away from him.
“I’d love to see him get more time as I do with all managers; I’ve been in that position. There was a time when I was at Wolves, I did wonder; we stayed up twice – the last time was on goal difference.
“They did right to stick with me because we stayed up, and we had another season in the Premier League, so I hope they do with Gary, he deserves it on what he did last year.”
McCarthy could be granted his wish as O’Neil set to stay at Wolves
In any normal circumstance, boasting just two wins from 15 matches and the worst defence in the league would result in a manager being sacked.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 17 |  Crystal PalaceCrystal Palace | 15 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 14 | 20 | -6 | 13 |
| 18 |  IpswichIpswich | 15 | 1 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 27 | -13 | 9 |
| 19 |  WolvesWolves | 15 | 2 | 3 | 10 | 23 | 38 | -15 | 9 |
| 20 |  SouthamptonSouthampton | 15 | 1 | 2 | 12 | 11 | 31 | -20 | 5 |
However, Wolves want to find a replacement for O’Neil before sacking him, and this is a questionable approach when the club’s Premier League future is on the line.
The gap between them and escaping the bottom three is now four points. O’Neil is set to take charge when Wolves host Ipswich on Saturday in what is a must-win game.
Anything other than three points at Molineux should finally spell the end of his 16 months in the dugout, as regardless of what McCarthy says, he’s been given more than enough time to turn things around.
Of course, he hasn’t been dealt the best hand with Fosun’s self-sustainable model, but it doesn’t take a genius to work out that – if Wolves keep O’Neil in charge for much longer, their chances of surviving look very slim.