McKenna's departure on Wednesday, confirmed after weeks of quiet deliberation, left Ipswich in an unusual position — promoted to the Premier League for a second successive time, this time as Championship runners-up behind Coventry City, but without the manager who delivered it. The search for his successor is now the club's most pressing priority ahead of a 2026-27 season that begins in August.
O'Neil, 43, is the bookmakers' clear early favourite, priced at 1/2 by BetVictor. The Englishman has managed in the Premier League with both Bournemouth and Wolverhampton Wanderers, and carries a specific track record of keeping clubs in the top flight against difficult odds.
He joined Strasbourg in January 2026 as the replacement for Liam Rosenior, who departed for Chelsea, and led the French club to eighth place in Ligue 1 and the semi-finals of the Europa Conference League.
The question is whether Strasbourg would release him after just five months and whether O'Neil himself is drawn to the Ipswich challenge.
Rosenior, who had a loan spell at Ipswich as a player in 2009-10, is priced at 4/1. The 41-year-old's 107-day spell at Chelsea ended in dismissal after a difficult run of results, but his prior work at Hull City and Strasbourg — where he built a structured, progressive playing identity — has not been forgotten. Journalist Alex Crook names both O'Neil and Rosenior as candidates.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who worked with McKenna at Manchester United when the now-departed manager served as his first-team coach, is also available at 4/1.
The East Anglian Daily Times reports a wide-ranging shortlist of at least 14 candidates, with Premier League experience expected to be a near non-negotiable criterion for the appointment.
Ipswich begin pre-season in July. The window for a considered appointment is narrow.