Wolves supervisor Gary O’Neil says he understands the anger from his personal fanbase in the direction of him – however defended his file at Molineux after the stress ramped up following defeat at West Ham.
Wolves suffered their third straight loss on the London Stadium to stay within the relegation zone on 9 factors – and an additional 4 from security.
Sky Sports activities Information reported final week that Wolves have been doing due diligence on numerous candidates in current weeks, as stress grew on O’Neil – who nonetheless believes he has the backing of the hierarchy regardless of the poor run of type.
“The individuals above me are supportive,” O’Neil, who joined the membership in August 2023, instructed Sky Sports activities after the sport. “However after all the supporters need their soccer membership to achieve success.
“I perceive them pointing the finger at me and it is my workforce and I’ve to take duty, however once I arrived at this soccer membership that they had picked up simply [41] factors within the Premier League (the earlier season).
“Since that second, we’ve got managed to make £200m in participant gross sales. We now have bought an terrible lot of gamers when you return to Ruben Neves, Joao Moutinho, Daniel Podence, Adama Traore, Raul Jimenez, Diego Costa, Pedro Neto and Max Kilman.
“After which we’re not now purchasing in that market, we’re in search of the opposite ones who’re for the longer term that may assist us within the now.
“As we’re discovering within the Premier League, it is a ruthless league. The group are doing all the pieces we will to stand up to hurry. However I am actually happy with them.
“I do know we’ve got solely 9 factors and we’re in a tricky spot within the league however they’re giving all the pieces. So I hope the supporters are nonetheless proud from the gamers though they hate the place we’re in. They will not hate it greater than me. I am proper there with them, whether or not they understand it or not.
“We cannot hand over and we’ll preserve pushing. An enormous sport towards Ipswich is coming. And hopefully just a few of the little bits, our bits, the bits from the officers go our approach.”
Carragher: O’Neil is not holding them again – I do not see a greater supervisor
Sky Sports activities’ Jamie Carragher believes O’Neil is just not the foundation of the issue at Wolves – and {that a} new supervisor won’t rejuvenate issues at Molineux for the remainder of the season.
Carragher additionally sympathised with O’Neil’s argument that he’s coping with a much less skilled squad having bought many key gamers to massive golf equipment.
“It is a group of gamers we felt can be in and round these positions proper now,” Carragher stated. “The concern for Wolves is just not a lot being within the backside three, as the very fact it appears to be like like there is a three or four-point hole between themselves and Leicester.
“You take a look at the three promoted groups – and the three promoted groups struggled final season – and also you assume it is perhaps robust for Southampton this season, possibly even Ipswich, however Leicester have made the change, with Ruud van Nistelrooy getting 4 factors from the final two video games. That shall be within the Wolves hierarchy’s minds, there isn’t any doubt about that.
“I do not see a supervisor change that’s going to rejuvenate this entire squad or that Gary O’Neil is holding this squad again and they need to be reaching extra – I do not actually see that.
“There are undoubtedly areas the place O’Neil will assume they have to be higher. I believe what he did final season and what he is doing now, when you take a look at that as a physique of labor during the last 18 months, I believe he is accomplished a very good job for Wolves.
“The place they’re now, I believe most individuals feared final season. I do not assume it is a supervisor holding a bunch again who must be doing greater than what they’re doing.”
O’Neil: We should always have had two penalties – and ‘loopy’ that West Ham’s winner stood
O’Neil took one other swipe at VAR – claiming West Ham’s winner by Jarrod Bowen mustn’t have stood as a result of a “blatant” foul on Santi Bueno within the build-up.
As Wolves defended a free-kick, Dinos Mavropanos challenged Bueno within the air with the on-field referee not giving a foul. Eleven seconds later, Mohammed Kudus arrange Bowen to coolly slot dwelling the winner.
VAR claimed it couldn’t return and penalise Bueno because it was a brand new part of play – though there have been simply 11 seconds between the alleged foul and Bowen’s strike crossing the road.
“It is loopy that,” stated O’Neil. “Santi Bueno goes to move the ball away, so it is irrelevant [that the VAR said it’s a new phase of play] as we would have cleared the ball.
“It is a blatant foul on Santi Bueno and there isn’t any approach it is a completely different part. The ball continues to be in the identical space.
“They may discover causes, and naturally they’ll, and I get there shall be gray areas and the wording of the rule could be interpreted in many various methods. However that is a blatant foul on Bueno within the seconds earlier than the objective. That is a blatant foul.”
Later in his press convention, O’Neil claimed Wolves ought to have been given two second-half penalties. VAR checked fouls by Emerson on Goncalo Guedes and Mavropanos on Jean-Ricner Bellegarde within the second half – however caught with the on-field determination of ‘no penalty’ on each events.
“I perceive how troublesome the job is for the officers however you want a few of that to go your approach,” added the Wolves boss. “Some actually massive calls there we did not get to go our approach.
“I do not assume Guedes is outdoors the field. The contact undoubtedly continues into the field. Positively. I will evaluate it and have an trustworthy dialog with them [PGMOL].
“It is in all probability not clear and apparent, [Bellegarde]’s, however he’s tripped up twice, I believe the on-field ref ought to give it, the identical as the primary one.
“I believe the Guedes one… Emerson can be on a yellow card so that will have been a giant turning level within the sport.”
Wolves had been additional aggrieved because the nook for West Ham’s first objective clearly got here off Hammers defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka – so mustn’t have counted as effectively.
“A whole lot of issues went towards us,” stated O’Neil.