Bournemouth’s Gary O’Neil should be a manager of the season contender

T he 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 18-month 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