Bournemouth ended up playing a pivotal role in the story of Everton’s 2022/23 season but will their shock sacking of Gary O’Neil prove good news for the Blues?
Perhaps the Cherries thought they could drop the bombshell while England were playing out the fourth day of their first Ashes Test match of the summer against Australia at Edgbaston – perhaps not given that their owner is American – but the shock decision got tongues wagging across the football world with positive reactions to O’Neil’s dismissal proving as elusive as the follow-up statement the Blues said was coming “in the next 48 hours” regarding the future of Bill Kenwright and interim board appointments seven days ago.
In what was his first senior managerial role – initially taking over as caretaker but taking control on a ‘permanent’ basis on November 27 – O’Neil came into the role after Bournemouth had just been demolished 9-0 by Liverpool at Anfield but was unbeaten for his first five matches in charge. Steering the side to back-to-back emphatic victories over Everton in the space of four days in November – 4-1 in the Carabao Cup and then 3-0 in the Premier League – he was rewarded with a formal appointment ahead of the World Cup finals despite Marcelo Bielsa, who would later crop up as potential successor for Frank Lampard in January before Sean Dyche was hired, being linked to the position.
