Gary O’Neil has steadied the ship at Wolverhampton Wanderers after being appointed just days before the 2023/24 season. Fast forward to the present day, he’s looking forward to the new campaign with the club’s future always in mind.
It comes as no surprise that Wolves were tipped for relegation after seeing their previous manager Julen Lopetegui – who is now in charge of West Ham United – walk out just days before the opening game of the 2023/24 campaign.
However, with no pre-season to implement his own style, a limited transfer budget and the odds stacked against him, O’Neil took on the role and guided his new side to 14th in the Premier League – 20 points clear of the bottom three.
The Wolves boss has now put pen to paper on a new four-year deal following a successful first year in charge – but has insisted there was never a “mad rush” to resolve his future.
After signing the contract, O’Neil’s attention has once again shifted to the fresh challenge that awaits his team – and it’s one he’ll have to navigate without his former captain Max Kilman, who secured a £43m move to West Ham, and star-man Pedro Neto after his £54m move to Chelsea was confirmed earlier in the window.
Chelsea completed the £54m signing of Pedro Neto from Wolves
Those guys, we need to replace them,” he told Sky Sports. “They are a huge part of what we were. Max played every minute of every game and Pedro had a huge involvement in loads of our goals and loads of our big results.
“Two of the club’s best players. We are working very, very hard on trying to replace them. Of course, where the club is financially is very different to where it was a few years ago. We need to be cuter with how we do things, and it might not be like-for-like.”
Change of plan?
The recruitment strategy currently in place at the club is clear to see. Neto, Diogo Jota, Ruben Neves and Kilman are just a few examples of Wolves buying exciting, young talents for a relatively low fee, before giving them the platform to shine at the highest level.
It’s a low-risk, high-reward system and the latest names to join the conveyor belt may have just arrived this summer.
Defender Pedro Lima and versatile midfielder Rodrigo Gomes, who were signed for a combined cost of £21.5m, have both impressed throughout summer preparations – with particular reference to the latter, who has netted three goals in four appearances so far.
Rodrigo Gomes has impressed in pre-season for Wolves.
O’Neil has liked what he’s seen so far but is hoping he can bring in some experienced Premier League talent in the final weeks of the window, as he looks to balance the long-term future of the club and its short-term success.
He said: “We have the best interests of the club at heart, so we try and make sure the team is ready for now. We need both, people who are Premier League-ready and can go straight into the team, and the club need to sign assets to keep itself in a sound place financially.
“Recruitment has been asset-driven and we are hopeful that we can balance that slightly, to get some that are Premier League ready – as well as maybe a couple more younger ones.
The balance is managing the long-term health and short-term is very important, otherwise you never get to the long-term. The next few weeks will be key for us.”
Tempering expectations
Despite his confident and eager approach to challenges, such as Wolves’ tough opening fixtures against Arsenal and Chelsea, O’Neil is well aware of the difficult road ahead. When asked about the targets for this season, he was hesitant to promise more than what the club delivered last season.
“I don’t think the targets will be any higher, at the moment,” he said. “We’ve sold £100m worth of talent and signed some great young ones – and Jorgen [Strand-Larsen] on loan.
O’Neil wants to find replacements for Wolves’ losses this summer
“Whatever we are at this moment, to be £80m in profit for this window and to raise the targets, you need to manage your expectations.
“I want to finish as high as possible and push for Europe again. But there are a lot of things that need to go into that. The top six will be the top six and we will be in the group below that. We want to fight as hard as we can to get to the six.”
Despite trying to relieve the pressure on his side, Wolves fans can take comfort in knowing what their head coach is capable of.
Watching on from the sidelines of the Sir Jack Hayward Training Ground, it’s clear to see what O’Neil is about and the identity he wants to instil at the club.
They are a free-flowing, comfortable team in possession that is capable of building up from the back and breaking their opponents down.
He’s now had an entire year to drill this philosophy into his squad and whether it comes from bringing the likes of Daniel Podence and Goncalo Guedes out from the shadows, or fresh new arrivals in the window, Wolves have an exciting project bubbling away under the guidance of O’Neil.
