Everton’s Premier League rivals announce shock departure of former Liverpool coach

Bournemouth, one of Everton’s closest Premier League rivals last season, have surprised the football world with their latest club announcement. The Cherries have sacked Gary O’Neil after less than 12 months at the hilt of the club, despite them avoiding relegation into the Championship.

O’Neil took charge of Bournemouth last summer as caretaker manager, following the dismissal of Scott Parker in August. He joined the coaching team at the Vitality Stadium in 2021, after spending time as assistant manager to Barry Lewtas for the Liverpool U23 team.

Bournemouth managed to pick up just 39 points last season, but it was enough to secure their survival as they finished in 15th place, ahead of Nottingham Forest and Everton.

In an official club statement, owner and chairman Bill Foley said: “Gary’s achievement last season is one I will always be grateful for. This has been a difficult decision, but it has been made with great consideration to best position ourselves ahead of the coming season. As a club, we have put plans in place for long-term success with improvements being made to infrastructure, most notably the development of a new state-of-the-art training facility and the ongoing discussions around upgrades to our stadium.

“Gary will go on to have a long career as a head coach or manager, but we feel that, at this moment in time, a change is in the best interests of this football club. I would like to place on record my thanks to Gary and wish him all the best for the future.”

Without a permanent manager, Bournemouth have a lot of work to put in this summer as they look to avoid another relegation scare next season. They join the Toffees in the mission to strengthen their team and give themselves the best possible chance of staying well away from the bottom three.