Bournemouth will seek to make a quick managerial appointment after sacking Scott Parker four games into a torrid return to the Premier League.
Parker was dismissed three days after an embarrassing 9-0 defeat by Liverpool, which followed 4-0 and 3-0 losses against Manchester City and Arsenal. While chastening, that run of results was not the sole factor behind the club’s decision to part ways.
Only a wild optimist would have expected the promoted side to take anything from those fixtures but Parker’s comments after the heavy defeat at Anfield went down poorly with the hierarchy.
Parker had indicated after the game that he felt the club had not spent enough this summer in paying £22.6m for two players and making three free transfers. “I have been clear how this season could look for us and I stick by that,” he said. “We need to make a decision and try and help this young group who at times are struggling for air. Every one of us needs to make that decision. We have been trying to get more quality in and there are a million reasons why [it hasn’t happened].”
Those sentiments echoed similar comments made in pre-season and, in culmination, convinced the club’s ownership that Parker’s position was no longer tenable. Bournemouth’s owner, Maxim Demin, appeared to react to Parker’s comments as part of his statement confirming the sacking.
“I would like to place on record my gratitude to Scott and his team for their efforts during their time with us,” Demin said. “Our promotion back to the Premier League last season under his tenure will always be remembered as one of the most successful seasons in our history.
Scott Parker's Bournemouth sacking is the earliest in the Premier League since August 2004.
Parker was dismissed 25 days into the season, which is the earliest since Paul Sturrock and Sir Bobby Robson lost their jobs in successive weeks in 2004-05.
Among managers who were sacked or left by mutual consent, Sturrock's dismissal by Southampton remains the earliest in a Premier League season. He departed on 23 August 2004 – just nine days into the campaign and only two days after James Beattie's stoppage-time penalty had earned his side a 3-2 win over Blackburn. Saints went on to be relegated at the end of the season.
A week later on 30 August, Robson was sacked by Newcastle chairman Freddy Shepherd, who had previously dismissed Kenny Dalglish after just 12 days of the 1998-99 campaign.
The sackings of Peter Reid at Manchester City (1993-94), Christian Gross at Tottenham (1998-99), Gianluca Vialli at Chelsea (2000-01) and Howard Wilkinson at Leeds (1996-97) also came earlier than Parker's dismissal by Bournemouth.
However, the Cherries have acted quicker than any club has in the past 18 years, beating Watford who sacked Javi Gracia after 29 days in 2019-20 and Crystal Palace, who fired Frank de Boer 31 days into the 2017-18 campaign.
“However, in order for us to keep progressing as a team and a club as a whole, it is unconditional that we are aligned in our strategy to run the club sustainably. We must also show belief in and respect for one another. That is the approach that has brought this club so much success in recent history, and one that we will not veer from now. Our search for a new head coach will begin immediately.”
Bournemouth expect to be active in the transfer market over the next 48 hours despite Parker’s departure, and hope a new manager will be working with any new arrivals soon after. They will prioritise a progressive coach in the mould of Parker’s predecessors Eddie Howe, Jason Tindall and Jonathan Woodgate, although the capacity to keep one of the division’s smaller clubs punching above their weight will also feature heavily in the job specification.
Parker departs despite taking Bournemouth to promotion in his first season and an initially promising start to 2022-23, beating Aston Villa 2-0 on the opening day. Gary O’Neil will take interim charge, assisted by Shaun Cooper and Tommy Elphick. Bournemouth host Wolves, who are below them and are yet to win a game, on Wednesday.
