O’NEIL DEPARTURE THE START OF A LONG ROAD BACK?

Wolves have more issues to address in the months and years to come

The replacement of Gary O’Neil is not the solution. It is merely the first step on a long and arduous ladder that can take Wolverhampton Wanderers back to respectability. The outgoing head coach played a part in wider issues that have enveloped the club in recent seasons. The long spiral downwards reached a nadir shortly before 5pm on Saturday evening. Matheus Cunha planting his palm into the face of an Ipswich Town member of staff. Rayan Ait-Nouri being carried off the pitch like a wailing toddler. Just when it seemed there was nothing left to squander, they found a way to lose their dignity.

The increasingly familiar post-match refrain from the head coach, seeking to put distance from his players’ mistakes and absolve him and his coaching staff from any blame, continued. Perhaps O’Neil was actively trying to talk himself out of the role. Who knows, one day he might find a more stable home to rebuild a coaching career that, for all the recent shortcomings, produced some memorable highlights this time last year.

With Fosun now turning to Vitor Pereira – barring any unexpected contract issues – that chapter in the club’s history has closed. Julen Lopetegui’s untimely departure left Wolves in a hole without a spade back in August 2023. Sporting director Matt Hobbs was entrusted with the job of securing the new head coach and, to a degree, the appointment was a success with a 14^th-place Premier League finish. It has unravelled spectacularly but perhaps not unsurprisingly. The accumulative effect of another tough summer in the transfer market, a lopsided playing squad and an inexperienced British coaching staff left Wolves behind the eight ball from the moment the season kicked off at Arsenal.

Hobbs has had some strong moments in the recruitment department, particularly with his ability to exploit the South American transfer market. But were those entrusted with recruitment trying to be a bit too smart with the funds available this summer? There may be some decent prospects for the years ahead but there is an absence of experience and guile to navigate this immediate Premier league campaign.

The sporting director’s two managerial choices, Michael Beale - whose 11^th hour decision to turn down the job remains a bullet dodged - and O’Neil, have not aged well. The four-year contract handed to O’Neil in August was an unnecessary indulgence that has come back to haunt Wolves.

Now, Fosun has bypassed the sporting director to get to this next appointment, returning to its Gestifute confidante Jorge Mendes. That, once more, highlights the unique structure that exists at Molineux. Hobbs has spent time since his elevation to sporting director seeking to establish his powerbase at the club. With an increasing dominance over the profile of players brought in and sole responsibility for the appointment of O’Neil, it appeared that influence had shifted away from Mendes. And, for a time, Wolves seemed slightly healthier for it.

This season has been a different story. When the decision was made to remove O’Neil after the 4-0 defeat to Everton, the lack of a clear recruitment plan was evident. Enquires were made to several senior figures at home and abroad as well as a couple of relatively novice coaches, but all to no avail. Wolves limped on with O’Neil – essentially a zombie manager – for two further defeats before chairman Jeff Shi, on Sunday morning, could wait no longer to make a change.

Mendes, with almost three decades of elite football experience and contacts, knows how to get deals done. Respected by managers, players and clubs alike, events move swiftly when he is presiding over them.

The first thing Pereira – if appointed - must do is bring some professionalism and positivity back into a talented squad that has recently been shorn of any structure and discipline. It was hardly O’Neil’s fault that the players kept making individual mistakes but the tiresome excuse for some behaviour as “emotional” will no longer be accepted. It is a coaching staff’s job to ensure emotions are channelled properly. Pereira will not stand for the nonsense of the past week.

By identifying the 56-year-old Portuguese, there is a return to the gravitas of an experienced European coach that accompanied the appointment of Nuno Espirito Santo and Lopetegui. Given the composition of the squad, that represents a positive step. Fluent in several languages, Pereira will need to communicate quickly with all his players to build trust. There is no harder managerial job than one that begins in a relegation zone, mid-season. Yet despite the precarious league position, Wolves are not cut adrift. There is a way forward.

The current playing staff has been exposed to mixed messaging. Pre-season, Wolves trained with four in defence before desperately returning to a three once the campaign began. On Saturday, O’Neil admitted that he had tried just about every player in every position to find a solution to problems all over the pitch, which suggested confused thinking. Instead of taking a step back, the sight of O’Neil and assistant Tim Jenkins disappearing further and further into the ipad screen during games hinted at an over-complicated dissection of every touch of the ball. If Pereira can bring some clarity of structure to the role then a gifted playing squad will surely benefit.

January strengthening is of paramount importance and there are funds available for this. Fosun recognises that this is a squad in need of reinforcements. That will reassure supporters, who were beginning to wonder if the owners were simply overseeing a managed decline. With Chinese ownership of European football clubs all but extinct, Fosun represent a vessel sailing against the tide. Despite assurances to the contrary, fears that the gradual depletion of the playing squad indicated a loss of interest and ability to properly finance the club remain amongst the fanbase.

By acting now, Fosun can prove otherwise. O’Neil unquestionably suffered in the transfer market. If Fosun is still serious about its role as custodians of Wolves, rather than merely attempting to keep the club in the Premier League on the lowest margins possible, then this is the opportunity to recapture the edge that once had Wolves punching above their weight.

Shi has rarely attended games in these recent weeks, preferring instead to focus on contests in the e-sports world. That is fair enough if his role is to increase brand awareness and alternative revenue streams in far flung global destinations, but if Wolves want to succeed in a Premier League environment there must be a strong hand on the tiller in a traditional football chief executive role.

Such an appointment is unlikely in the current executive structure but there has been a template for success previously which circumnavigated the post. Kevin Thelwell was a sporting director in name only by the time Nuno was leading the revolution of Wolves seven years ago. The Holy Trinity of Fosun, Mendes and Nuno took the club to places supporters could only have dreamt of. Unconventional, yes, but at least everybody knew where they stood, and Thelwell eventually moved on to pastures new. Wolves today represents a halfway house. When Pereira’s appointment is rubber-stamped, will the strong link with Mendes return and where will that leave Hobbs? That is a question for another day, but it needs addressing.

Supporters want their team to climb the table as quickly as possible and pull back from the brink once more. There have been too many flirtations with relegation in recent seasons. Clubs cannot busk their way through a Premier League season. The demands and standards are just too high. It would be interesting to know exactly why so many managers apparently eschewed the approaches of Wolves in the past fortnight. The impression of a club not taking the task in hand seriously enough must be overcome. Managing Wolves should be a top job. But it is only that if the support mechanisms are in place for everybody to thrive. A new dawn on Monday morning must not be another false one.