Three former Gary O’Neil stars Wolves can target immediately – including £20m goalkeeper and Bournemouth star
The former Bournemouth manager was appointed at Molineux earlier this week
Gary O’Neil is the new Wolves manager. Nothing facetious or glib to add about that, just a statement of fact. After being kicked to the curb – some would argue cruelly – by Bournemouth earlier in the summer, the 40-year-old has bounced back pretty much immediately to replace the departed Julen Lopetegui at Molineux, and now the real fun begins.
Wanderers, for their part, look like a weaker side than they did last term, having lost a number of recognisable talents from their squad in recent weeks. But fear not, followers of the Old Gold, for there is still plenty of time (ish) for the new boss and his boardroom masters to drag things into some kind of working order.
With that in mind, we’ve taken a look back over O’Neil’s managerial career to date to see if there are any players he has previously worked with who he might be tempted to try and lure to the Midlands between now and the end of the transfer window..
Caoimhin Kelleher
Before he joined Bournemouth in 2021, O’Neil had a brief stint as a coach with Liverpool’s U21 side. Part of that squad at the time was Caoimhin Kelleher, who has since gone on to establish himself as Jurgen Klopp’s preferred understudy to Anfield number one Alisson Becker.
Now, the Irishman has already been linked with a potential exit on countless occasions this summer, and Wolves are very much among the teams who are understood to be monitoring his situation on Merseyside. As recently as July, the Daily Mail were reporting that Wanderers were considering a bid for the 24-year-old amid possible interest in Jose Sa from Nottingham Forest.
Kelleher, for his part, is a £20 million-rated Republic of Ireland international with plenty of pedigree and top drawer experience, and when the time comes for him to eventually leave Anfield, whoever signs him will be bagging themselves a very, very shrewd acquisition.
Tyler Morton
If there is one position that Wolves need to prioritise before the transfer window closes at the beginning of September, it is the centre of midfield. The departures of Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho have left a considerable void in the engine room at Molineux, and as yet, Wanderers have done little to address their staffing problem in that key area.
Another graduate of the Anfield youth squad that O’Neil worked with, Tyler Morton spent last season on loan with Blackburn Rovers in the Championship, and racked up an impressive 40 appearances in the second tier as the former Premier League champions just missed out on the play-offs.
You would imagine the next step for the 20-year-old would be a shot in the top flight, and given Wolves’ need for midfielders, a loan deal could potentially benefit all parties. There are, however, reasons to be sceptical.
For one, the 20-year-old is still in the process of recovering from a broken foot that has kept him out of Liverpool’s pre-season plans. For another, there are no guarantees that the relatively inexperienced prospect would thrive in the Premier League. And then, of course, there are his parent club’s own midfield issues, which, if not properly addressed, could mean that he is required to stick around at Anfield as a covering option for the time being.
Still, it’s an intriguing hypothetical to consider.
Look, let’s be honest here, this one probably isn’t going to happen. Bournemouth aren’t necessarily going to be in the business of offloading one of their most regularly-featured players in the coming weeks, and certainly not to a club who they will be looking to leapfrog in the table over the course of the next 12 months.
That being said, if O’Neil could handpick one Cherries player to take with him to the Midlands, it might well be Cook. As stated above, Wolves need midfielders, and Cook is a well-rounded and accomplished presence in the centre of the park, with a good footballing brain and a impressive range of distribution. The traits that Ruben Neves offered this Wanderers side are not particularly easy to replace or replicate, but a player of Cook’s ilk would be a half-decent start.
Again, this is not a suggestion that Wolves will sign any player from Bournemouth this summer, let alone Cook, but it is worth reiterating just how badly they need reinforcements, and with the money from Neves’ exit still burning a hole in their pocket, they need to start testing some resolves sooner rather than later.
