Gary O’Neil has said he holds no concerns over the strength of his Wolves squad and is happy to attack the season without further signings, despite Julen Lopetegui departing because of a lack of transfer activity. O’Neil plans to speak with the Wolves chairman, Jeff Shi, for the first time before they begin the campaign at Manchester United on Monday.
Lopetegui informed Wolves of his wish to leave after a pre-season friendly against Celtic in Dublin at the end of last month, prompting the hierarchy to explore potential successors. O’Neil, who led Bournemouth to Premier League safety last season, was deemed the outstanding candidate and began a three-year contract as head coach on Wednesday. Lopetegui felt he did not have the tools to avoid a relegation battle.
Wolves lost out to Bournemouth in the £25m race for Alex Scott because of financial fair play constraints and signings are unlikely. O’Neil acknowledged “a lot has been made” of a series of high-profile exits and the dearth of arrivals, with the return of Matt Doherty on a free the only outfield signing. O’Neil, who will talk to Shi while the chairman is in China, said he was clear on the club’s finances.
He was appointed as Bournemouth’s head coach after Scott Parker was sacked after criticising the quality of his team and O’Neil’s predecessor at Wolves had been equally outspoken on the squad at his disposal. “I didn’t see it as an issue last year [at Bournemouth] and I don’t see it as an issue this year,” he said. “I’ll get the maximum I can out of the group of players. That’s my job, that’s the job of a lead coach. I’m excited about it. I’m looking forward to the journey.”
Wolves finished 13th last season despite being bottom at Christmas. “Let’s get to work, let’s get the most out of this group and at the end of the season everyone will have a real clear picture of how much we were able to achieve or not,” said O’Neil. “I signed up for the job two days ago with this group. It is a fantastic group with real good quality.”
Wolves’s sporting director, Matt Hobbs, said O’Neil had a “point to prove” after being replaced by Andoni Iraola at Bournemouth in June but the 40-year-old played down his shock dismissal as a factor in his motivation to succeed. “I have a point to prove every day, not because of what happened at Bournemouth; I think that’s how I’ll feel between now and the moment I retire,” he said. “No hard feelings, I wish Bournemouth well and hope they have a successful season.”
