THERE will be a conflict of interest in the O’Neil household this weekend – with Gary O’Neil’s Cherries set to take on Tottenham Hotspur, the team his son Carter-Jae supports.
Antonio Conte’s Spurs side arrive at the Vitality Stadium on Saturday (kick-off 3pm), with both sides without a win in their last three fixtures.
Despite Carter-Jae’s split loyalties, O’Neil senior insists that his son will be supporting his charges at the weekend.
O’Neil commented: “He wants us to win, he said.
“He's keen for Bournemouth to win. So, yeah, that was nice of him!”
O’Neil, who was a boyhood Millwall fan, represented Spurs’ fierce rivals West Ham United during his career, as well as another London club in QPR.
Explaining how his son ended up following the Lilywhites, O’Neil shared: “My wife's dad was a big Spurs fan and obviously I'm fairly busy at weekends, generally, so he started going to Spurs with my wife’s dad.
“I was keen for him to go and watch. And, yeah, he loves it. It’s a nice stadium, so I thought I'd send him to a nice stadium to watch his football.
“I've been a couple of times with him. Not as often as you would like to, but yes, occasionally if the game (doesn’t clash).
“I think last year we went a couple of times on a Sunday. He loves his football, but yeah, he'll be pushing for a Bournemouth win, like the rest of us.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here