GARY O’Neil commented how January recruitment will be a shared effort, although the Cherries head coach’s say “will have an impact on what gets done and what doesn’t”. Made permanent boss in November, the winter window represents the first chance for O’Neil to put his stamp on the playing squad at Cherries. Cherries chairman Bill Foley suggested “four or five players” could be arriving at the Vitality Stadium in the upcoming window, with O’Neil less forthcoming with his transfer plans.
Gary O Neil said:“I won’t confirm the number that we’re targeting or not. I think we are, as is everybody, probably looking to improve the squad, and as we know, with transfer windows, things can move fast or they can move slowly, and I think numbers could change as we move through the process.”
Technical director Richard Hughes and CEO Neill Blake will likely be central figures in the planning of the window, as O’Neil is in frequent contact with the pair.
Gary O Neil said: “It will be a team effort, as it has always been, I think, at the club. We have a real good recruitment team. Obviously, I speak to Richard and Neil very often and, yeah, we’ll have discussions around it and make sure that the best interest of the club and improving the squad. The work that goes in needs to be in depth and it needs to make sure that we take as much chance and luck and things out of it as we can and make sure we arrive at the right conclusions. I suppose clubs do it differently, but, I think as a Premier League manager, you don’t have time to fly off around the world, watching players live, so your knowledge of who’s out there and who’s available can only be so deep. You rely on the group, the team, everyone coming together to make sure it’s a joint effort. Then, of course, my say at the end of it will have an impact on what gets done and what doesn’t.”
With the window opening in nine days, clubs may look to put their ducks in a row to get a head start in recruitment, with O’Neil again coy.
Gary O Neil added: “There’s, of course, been discussions around the window approaching, so there’s been discussions, but, yeah, nothing concrete to arrive on yet. The club continue to work and make sure we put ourselves in the best place to get the work done that we need to get done within the month of January. I think every club, if they’re going to do business, would rather get it concluded early. But, there are selling clubs involved as well. So, yes, it’s not always easy.”
