INTERIM boss Gary O’Neil was relieved none of Cherries players’ parents had phoned him up about team selection – having dealt with that “difficult” conversation in another football role!

As well as his work at Cherries, the 39-year-old also runs an under-9 team called NexGen in Beckenham, in which son Carter-Jae is one of his players.

O’Neil, who is unbeaten from three games as a Premier League manager, joked his CV took a hit the other day when NexGen under-9s suffered defeat in their preparations for the season.

Having played 214 times in the Premier League himself, the dad-of-three is used to receiving both criticism and praise from those across the sport.

But asked how that compared to a parent saying ‘why aren’t you playing my kid?’ at NexGen, O’Neil told the Daily Echo: “The parent conversations are always tough.

“Fortunately, none of the Bournemouth lads have had their mums and dads ring me to ask why they are not playing yet!”

The former Portsmouth and West Ham ace is also director of football at the academy, which announced some of their players having recently signed deals at Tottenham and Chelsea.

Asked by the Daily Echo about balancing his work at Cherries with managing his little boy’s team, O’Neil said: “It’s his Sunday team, I take that for him. NexGen under-9s.

“We lost the other day, so that wasn’t good for the CV!

“I am going to be there and watch my little boy play football on a Sunday morning anyway. It’s just he gets me shouting at him rather than somebody else!

“It’s just a small academy that I set up for children where I was brought up. I just felt that was something that would help the children round there.

“It’s benefitted my little boy and loads of other kids in the area and who better to manage my little boy than me?!

“They haven’t started their season yet so it hasn’t crossed over with this (at Cherries) at all. I was obviously first-team coach when I was doing the NexGen stuff.

“I am not sure I will be doing too much of it while I am managing the team, but it’s enjoyable. My little boy might say different, he might not enjoy it! But I enjoy it still.”

O’Neil has constantly been asked about whether he would like the Cherries’ head coach role on a full-time basis. Luckily for him, his son is backing him for the position.

Asked what it was like to have people putting him forward for the full-time role, O’Neil said: “My little boy has tried to put me forward a few times but he’s eight! I mean, I haven’t paid any attention.”