Gary O'Neil publicly blasts Chelsea owners over Strasbourg decision

When Liam Rosenior made the decision to move from Strasbourg and become Chelsea’s manager following the departure of Enzo Maresca at Stamford Bridge, Gary O’Neil stepped in at the French club to become their next head coach.

The season may be ending in disappointment for O’Neil and Strasbourg as they were eliminated from the Europa Conference League and Coupe de France at the semi-final stage by Rayo Vallecano and Nice, respectively, while they are also set to finish eighth, at best, in Ligue 1.

There has been criticism from the Strasbourg fans about the running of the club by BlueCo, who are also the owners of Chelsea, with there being criticism also levelled at them in their running of the English side.

Concerns around recruitment, managerial instability and general lack of direction are the main areas in which frustration is being directed by fans.

Frustration from supporters were clear for everyone to see as fans of both clubs came together in a joint protest against BlueCo outside Stamford Bridge ahead of the Blues’ defeat by Manchester United in April.

Angers' French forward #36 Lanroy Machine (L) vies for the ball with Strasbourg's French defender #6 Ismaël Doukoure during the French L1 (Getty Images)

Now, O’Neil has given his opinion on why Strasbourg’s season has petered out as they will not deliver any silverware this season, with the English manager believing recruitment in January weakened his squad.

Strasbourg saw four of their Chelsea loanees return to Stamford Bridge during the campaign: David Datro Fofana, Aaron Anselmino, Mamadou Sarr and Kendry Paez, with the latter sent out to River Plate immediately after returning to West London.

As reported by L’Equipe, O’Neil said: “I need two centre-forwards.

“The owners want to give me the means to perform next season, but we have to improve the culture around the club, the quality of the players, and the depth of the squad.

“We messed up in the January transfer window. We weakened instead of improving the squad.”

The English manager will be hoping for further backing from the owners ahead of the next campaign this summer to rally the club once again to battle for silverware. Whether that happens remains to be seen, as BlueCo may also need to invest in their Chelsea project further after their disappointing season in the Premier League.