“It’s an honor,” Wolverhampton Wanderers coach Gary O’Neill (40, England) said of his recent connection with Manchester United. “It’s not true. I’m satisfied with my life in Wolverhampton.” Naturally, O’Neill will not leave Wolverhampton this summer.
“It’s not true. I don’t know where that report came from,” O’Neill said at an official press conference ahead of the 30th round of the 2023-2024 English Premier League away match against Aston Villa at Villa Park in Birmingham, England on the 31st.
Earlier, O’Neill was linked to Manchester United. Manchester United co-owner Jim Ratcliffe (71·England), who declared his revival of fame, has expressed his desire to have a discussion with O’Neill while announcing his plan to bring about major changes from the head coach to the squad this summer.
However, Manchester United, which selected England coach Gareth Southgate (53, England), Brighton & Hove Albion (44, Italy), former Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane (51, France), and Brentford coach Thomas Frank (50, Denmark), are expected to leave O’Neill as coach, not coach.
In fact, global sports media ESPN reported, “Manchester United wants to have discussions with O’Neill about his potential role. However, Manchester United is not considering O’Neill as its coach. The exact position is not known yet, but Manchester United plans to offer O’Neill a new role as its coach.”
These reports suggested that O’Neill could leave Wolverhampton this summer if he receives an attractive offer from Manchester United. However, O’Neill has denied the most popular reports and said he would stay at Wolverhampton next season.
“It’s an honor to be able to connect with Manchester United even though Rumor is not true. Manchester United is one of the biggest clubs in the world,” O’Neill said. “I’m happy with my current life at Wolverhampton, and I’m happy to be a coach here. I’m also a coach, and I will continue to be a coach,” he said, denying the trend.
O’Neill, who was recognized for his leadership by leading Bournemouth, who remained in the relegation zone last season, suddenly took the helm of Wolverhampton last summer. At that time, Wolverhampton appointed O’Neill in a hurry when former coach Julen Lopetegui (57, Spain) suddenly resigned after expressing dissatisfaction over recruiting players ahead of the season 룸알바.
O’Neill has led Wolverhampton in this season’s performance that exceeded expectations. Despite his unexpected appointment, O’Neill quickly developed tactics and dominated the team despite not having a proper pre-season, and is now ninth in the EPL standings (41 points), raising the possibility of his advance to the UEFA European Club Championship.
In addition, O’Neill is actively using “Bull” Hwang Hee-chan (27, South Korea) and giving Hwang Hee-chan a suitable role, bringing out the “career high” season. Hwang Hee-chan has not been able to perform well due to frequent injuries over the past two seasons, but this season he has been the most prolific scorer in Wolverhampton, scoring 11 goals (3 assists) in 24 games in all tournaments.
