Martin O’Neill has said he would have remained at Celtic if they had asked him to stay, but said patience was needed for new manager Wilfried Nancy after losing his first three matches in office.
Nancy’s struggles have fuelled the theory Celtic should have retained O’Neill, who took caretaker charge after Rodgers left, for a longer period. Speaking on Monday, O’Neill admitted he would have remained in office had Celtic wanted him to. “If they had asked me to stay on, I would’ve done so, but the minute that they said, ‘No, that’s your time’, that was fine by me,” he told Talksport.
O’Neill also called for Nancy to be shown patience. The Frenchman has lost all three games in charge of Celtic, the most recent being Sunday’s League Cup final against St Mirren, leading to doubts being raised about his suitability to the role. “You’ve got to give managers chances,” O’Neill insisted. “I think back to my own time at Leicester City, where I eventually enjoyed nice success. Can’t win a game to save my life, crowd baying for blood and after 10 games. How lucky I was to win a couple of matches of real importance at a stage.
“There’s some excellent players at the football club. There’s some boys who have won big time as well. Lean on some of the senior players. Lean on them and get them on your side. It is recoverable, of course. You’re in the football club 10 or 12 days.”
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It comes as Nancy’s full-time predecessor Brendan Rodgers is in talks over a managerial return at Saudi Arabian side Al-Qadsiah.
Rodgers resigned from Celtic in October, a move that proved the trigger for a stinging attack from the club’s main shareholder Dermot Desmond. The 52-year-old is yet to address Desmond’s sentiment but is known to have been attractive to Saudi clubs for some time. He turned down a move to the kingdom after leaving Leicester in 2023.
Al-Qadsiah, who sacked their Spanish manager Michel at the weekend, have stolen a march on their domestic rivals by moving for Rodgers, who has been keen for a swift return to the dugout. He is expected to sign a long-term contract in the coming days at a club owned by Saudi oil giant, Aramco.
The former Liverpool manager won back-to-back Scottish titles during a second spell at Celtic, with matters subsequently turning sour due to troubles in the transfer market. – Guardian
