In what will be one last hurrah as Celtic boss in tonight’s home game against Dundee, Martin O’Neill has given his honest thoughts for how he thinks the club will fare for the rest of this season.
His first game back in charge – the 4-0 win over Falkirk at the end of October – has gone in the blink of an eye, but also seems a lifetime ago.
Fast-forward five weeks and O’Neill will take his place in the dugout for the final time.
Incoming head coach Wilfried Nancy could even reportedly be in attendance for the match, signifying the passing of the torch from a club legend to a man hungry to prove himself to the Parkhead faithful.
The 73-year-old will ride off into the sunset and finish that coffee he has waiting for him down south, but that hasn’t stopped him from weighing in on what he thinks success looks like for Celtic for the rest of the season.
In his media conference yesterday (2nd December), he was asked if this could be a successful campaign trophy-wise for the team:
“Of course, yeah. In recent seasons, I think that Celtic at this time of the year would probably be well in front in the league. They would have things to concentrate on.
Like last season, it was great because they had the Champions League and they could put a bit of focus on that. Domestically, when teams were dropping off, that was great news for them. But here we’ve been chasing, trying to chase Hearts down.”
He reflected on Sunday’s crucial result at Hibs in the capital, a result that could prove crucial going into a packed December fixture list:
“And Hibs, who showed on Sunday, know that we got, if you think about it, I know it was quickly after the Thursday night game but Schmeichel’s made a big save for us again at an important stage. We’ve got the goals. What I think I said on Sunday, and I still say it now, is that we showed a bit of durability and a bit of resilience in a game in which, just after the penalty, could have gone against us.”
The belief restored into this Hoops squad by O’Neill could be the catalyst for the players to maintain this run of form for when Nancy takes over the reigns.
The Frenchman will be getting to work immediately with a hectic run of games coming his way, including against league leaders Hearts, AS Roma and a cup final.
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