Bournemouth have sacked Gary O’Neil as manager after just 10 months in charge.
O’Neil initially took over on an interim basis after Scott Parker was sacked in late August 2022 and managed to guide the club to safety with a 15th-placed league finish, during which he became their permanent manager during the 2022 FIFA World Cup break.
O’Neil’s achievement also came in the Cherries’ first season back in the top-flight after a two-season absence following their relegation to the Championship in July 2020.
Addressing the shock decision to sack O’Neil, Bournemouth’s owner and Chairman, Bill Foley issued the following statement: “Gary’s achievement last season is one I will always be grateful for.
“This has been a difficult decision, but it has been made with great consideration to best position ourselves ahead of the coming season.
“As a club, we have put plans in place for long-term success with improvements being made to infrastructure, most notably the development of a new state-of-the-art training facility and the ongoing discussions around upgrades to our stadium.
“We have also identified a number of significant targets in the transfer market this summer and believe this change in direction will provide us with the best platform from which to build.
“Gary will go on to have a long career as a head coach or manager, but we feel that, at this moment in time, a change is in the best interests of this football club. I would like to place on record my thanks to Gary and wish him all the best for the future.”
O’Neil leaves the Cherries having led them to 11 wins in 37 matches across all competitions, with surprise wins over Liverpool and Tottenham plus a league double over Leicester featuring amongst various highlights of O’Neil’s tenure at Bournemouth.
Bournemouth have confirmed that a new manager will be announced in due course, with their first competitive match in charge seeing the Cherries host West Ham at 3pm BST on Saturday 12 August in their opening match of 2023-24 Premier League season.
Leave a Reply