Bournemouth’s Gary O’Neil should be a manager of the season contender
The low point of Bournemouth’s season came very early on. They had already lost 4-0 to Manchester City and 3-0 to Arsenal when they were hammered 9-0 by Liverpool at Anfield in August. After that drubbing, manager Scott Parker expressed his concern that the team was “ill-equipped” for the Premier League. “I feel sorry for the fans and the players,” said Parker. Three days later, he was out of a job.
Gary O’Neil was appointed as caretaker and it looked like the 39-year-old would keep the hotseat warm until a long-term replacement was found. As chance would have it, O’Neil appears to be the long-term solution the club needed. After an uptick in form – Bournemouth were unbeaten in O’Neil’s first six games in charge – he was given the job on a permanent basis, signing an 18month contract just before the World Cup.
Putting O’Neil in charge temporarily was not a risk – he had been at Bournemouth since February 2021, working under Jonathan Woodgate and then Parker – but giving him the job permanently was a big step. O’Neil had never managed a senior side in his career, but Bournemouth were prepared to gamble on the former midfielder. It has not all been plain sailing. Bournemouth went on a run of seven games without a win after the World Cup, raising concerns about an immediate return to the Championship, but the club have supported him unwaveringly.
And now, with four games left to play, Bournemouth sit nine points clear of the relegation zone. They are not mathematically safe, but one more point will take them over the finish line. An influx of new additions in January helped, with Illya Zabarnyi, Dango Ouattara and Antoine Semenyo all joining for substantial fees, and Matías Viña and Hamed Traorè coming in on loan, but O’Neil deserves huge credit and those signings should be seen in a wider context. The club spent just £22m in the transfer window last summer, compared to the huge sums spent by fellow promoted sides Nottingham Forest (£126m) and Fulham (£61m).
Bournemouth’s revival in the last two months has been stunning. They were bottom of the table in early March and were still in the relegation zone a month ago. Their spirit and never-saydie attitude has been vital. They have picked up crucial points against teams around them in the table. In April alone they beat Leeds, Southampton and Leicester.
They have also competed with sides further up the table, with notable victories over Champions League-chasing Liverpool and Tottenham proving vital. They were written off by many – including their own manager – yet are now level on points with big-spending Chelsea, who they face this weekend at the Vitality. It would not be a surprise if Bournemouth go on to finish above Chelsea given the trajectories of the two teams: Bournemouth have won six of their last nine games; Chelsea are winless in seven.
There is still room for improvement. Bournemouth have struggled at the back this season, shipping 64 goals in the Premier League. They are conceding more shots per game than any other team in the league (16.6) and only Leeds have conceded more goals (67). But Bournemouth have players who are capable of putting the ball in the back of the net. Their joint-top scorers, Dominic Solanke and Philip Billing, have been impressive. Solanke has seven assists to go with his seven goals, and Billing has scored with a quarter of his shots.
Bournemouth’s tally of 36 goals in 34 games may not sound like a lot – and it is only one more than Erling Haaland has managed in 31 appearances – but, crucially, they have scored more than the three clubs in the relegation spots, as well as Wolves, Chelsea and Crystal Palace. Eight of their goals have come in the 15 minutes after half-time – a tally only seven teams in the division can beat – which shows that O’Neil is good at organising and motivating his team.
O’Neil should be in the conversation for the manager of the season award. He is not the most glamorous name in the game, and Pep Guardiola, Mikel Arteta and Eddie Howe stand a greater chance of winning the award, but O’Neil has worked wonders at Bournemouth in his first job as a manager. To have taken a team that was essentially a dead cert for relegation to safety is a huge achievement for any manager, let alone one in the infancy of his career. Given the expectations on him when he took over, O’Neil’s feat is as good as anyone’s.
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