Gary O’Neil is arguably on borrowed time in the Molineux dug-out, as his despondent Wolverhampton Wanderers side fell to yet another harrowing Premier League defeat last match.
The porous Old Gold defence shipped a disastrous five goals on their travels to Thomas Frank’s Brentford, leading to a full-time score of 5-3 in favour of the Bees, with Wolves rooted to the bottom of the division.
That means the West Midlands strugglers have now leaked a league-worst 21 goals from just seven games, and with only one point next to their name from that string of dire displays, something could soon have to change.
The latest on Gary O'Neil's future at Wolves
As per a recent report by Football Insider, a decision could soon be made concerning the former AFC Bournemouth boss’ future at Molineux, with the Old Gold hierarchy deliberating over a call currently.
Yet, Sky Sports have also suggested that the powers that be at the Premier League’s basement club will stick by O’Neil despite looming pressures surrounding his job security, considering the 41-year-old did help his side finish in a respectable 14th spot last campaign after picking up the pieces from Julen Lopetegui.
O’Neil did cut a dejected figure after the Brentford loss, however, labelling the contest as the “worst game” he’s been involved with since stepping up to be a coach after his playing days, and so the Old Gold manager might just want to be put of his misery soon in the dug-out.
Wolves will no doubt already have a tentative list of managers that they’re keeping an eye on if they do decide to pull the plug on the 41-year-old’s up-and-down tenure, with a temptation to explore previous faces they’ve been linked with.
A candidate to replace O'Neil at Wolves
When the Wolves hierarchy were scrambling to appoint a new figure after Lopetegui, Peter Bosz’s was popping up as a potential successor.
Since then, the Dutchman has taken over the reins at PSV Eindhoven, with his time in the Eredivisie to date an overwhelming success.
Games
60
54
Wins
44
18
Draws
10
9
Losses
6
27
Goals scored
173
79
As can be seen looking at the table above, Bosz has turned PSV into a free-flowing, entertaining watch under his managerial regime to date, with a mightily impressive goal tally of 173 strikes managed from 60 games.
To give further context, that’s a record of 2.8 per game, far better than Wolves under O’Neil who have managed just 1.4 goals per match.
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Often lining up his PSV side in an attacking 4-3-3 set-up, Bosz could be a welcome breath of fresh air if he was to take on the hot seat at Wolves, if he can be tempted to up and leave the Dutch giants for a relegation challenge in England.
As a result of his phenomenal record in the final third with PSV, star man Matheus Cunha would no doubt be licking his lips at the prospect of the ex-Borussia Dortmund manager taking over, with the Brazilian trickster capable of leading the line as a lone centre-forward or playing down the flanks.
Even as Wolves continue to struggle at the foot of the league, Cunha’s goals haven’t completely dried up, with the South American striker helping himself to three goals from seven league games.
Therefore, the 25-year-old could be taken to a new level altogether with a fresh face in charge, to further boost his glowing number of 19 strikes from 64 Wolves games to date. He could take influence from Dutch forward Luuk de Jong in order to do so with the ageing striker rattling home 44 goals in 58 games under Bosz’s tutelage.
Of course, all of this is just speculative talk at the moment, with it looking more likely that the Old Gold will stick by O’Neil for the time being.
But, if this poor form ends up continuing on and on, they could soon have to go against this support and look to the likes of Bosz for answers.
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