‘Given his history’ – Matt Le Tissier responds to Gary O’Neil to Southampton news
Gary O’Neil would not be a good managerial appointment for Southampton due to his strong links to south-coast rivals Portsmouth and potential fan backlash that comes with it.
That is according to Southampton icon Matt Le Tissier, who has exclusively told Football Insider that the ex-Wolves boss would already be starting on the back foot with supporters due to his Portsmouth connections.
Southampton recently sacked Will Still after a shoddy start to his time at the club following his appointment in the summer.
Interim boss Tonda Eckert has led them to successive wins since his exit, but the St Mary’s outfit still sit 17th in the second-tier and need a real upturn in form to be promotion contenders.
Football Insider revealed on Sunday (9 November) that Gary O’Neil was in talks with Southampton over becoming their new manager, but he has also held discussions with Middlesbrough.
O’Neil is a Portsmouth hero but has been linked to Southampton
O’Neil played 192 times for Pompey between 2000 and 2007 and became a key player for them in the Premier League, as he went on to admit in 2019 that he was “certain” that he would manage the club one day.
He has been out of a job in management since being sacked by Wolves last December, and O’Neil was linked with a return to Molineux recently but turned down the chance to go back.
The rumours around him potentially becoming Southampton boss were met with chants against him at St Mary’s in their win against Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday (8 November), in a clear protest to the board from the club’s fans.
Football Insider revealed on Monday (10 November) that O’Neil is Middlesbrough’s number one target to replace Wolves-bound Rob Edwards, so Saints fans may well get their wish of him not becoming their new boss.
Le Tissier unsure if O’Neil would succeed at Southampton due to Portsmouth links
Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, former England international and Premier League legend Le Tissier insisted that O’Neil would be the wrong appointment for his club due to the potential for further backlash from supporters and lack of patience they would have with him in charge.
He said: “I think it would be a difficult appointment, quite honestly, given his ties with the other team in Hampshire. I think the fans wouldn’t give him a great deal of time to turn things around.
“I think given his history with Portsmouth, you know, if he goes in there and it doesn’t quite go right for the first two or three games, I don’t think there’ll be any patience amongst the fans.
“You don’t really want that at the football club. You want a manager to be able to have a little bit of time there and try and turn things around. You don’t want the crowd being anti the manager the minute he sets foot on the pitch for the first time.
“So, yeah, it’s going to be a tricky one, but they’ve had a lot of applications and I’m sure they’ll be working through them this week.
“Luckily we’ve got the international break this week and they don’t have to rush into it. I would expect an announcement in maybe a few days or a week’s time, something like that.”