da brwin： Wolverhampton Wanderers have officially parted ways with manager Julen Lopetegui, amid the club’s financial issues over the summer.
da esoccer bet： The Spaniard has reached a mutual agreement with the Old Gold to end his nine-month stay as head coach, after securing the side safety in the Premier League at a point when the squad was bottom of the league on his arrival.
Fosun are far from solving their problems relating to Financial Fair Play (FFP), with one of the final blows to the former Real Madrid manager’s stay in Wolverhampton being him admitting he was “worried” about his squad.
The Midlands outfit open their league campaign with a trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in only five days, leaving Fosun little time to turn things around.
Who could replace Julen Lopetegui at Wolves?
It was speculated on Monday by talkSPORT that former AFC Bournemouth manager Gary O’Neil could be an option for the Old Gold should Lopetegui call it quits.
Following his official departure last night, Wolves released a statement expressing their gratitude to the 56-year-old and reinforcing their plans to quickly locate his heir.
“Talks have been ongoing in recent weeks, held with the utmost respect and cordiality, affording the club time and space to begin work on finding a successor.”
News surrounding O’Neil’s appointment now looks imminent, with The Athletic adding following his departure that the Englishman is ‘widely expected’ to arrive at Molineux ‘imminently’.
Would Gary O’Neil be a good fit for Wolves?
If any manager understands the demands and pressure of keeping a wavered club fighting in the Premier League, it’s O’Neil.
The 40-year-old took charge of the Cherries initially in an interim role following their dismissal of Scott Parker in August last season, a job that became permanent in November.
Speaking on Sky Sports (as relayed by the Bournemouth Echo), former defender-turned-pundit Stephen Warnock praised the work of the coach as being “unbelievable”, as he turned things around boldly at the Vitality.
For Wolves, there is an extensive list of issues that must be resolved this coming campaign if the Old Gold are to extend their current five-year stay in the top-flight beyond this term.
Ending last season as the league’s lowest scorers on just 31 goals from 38 games, the profligate Midlands side must start scoring and reignite their prolific nature in the final third, an area that O’Neil could significantly bolster.
Having arrived from Atletico Madrid in January, £44m striker Matheus Cunha could find his form at Molineux under the guidance of the Englishman, who could benefit the Brazilian in ways similar to his work with Dominic Solanke.
The former Chelsea and Liverpool forward had his confidence knocked after a failed spell at Anfield, following into his form in the top-tier at Bournemouth.
Prior to O’Neil’s arrival, the 25-year-old had scored four goals and assisted three in 63 Premier League appearances for both the Cherries and the Reds, in a dull streak that was banished by the former midfielder.
The 40-year-old instilled confidence into Solanke, making him one of his most important players, which was repaid by him scoring six goals and registering seven assists in the 2022/23 Premier League campaign.
Giving the Englishman a role of such importance while tweaking Bournemouth’s style of play with bold in-game decisions paid off for O’Neil, who could have a similar effect at Molineux by encouraging Cunha to fire.
The 24-year-old has found the net only twice for the Midlands side, in form that could be turned around by the expected new manager, who has shown his influence on strikers yearning for goals in the top-flight already this year.