Wolves boss Gary O’Neil vows to go full throttle for FA Cup glory

A famous old competition that was once at the top of the pecking order, and may still be for some.

But the money injected into the Premier League and the allure of European football has taken some of that feeling away for supporters.

However, every season some games crop up that inspire fan bases from across the country.

This year, Maidstone United’s journey to the fourth round has been one that has captured the imagination. Former Wolves defender George Elokobi is head coach and is leading his side into a game with Ipswich today.

And then, the Black Country derby comes around. A game full of bitter rivalry that gets the pulses racing.

In the hot-seat at Compton, Wolves have a head coach in Gary O’Neil that understands how special the FA Cup is. He speaks fondly of watching his team, Millwall, as a child and going to games with his grandfather.

Now, as a Premier League boss at a historic football club, O’Neil battles with managing a small squad and wanting to give the FA Cup his all.

Wolves’ security in mid-table means he has the freedom to attack tomorrow’s trip with full force, and the boss is eager to protect the importance of the FA Cup as he vows to play a strong team and help create ‘special’ moments for the supporters.

“I do feel that, but it’s always situation dependent,” O’Neil said when asked about preserving the FA Cup’s importance.

“Last season, obviously at a different football club (Bournemouth), we had some really bad injury issues and we were in the midst of an incredibly important relegation battle. I understand why people’s views have changed slightly on the FA Cup because of the importance of other stuff and how much other stuff is going on, with Europe and the importance of staying in the Premier League.

“I understand why it can suffer slightly sometimes, but in this situation we’re in, we’re not in that place.

“The squad are in a good place. A small squad, but in a good place. We’re going well in the league, so it’s one we can definitely go full throttle at and that would always be my preference.

“If I have the opportunity to attack the FA Cup fully then I always will because I think it’s a really important competition. It’s a famous competition, well known around the world for being one of the best.

“Having the opportunity to take a club like Wolves as far as I can in it and let people dream of something special is also so important.”

And with any potential Cup run, comes the question of whether Wolves can win it. They have a long way to go and tomorrow’s trip to The Hawthorns is a tricky tie, but O’Neil wants that winning mentality to continue as he seeks a history-making season.

“Considering winning it is a long way off, but of course everyone that is in it can win it and we have good players,” O’Neil added.

“There will need to be a lot of things that need to go our way but our aim when we set off to Brentford a few weeks ago was to win the competition.

“Whether that’s realistic or not is up to other people to judge. We could lose at the weekend and people will say ‘oh he was talking about winning it two days ago and now they’re out’, but that’s the nature of it. We have to approach it that way because that’s how serious we’re trying to take it and we’ll try and get as far as we can.

“It’s an exciting one for the boys. With the quality they have, it would be foolish of us to dismiss it. Let’s see how far we can push it.”