O'Neil or Lopetegui? - Poll

[wolvesaywe]

Given the debate has been reopened for the umpteenth time it has to be poll time.

A simple question, based on the last 13 months would you rather have GON or Lopetegui? A question I never thought would ever be asked in all seriousness a few months back

I'm team Gaz all day long now. Wolves feels like a club I actively love again rather than suffering it out of loyalty and habit, and that is all down to one man. We're a genuinely exciting team to watch for the first time in years and he has unquestionably improved a number of players. GON made early mistakes but is developing into a top manager and respect for him in the game is growing faster than my little fella when Margot Robbie is taking a bubble bath

That said there is clearly an argument for Lopetegui and, understandable bitterness aside, he did an incredible job turning us around even if the football was mostly uninspiring. We'll never know if that Rennes friendly was the blueprint for what this season would have been had he stayed

One vote, anonymous and closes in 7 days so we get a proper snapshot of opinion

 

[Oh When the Wolves]

Well of course it is GON as he has shown commitment to wolves and is doing a great job.

Lopetegui also did a great job and we wouldn’t be in the prem without him right now, but due to the way it happened, I doubt many will vote for him

 

[Mutchy]

Oh god... whoopee****ing doo....

 

[Flump]

I think Lopetegui is a more accomplished manager, despite GON surpassing all our expectations so far. In a vacuum, assuming both managers would be starting from scratch, I would still have Lopetegui over him, although the gap has clearly closed.

However, anyone who would actually want to remove GON to bring in Lopetegui would be mad.

 

[SuperGran]

I think Lopetegui is a more accomplished manager, despite GON surpassing all our expectations so far. In a vacuum, assuming both managers would be starting from scratch, I would still have Lopetegui over him, although the gap has clearly closed.

However, anyone who would actually want to remove GON to bring in Lopetegui would be mad.

Lopetegui had 18 years of management experience compared with GoNs 1
You’d expect someone doing the job so much longer to be better than someone just starting out.

 

[SingYourHeartsOut]

If ever there was a week where we didn't need a pointless poll like this, surely this is the week.

Love the one you're with.

 

[wolfgar]

O'Neill has really impressed me tbf, and I'm really pleased to see how some have responded. Neto, Ait Nouri, Cunha and Hwang look like completely different players under him. I know there are other factors to that (Neto having a good pre season, Cunha settling etc), but I think it would have been quite easy for a young, relatively unknown and inexperienced coach to have not made much of an impact. There is no doubting Lopetegui was an excellent manager, with a great pedigree, and had we backed him bigtime we'd probably be doing pretty well, but he'd also have been off like a shot at the first big opportunity?

 

[Wolf316]

Lopetegui did a great job Gaz is doing a great job there’s really no need for a poll.

 

[Flump]

Lopetegui had 18 years of management experience compared with GoNs 1
You’d expect someone doing the job so much longer to be better than someone just starting out.

Yes, I know!

That's why it's such an uneven comparison - it's is absolutely to GON's credit that it's even a question.

 

[WolvTown]

What difference has GON really made though?
We are STILL playing three central defenders, like we were under as far back as Nuno.
Bournemouth split from him because they didn't want low possession counter-attacking football, which we have now.

Although I love GON and what he's done for us since he's took over, it's not comparable to what Lop did when he took over IMO.

I was one of the fans hoping we'd make the permanent step to two central defenders and I feel we've gone backwards now, as GON has permanently gone back to three central defenders, he's not even bothering to try it anymore.

 

[Zico]

What difference has GON really made though?
We are STILL playing three central defenders, like we were under as far back as Nuno.
Bournemouth split from him because they didn't want low possession counter-attacking football, which we have now.

Although I love GON and what he's done for us since he's took over, it's not comparable to what Lop did when he took over IMO.

I was one of the fans hoping we'd make the permanent step to two central defenders and I feel we've gone backwards now, as GON has permanently gone to three central defenders.

So, we're playing more exciting football, scoring far more goals, looking gradually more solid at the back, matching prime Nuno for points at this stage - but because you have a fixation that progress must mean the formation you prefer, we've gone backwards. Okay.

 

[SuperGran]

What difference has GON really made though?
We are STILL playing three central defenders, like we were under as far back as Nuno.
Bournemouth split from him because they didn't want low possession counter-attacking football, which we have now.

Although I love GON and what he's done for us since he's took over, it's not comparable to what Lop did when he took over IMO.

I was one of the fans hoping we'd make the permanent step to two central defenders and I feel we've gone backwards now, as GON has permanently gone back to three central defenders, he's not even bothering to try it anymore.

I suppose if you don’t enjoy watching us score goals he hasn’t done anything

 

[WolvTown]

So, we're playing more exciting football, scoring far more goals, looking gradually more solid at the back, matching prime Nuno for points at this stage - but because you have a fixation that progress must mean the formation you prefer, we've gone backwards. Okay.

playing low possession counter-attacking football is way easier, for the manager.

But teaching a team to play with two centre backs and an extra midfielder to keep the ball and create the same amount of goals is harder for the manager. Which is why I personally believe Lop COULD have done it with these players, GON CAN'T do it with these players.

 

[Oldgoldilox]

Back in July, given a choice between Lopetegui & O'Neil, J-Lo wins every time.

I genuinely thought he was very harshly treated by Bournemouth and expected GON to turn up at a Championship club and would continue to build his reputation. As it stands Im pleased that he actually turned up at Wolves and eight months on the choice is equally easy to make and its Gaz every time. That's football for you.

 

[Golden Arrow]

I really don't get what the point of this is. Must be a quiet day of transfer speculation.

 

[TibbertonWolf]

GON if for no other reason (of which there are a number) that he is in post.

 

[nomadwolf]

...we do play 4-4-2 with 3 or 5 at the back....

v Brighton, I saw Toti follow/man mark the Brighton playmaker (name?...got taken off) into midfield...(Toti did the same with Foden v Man C)...

and Semedo and Doc dropped in at the back to make it 4

 

[WalsallWolf]

Difficult really, in isolation it is JL quite easily.

But what we needed this season was stability and whether it is players or manager, people who want to be at the club.

 

[SteveBullsKnee]

playing low possession counter-attacking football is way easier, for the manager.

But teaching a team to play with two centre backs and an extra midfielder to keep the ball and create the same amount of goals is harder for the manager. Which is why I personally believe Lop COULD have done it with these players, GON CAN'T do it with these players.

I don’t think anyone from Fergie to Pep to JL or GON could get a back 4 with the centre backs we have currently. For various reasons (barring Santi who we haven’t seen enough of) none of them have the skill set individually or as a pair to do it. The hybrid 5/4 we play depending on if we have the ball is as close as we will get

 

[GoldenHorseshoe]

What difference has GON really made though?
We are STILL playing three central defenders, like we were under as far back as Nuno.
Bournemouth split from him because they didn't want low possession counter-attacking football, which we have now.

Although I love GON and what he's done for us since he's took over, it's not comparable to what Lop did when he took over IMO.

I was one of the fans hoping we'd make the permanent step to two central defenders and I feel we've gone backwards now, as GON has permanently gone back to three central defenders, he's not even bothering to try it anymore.

I suppose if you don’t enjoy watching us score goals he hasn’t done anything

This 4 at the back meaning more exciting football myth keeps rearing its head.
Now even when we don't score we have passages of play when we have 3 and 4 in the opposition's penalty area, which in itself provides more exciting play than having a lone attacker surrounded by 4 or 5 defenders.

 

[Eastyorksyeltz]

playing low possession counter-attacking football is way easier, for the manager.

But teaching a team to play with two centre backs and an extra midfielder to keep the ball and create the same amount of goals is harder for the manager. Which is why I personally believe Lop COULD have done it with these players, GON CAN'T do it with these players.

Why do something the hard way to achieve the same results? Just because it's the way you assume the big boys play?

 

[wwbug]

Horses for courses.

 

[steve vena]

Wow another pole.

 

[Werewolf of Wombourne]

playing low possession counter-attacking football is way easier, for the manager.

But teaching a team to play with two centre backs and an extra midfielder to keep the ball and create the same amount of goals is harder for the manager. Which is why I personally believe Lop COULD have done it with these players, GON CAN'T do it with these players.

Lopetegui didn't think he could have done it with these players though, that was the problem.

It comes down to what kind of football you prefer to watch. I'd much rather watch fast, counter attacking football like we had with Sako, Afobe and Dicko, then with Nuno and now with GON than slow possession based football. We had that with Hoddle and with a few exceptions it bored us to tears. It's not even as if we are regularly having low possession in games. we regularly have 50% possession in games, it's only when we've played the top 6 or it's been identified as a specific tactic to beat a team that we've conceded large amounts of possession

 

[Leigh72]

playing low possession counter-attacking football is way easier, for the manager.

But teaching a team to play with two centre backs and an extra midfielder to keep the ball and create the same amount of goals is harder for the manager. Which is why I personally believe Lop COULD have done it with these players, GON CAN'T do it with these players.

Absolute nonsense

 

[GoldenHorseshoe]

Wow another pole.

Telegraphed.

 

[steve vena]

What difference has GON really made though?
We are STILL playing three central defenders, like we were under as far back as Nuno.
Bournemouth split from him because they didn't want low possession counter-attacking football, which we have now.

Although I love GON and what he's done for us since he's took over, it's not comparable to what Lop did when he took over IMO.

I was one of the fans hoping we'd make the permanent step to two central defenders and I feel we've gone backwards now, as GON has permanently gone back to three central defenders, he's not even bothering to try it anymore.

Absolute garbage.

 

[steve vena]

This 4 at the back meaning more exciting football myth keeps rearing its head.
Now even when we don't score we have passages of play when we have 3 and 4 in the opposition's penalty area, which in itself provides more exciting play than having a lone attacker surrounded by 4 or 5 defenders.

The football we played under lop was pretty average . We got hammered numerous times 5 or 6. What you been smoking?

 

[Adrian_Monk]

Not voting either way as it's another opportunity for the insecure to lambast Lopetegui's character despite knowing a fraction of the full story, and continue to absolve the club of any blame over how things turned out when it's pretty obvious to anyone who can look at things a bit more objectively that it isn't quite as black and white as some on here attempt to portray it.

Lopetegui did a fantastic job of keeping us up. Yes, he was given substantial resources to do so, and a large part of our success was down to Dawson and Lemina, but we've seen many times, almost exclusively, that managers regardless of experience or stature have failed to rescue teams who have been down the bottom all season and are used to losing, with confidence drained and the doom cloud hovering ominously above their heads no matter what they try. The football was mostly uninspiring but he knew what was needed to save us and didn't just manage it, he delivered a load of clean sheets and we stayed up comfortably.

You could argue that O'Neil's feat with Bournemouth would have suggested he'd have done the same here, but I don't think he would have. Bournemouth were pretty much expected to go down - there was much less pressure on O'Neil. He still did a fantastic job there, no question, but I think he'd have found the dressing room a tougher place to get onside given the egos we had around the place at the time. By the same token, I'm not sure Lopetegui would have kept Bournemouth up - again, a case of the right man in the right place at the right time.

People harp on about Brighton and Arsenal away, but I was there - the players had downed tools in the same way Bournemouth did as soon as they were safe. It's not ideal - but understandable that players will naturally drop their performance level substantially when they know safety has been achieved, and I suspect many of them were already thinking about where they would be playing this season (not for us) with much of that damage done before Lopetegui arrived. Although you could definitely say he didn't help things with some of the players in this category, he had a single brief - keep us up - and there will always be casualties in those situations.

This season, we are a different prospect. A fresh voice with fresh ideas and a mentality more atuned to that of the mostly younger, less established names in our squad. Training and preparation are not about a very specific short term goal, O'Neil has the freedom to freestyle a little because he's delivered some early results that have bought him time and credibility with the fans and the players. We are behaving like a newly promoted club, and O'Neil has us punching a bit above our weight. The football is more enjoyable and we are competing again.

Fosun have got a lot of things wrong, but last season we had the right guy for the occasion, and it's fair to say it's the same this season too.

Didn't think I would ever say this, but part of me is glad things didn't work out with Lopetegui. I suspect we treated him shabbily, as even abrasive characters like him don't tend to behave in the way he did without justification, but it has worked out well for us. O'Neil is a breath of fresh air - the important thing is we stay behind him even if things don't go so well for him for a while, as we have been spoiled a little recently with an extraordinary run of form that we probably won't sustain.

My hope is that going forward we can accept Lopetegui did a good job, accept that Jeff probably made his position untenable and accept O'Neil is the right man for the here and now - no need to keep going back over old ground, look forward not back.

 

[GoldenHorseshoe]

The football we played under lop was pretty average . We got hammered numerous times 5 or 6. What you been smoking?

? Who's talking about Lop?

 

[WolvesAndCows]

We may well have had even more points under Julen, impossible to say. A pretty pointless debate.

 

[WickedWolfie]

Wow another pole.

Xenophobe, lol..... What have you got against Poles? Gotta love predictive text - poll!!

 

[Plovdiv Wolf]

Media man Gary talk well no moan

 

[theweave]

He's getting the best out of the players he's got rather than moaning about them not being good enough. That puts him head and shoulders above JL

 

[North West Wanderer]

We may well have had even more points under Julen, impossible to say. A pretty pointless debate.

we were relegation fodder according to him. He wasn’t interested.

 

[Zico]

playing low possession counter-attacking football is way easier, for the manager.

But teaching a team to play with two centre backs and an extra midfielder to keep the ball and create the same amount of goals is harder for the manager. Which is why I personally believe Lop COULD have done it with these players, GON CAN'T do it with these players.

Why did he leave if he thought he could do it?

Did you go to the Everton game? Was anything about our game lacking just because we didn't play the formation you want?

Your argument makes no sense. Teaching a team to play one at the back and nine up front would be even harder, does that mean we should try that?

 

[Glow69]

JL did his job and very thankfull he got us out of the mess we were in. Ended sour with him being and absolute penis.

Connection is back with Gaz long may it continue. Exciting that we've given a young coach a chance and that it's showing promise.

 

[Aylesbury Wolf]

Can't we just leave JL in the past now?

Pointless poll imo.

 

[goldfish]

Cunha's huge endorsement of O'Neill is great news for us. This is a player who starred for Brazil in the last Olympics: he commands respect.

And it's not just what players say publicly: they talk. And agents will know this too. If word gets round that O'Neill is a manager who improves players we'll be an attractive prospect for the best talent looking to break into Europe, perhaps ahead of a move to a massive club. And, realistically, they're the kinds of players we need to attract.

 

[Adrian_Monk]

Xenophobe, lol..... What have you got against Poles? Gotta love predictive text - poll!!

Maybe scarred by the Pole without a goal!