Ipswich Town Close in on Gary O’Neil as Head Coach
Ipswich Town are closing on Gary O’Neil as their next head coach, moving quickly to fill the void left by Kieran McKenna’s surprise departure.
The 43-year-old Strasbourg boss is poised to take charge at Portman Road, with only compensation between the clubs left to finalise. That detail is not expected to derail the move, and Ipswich’s hierarchy are working on the basis that O’Neil will be in the dugout when the club returns to the Premier League.
From Strasbourg to Suffolk
Ipswich have tracked O’Neil for some time. Their interest was first reported earlier this month, and the admiration inside the club has only hardened as his reputation has grown in France.
Strasbourg finished eighth in Ligue 1 last season under his watch and punched above their weight in Europe, reaching the Europa Conference League semi-finals. They fell to Rayo Vallecano in the last four, but the run marked the first time Strasbourg had ever reached a European semi-final. It was the kind of campaign that makes owners dig in and fight to keep their manager.
They tried. Strasbourg had been confident they could hold on to O’Neil after his arrival in January. Instead, six months on, he is on the brink of a return to English football’s top tier, his first Premier League job since leaving Wolves in December 2024.
The move also reconnects O’Neil with a familiar face. He played for Bristol City when Mark Ashton, now Ipswich’s chief executive, held the same role at Ashton Gate. That previous relationship has helped smooth the path at a moment when Ipswich needed clarity and conviction more than hesitation.
Building a new staff
O’Neil is not expected to arrive alone. Tim Jenkins and Neil Critchley, who have been working with him in France, are also set to make the switch to Suffolk as part of his backroom staff.
It points to Ipswich backing not just a head coach, but a full coaching structure, as they try to carry the momentum of promotion into the Premier League. The club have moved decisively after sounding out alternatives, including former Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who was in the frame earlier this week.
Ipswich, though, have settled on O’Neil as the man to pick up where McKenna left off.
Life after McKenna
McKenna’s exit still hangs in the air around Portman Road. The 40-year-old transformed Ipswich after taking charge in 2021, delivering three promotions in four seasons and dragging the club from the depths of the EFL back into the Premier League. Two of those promotions came in rapid succession to haul the Tractor Boys into the top flight.
He stepped down last week, despite steering Ipswich to second place in the Championship and automatic promotion. Linked with Fulham after Marco Silva’s departure, McKenna instead chose to walk away from Town altogether, opting for a break from the game and more time with his family.
“I feel this is the right time for me to step aside,” he said. “I do so with great pride at the incredible progress we have made and with huge hope and optimism for the future of the club.”
That optimism now meets a new face and a new voice.
O’Neil inherits a club back in the Premier League, a fanbase reawakened, and a squad that has grown used to climbing. The question is no longer whether Ipswich are on their way up. It is whether O’Neil can keep them there.
