If, at the start of the season, you had told Wolves fans that they would be closer to the European places than relegation by the time the New Year came around, they may not have believed you.
The Molineux faithful endured a difficult summer period, marked by the departure of former manager Julen Lopetegui three days before the start of the season, and the club captain, Rúben Neves, leaving for the Saudi Pro League.
Fresh from a shock dismissal by league rivals Bournemouth, Gary ONeil was appointed and tasked with leading a club that was in the midst of a significant transition.
Although ONeil had done an excellent job on the South Coast in keeping the Cherries in Englands top tier, there were question marks as to whether he would be the right man to take the reins at Wolves during a difficult period for the club.
However, the former Portsmouth midfielder has certainly proved any doubters wrong as Wolverhampton Wanderers currently sit 11th, having won three consecutive matches over the festive break.
They could arguably be higher up the league if it werent for some contentious officiating decisions.
This Gary O’Neil tactical analysis and scout report will particularly focus on the Wolves attack.
We will provide an analysis of ONeils tactics to examine how he has transformed last seasons lowest Premier League scorers, who averaged 0.82 goals per match, into a side currently averaging 1.5 goals per league match.
Gary O’Neil Managerial Style
Gary ONeils coaching philosophy for his side upon gaining possession is Can we score? .
The young English managers approach is refreshing, as he would rather his side be proactive with the ball than be conservative in keeping possession solely for the sake of it.
Wolves are certainly reaping the rewards of this philosophy at present.
The line graph shows that after 20 league games last season, Wolves had scored 12 goals, which is 18 fewer than they have scored at the same stage this current season.
Furthermore, the graph shows that it was not uncommon for Wolves to go consecutive matches without finding the back of the net last campaign.
This is in stark contrast to this season, where they have only faile
