Football Dec 07, 2025

Martin O'Neill expects Celtic's trip to Hibs will be his last as interim boss ahead of Wilfried Nancy arrival

👤
By Admin
Sports Journalist
Martin O'Neill expects Celtic's trip to Hibs will be his last as interim boss ahead of Wilfried Nancy arrival

Martin O'Neill expects Sunday's Scottish Premiership trip to Hibernian will be his last match as Celtic's interim manager.

The 73-year-old returned to the Celtic dugout in October, 20 years on from his first spell as Parkhead boss, after Brendan Rodgers' resignation.

One month on, and the Hoops are closing in on the appointment of Columbus Crew manager Wilfried Nancy.

"I was speaking to some of the board members last night, things are progressing very nicely, so I'm hoping that things will be in place by the beginning of next week," O'Neill told SportNews News when asked about Celtic's managerial hunt.

"It has been a whirlwind time. If you ask me deep down, have I loved it? Yeah, I probably have, [even if] the face doesn't always say that!

"Did I know that this was always going to be interim? Yeah, of course. Have I got used to the surroundings here at this minute? I'm not sure about that, really strange from my days way back at Celtic Park.

"I think the lovely thing about it is, the team, the players, they've really responded.

"The best example of that was against Feyenoord. We were a goal behind after 11 minutes, when we probably should have been one in front. Heads could have easily gone down, but no, they fought back, played some great, great stuff, and we won. We deserved to win a game in Holland, in the Europa League."

In the month that O'Neill has been in temporary charge, Celtic have won all four domestic matches, including a 3-1 win over Rangers to reach the League Cup final, plus that Europa League win at Feyenoord - the club's first away win in Europe since November 2021.

If Nancy is appointed in the coming days, his first match in charge should be at home to Dundee in the Premiership on Wednesday.

The 48-year-old started at CF Montreal where he won the Canadian Championship, before then helping Columbus Crew clinch the MLS Cup and Leagues Cup.

He also guided Crew to the CONCACAF Champions Cup final during his three years in the US, whilst also being named MLS Coach of the Year in 2004.

When asked what Nancy should expect at Celtic, O'Neill added: "Hopefully, he'll find a side that is bubbling with a bit of confidence, which is great, and that's a restoration of that there, I suppose, from previous weeks in that sense.

"He'll have a fair idea of what he's coming into, and he doesn't need any guidance from me."

Tags:

football news id:13476607

Share this article

Related Posts

Real Madrid: Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde fined for training ground fight following investigation

Real Madrid: Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde fined for training ground fight following investigation

Real Madrid team-mates Aurelien Tchouameni and Federico Valverde have been fined €500,000 (£432,000) after an investigation into a training ground alt...

Kirsty Hanson: The Aston Villa striker who is scoring more than Vivianne Miedema, Alessia Russo and Sam Kerr this season

Kirsty Hanson: The Aston Villa striker who is scoring more than Vivianne Miedema, Alessia Russo and Sam Kerr this season

As the season draws to a close, attention turns to individual accolades. Scanning down the list of WSL top scorers, there is one name that stands out...

Middlesbrough vs Southampton: Boro accuse member of Saints coaching staff of spying on training ahead of Championship play-off clash

Middlesbrough vs Southampton: Boro accuse member of Saints coaching staff of spying on training ahead of Championship play-off clash

Middlesbrough have made a formal complaint to the EFL alleging a man they believe to be a Southampton member of staff was spying on their training ses...

Danny Röhl: Rangers head coach insists 'full focus' is on Ibrox club and rebuild amid Bundesliga links

Danny Röhl: Rangers head coach insists 'full focus' is on Ibrox club and rebuild amid Bundesliga links

Danny Röhl insists his "full focus" is on Rangers and "winning titles in the future" amid speculation linking him with a move to the Bundesliga. The I...

Arsenal: Gunners' players set to pocket over £1m in bonuses if they win Champions League - Paper Talk

Arsenal: Gunners' players set to pocket over £1m in bonuses if they win Champions League - Paper Talk

The top stories and transfer rumours from Friday's newspapers...Arsenal's stars would pocket a total of £1,175,000 if they beat PSG in the Champions L...

Aston Villa: John McGinn wants team to become 'legends' by ending 30-year trophy drought with Europa League triumph

Aston Villa: John McGinn wants team to become 'legends' by ending 30-year trophy drought with Europa League triumph

Aston Villa captain John McGinn says his side must shed the "nearly men" tag and become legends by ending the club's 30-year wait for silverware with...