Wolverhampton Wanderers have marked the anniversary of Gary O'Neil's appointment by handing the head coach a new long-term contract.
Last summer, the West Midlands outfit were forced into making an unforeseen change in the dugout courtesy of Julen Lopetegui's disagreements with the club's board over transfers.
As a result, O'Neil was brought into the club on a three-year deal just days prior to their opening Premier League fixture of the season at Manchester United.
Despite suffering a 1-0 defeat, Wolves impressed at Old Trafford and subsequently went on to challenge for a surprise qualification for Europe when beginning the campaign as relegation candidates.
Although Wolves ultimately had to settle for a 14th-placed finish, the season was deemed to be a success, with O'Neil being credited as an outside contender for the England job.
However, the 41-year-old has ended any speculation regarding his future by penning terms on a deal until the end of the 2027-28 campaign.
✅ One year done
— Wolves (@Wolves) August 9, 2024
✍️ Four more to come pic.twitter.com/phfdvuBKu5
What have O'Neil, Shi had to say
Reacting to the development, O'Neil acknowledged that there had been a desire from all concerned to extend his contract as soon as possible.
He told the club's official website: "I'm really pleased. Me and Matt [Hobbs] started discussing it towards the latter part of last season, but there was a lot of things going on and we thought it was best to keep ploughing on with the important stuff like the team, making sure we were in a good spot, and when the time arrived to discuss it, it was fairly straightforward from my point of view.
"I'm absolutely loving my time here, really enjoying it, my staff love it, my family love, so it's felt a really special place for us over the past year and I'm looking forward to continuing the journey.
"I love every moment of it. It's hard work, obviously, there's always so much that needs doing. Me and Matt have been extremely busy over the last few weeks trying to get things in place. The good thing is here is the amount of support you get from Matt and the other guys in the training ground and offices. We're doing our best to get the team in the best spot possible for next weekend."
Chairman Jeff Shi added: "I think the club has a positive future, building a new cycle for growth, better results on the pitch and ambitions to realise. To prepare for that, we need a very good team and I think Gary is a key member of the team, maybe even the most important member, so we are very happy to have him here for the long term.
"He works very hard and is very humble. He might be the humblest manager I have ever worked with and one of the most hard-working coaches I've ever met. His strengths are around his tactics and his chemistry with the players."
What now for Wolves?
© Reuters
The priority for O'Neil and his squad is the Premier League opener at Arsenal on August 17, a game which is followed by a home showdown against Chelsea.
Off the pitch, though, Wolves seem likely to lose star man Pedro Neto to Chelsea with a £54m deal said to have been agreed on Friday.
With Max Kilman having also been sold for £40m earlier in the summer, O'Neil will soon have a considerable transfer war chest at his disposal even having already signed the likes of Rodrigo Gomes and Jorgen Strand Larsen.
Darren Plant
