Celtic v VfB Stuttgart – Martin O’Neill’s 1000th game milestone | OneFootball

Martin O’Neill yesterday found out from the LMA that tomorrow’s Europa League play-off at Celtic Park against Bundesliga side VfB Stuttgart would be his 1000th match as a manager…

Celtic Manager Martin O’Neill speaks at a mainstream conference.  Photo Andy Buchanan Shutterstock

The Celtic manager started his pre-match media conference today speaking about this milestone as he discussed the tough challenge Celtic faces. Martin also talks about the importance of the Celtic support and stated that the fans behind the goal at Rugby Park at the weekend played a significant role in the team’s second half fight-back from 2-0 down to win the match.

Our Dear Green Place tifo by the Green Brigade, September 2024. Photo IMAGO

The Celtic Fans Collective were meeting Celtic this afternoon and we will report on the outcome after 8pm this evening. In the meantime here’s everything that Martin O’Neill had to say to the mainstream broadcast media this afternoon with The Celtic Star and other participating fan media sites still shamefully banned for censorship reasons by the Celtic Board.

Celtic Board at Falkirk Stadium. Falkirk v Celtic, Scottish Premiership, Falkirk Stadium, 14 January 2026. Photo Vagelis Georgariou

Hopefully all the bans will be lifted immediately, especially to allow the stadium to be at capacity tomorrow evening in a match where Celtic will need any and every advantage we can get.

Here’s everything that was said as Martin O’Neill spoke to preview the Europa League play-off first leg at Celtic Park against VfB Stuttgart…

Q&A starts on the next page…

Martin O’Neill at Rugby Park. Kilmarnock 2 Celtic 3. Scottish Premiership. Sunday 15 February 2026. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

Q: So, Martin, first of all, congratulations. Tomorrow’s going to be your 1000th game as a manager. How are you feeling about reaching that milestone? Did you ever think you were going to make it?

Martin O’Neill: “Well, two things. One, it’s a real surprise because I’ve never counted the games. Genuinely, never. When the LMA told me yesterday about it, it did come as a big surprise to me. It’s nice to do and it’s really pleasing. But, yeah, I have to thank Celtic. Otherwise, it wouldn’t have happened. I didn’t know that was the number of games left to do. If I’d counted them up, then I would have definitely asked some football club could they have me in to just cover the rest of the games. But, yeah, it’s nice.

Q: It’s obviously some game to mark the milestone as well. A big European night at Celtic Park. How far do you think Celtic can go in the Europa League?

Martin O’Neill:  “Right, OK. Well, that’s a major test for us tomorrow. If you’d been having a conversation with me, which you might have done, after Midtjylland, we’d have got long odds about being here this evening, for a start. What I’ve said in the past, we went to Feyenoord, got a great result there. Fought the 10 men for about 60 minutes in the match against Bologna. So I just didn’t want those games not to count for something. So we beat Utrecht and we’re here, so we might as well give it a go.

VfB Stuttgart pose for a photo during the DFB Cup quarter final match between Holstein Kiel and VfB Stuttgart at Holstein-Stadion on February 04, 2026 in Kiel, Germany. (Photo by Selim Sudheimer/Getty Images)

“Stuttgart are flying at this moment. They’re fourth in the Bundesliga. They’re in a Champions League position. I’ve had a look at them. They’re obviously very strong physically. We’ve got a lot of good players playing for them. So they’ll be difficult games for us. But while we’re there, let’s go for it.”

Q: You said a couple of weeks ago that there’s no point being in it unless you’re going to win it. Is that the message and the attitude that’s going to be relayed to the players to really go and give this a good go?

Martin O’Neill: “Well, I’m answering your question in a roundabout fashion. You’ve asked me the same question twice. In that sense, I think that… Well, you go into a competition and when you start off, I think you dream about the final and then reality hits you very, very quickly.

Alan Thompson of Celtic celebrates scoring the opening goal of the match during the UEFA Cup fourth round second leg match between VFB Stuttgart and Glasgow Celtic held on February 27, 2003 at The Gottlieb-Daimler Stadium, in Stuttgart, Germany. VFB Stuttgart won the match 3-2, with Celtic winning the tie 5-4 on aggregate. (Photo by Stuart Franklin/Getty images)

“I wouldn’t have thought that we would be thinking in this competition with the teams that are still left in it, including our opponents tomorrow night. I don’t think that anybody starts off… Well, I wouldn’t even know where the final is. Where is it at? Istanbul. Well, it’s a long way away. A long way away, I don’t mean in terms of geography. A long way away in my mind. But, yeah, just let us see how we do here tomorrow night. It’ll be, honestly, it’ll be really difficult games if Stuttgart show their sort of Bundesliga form. It’ll be a difficult evening as well.”

Q: The last time Celtic won a knockout tie in a European competition, you were the manager 22 years ago against Barcelona. What are your memories of those couple of games and how eager are you to really try and put an end to that long wait tomorrow?

Alan Thompson of Celtic scores during the UEFA Cup Fourth Round, First Leg match between Celtic and Barcelona at Celtic Park on March 11, 2004. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Martin O’Neill: “It’s a long time ago. A long time ago. I didn’t realise it. And I was responsible for some results in those days as a manager, both good and bad. But please don’t blame me for intervening 23 years or whatever it may be. I wasn’t around! I’d like to try and… It would be nice if we could do that. It genuinely would be nice. I’m just having a bit of a joke!”

Q&A continues on the next page…

Q: On the milestone of reaching 1,000 games, if you reflect over the previous 999, is there one in particular in your mind that if someone was to say to you a particular game, is there one that is a standout for you that you maybe think of more than others?

Julian Araujo celebrates at Rugby Park, Kilmarnock 2 Celtic 3. Scottish Premiership. Sunday 15 February 2026. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

Martin O’Neill: “Yeah, last Sunday! Yeah, there have been some great moments. Some not so good. Everything else. But, I genuinely have not thought about it. Please. But if I think of something, I’ll tell you. But there have been some great days in that. As I say, some days you don’t want to forget.”

Q: suppose there’s that old manager cliche that the next game is always the most important, but that will feel like the case going into Thursday night, that your full focus is on this game tomorrow and how you can progress in this competition?

Martin O’Neill: “Absolutely. We’re in it. We might as well have a go. And I think that’s what we want to do. We know it’s going to be a difficult game over the two legs. If it had been condensed to one, you never know. But yeah, it will be difficult. But I want to be positive. We will be. And we’ll try and get off to a half-decent start. That would help us.”

Q: Do you feel, given the work that was done in January, the squad are in a better place now to compete further in Europe than they maybe would have been before the January window?

Kasper Schmeichel of Celtic applauds the fans with team-mates after the match Midtjylland vs Celtic, UEFA Europa League, Group Stage, Football, MCH Arena, Herning, Denmark – 06 Nov 2025Herning MCH Arena Denmark Photo Michael Zemanek IMAGO/Shutterstock

Martin O’Neill: “Well, Midtjylland was my third game, and it was an eye-opener for me, just how physically strong they were. I’d seen Midtjylland a couple of weeks earlier against Nottingham Forest, so I knew it was going to be difficult. But when you’re actually there, live, involved in the game, you realise you’ve got a lot of work to do to get up to that sort of standard. And then we go and surprise everybody by winning in Feyenoord. We played really well in the game. And I thought that coming from a goal behind showed a bit of character. And then we carried it on in Bologna.

Reo Hatate of Celtic celebrates scoring his team’s second goal with teammate Daizen Maeda during the UEFA Europa League 2025/26 League Phase MD5 match between Feyenoord and Celtic FC at De Kuip on November 27, 2025 in Rotterdam, Netherlands. (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

“So I don’t think… I don’t want us to be fearful of the game. You’ve got to go in with some confidence. And if we didn’t get a lift from fighting back on Sunday, then nothing would give you a lift. That was great. I’m accepting the fact that it’s a European night and a side flying in the Bundesliga, but I think you should just leave that aside and let us do as much as we can for ourselves, rather than considering what the opposition might do to you. That’s my point.

“Your second point about whether we’re stronger? I think that, yes, if you think that in Midtjylland, say it was my third game in charge, just getting to know the players, things like that, I think that we do this. And I think, yes, I think that the players that we’ve brought in, in little spurts, have brought something to us.

Tomas Cvancara celebrates at Rugby Park, Kilmarnock 2 Celtic 3. Scottish Premiership. Sunday 15 February 2026. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

“Tomas Cvancara makes the goal in the last minute, scores at home here, makes the goal against Hearts, Junior Adamu scores as well too in the Dundee game, keeps us alive. And so they’ve all played little parts, but it’s not been easy for them to come and settle in. Tomas hadn’t played a great deal of football before that. So I’m hoping by the end of the season that they would have made some mark here and made it worthwhile for them.”

Q&A continues on the next page…

Q: Some supporters are still banned from Celtic games at the moment. Do you know what the latest is on the talks with the Celtic supporters? And also, how regrettable is it that we’ll still have empty seats at Celtic Park tomorrow?

Martin O’Neill: “Yes, I’m agreeing with you. I think that a full house here at Celtic Park is something special. Every European night that I’ve had in the past, way back then, was just full of special moments. Teams were, I think, and I’m talking about the really major sides were still very, very concerned about coming here. The passion, the drive, the noise that’s made.

Auston Trusty celebrates with the Celtic supporters. Kilmarnock 2 Celtic 3. Scottish Premiership. Sunday 15 February 2026. Photo Vagelis Georgariou (The Celtic Star)

“I remember here at our game against Liverpool in that UEFA run, John Robertson, my old friend, was standing beside me and speaking to me. I couldn’t hear what he was saying for the first 10 or 15 minutes. It was so, so loud. So, yes, little bits have been lost from that. And that’s regrettable, to use your word, I think.

“And I’m hoping that… I think there has been some discussions, of which I obviously wasn’t party to. But I hear that there might have been some progress made. But as I’ve been saying this here, the sooner that there is unity at Celtic Park, the better for all concerned.

“I have no doubt at all that the crowd behind the goal on Sunday contributed greatly to us fighting back in the game. No question about that.”

Q: Is there any circumstance come the summer where if the club wanted to look at maybe a sort of continuity appointment, would you be open to continuing your stay here?

Martin O’Neill: “I really genuinely think that that would be… That’s too far in the future for me. Genuinely too far in the future. You mentioned about the 1000 games. If you’d seen my early matches at Leicester City in late 1995, early 1996, you would give long odds of me doing 1000 games in that time. But back to your point, I think that it is far too far in the future. To me, it’s a long way away. And how I might feel today might be totally different in 10 days’ time. We’ve got a lot of games here. We’ve got a lot of work to do. And if we fall by the wayside, which we could easily do, I don’t think we’d even have been having any sort of discussion.”

Q: In your previous experience in European competitions, what can a run in the latter stages do for the confidence and competitiveness of your squad?

Photo imago/Miguelez Sports Foto – Celtic Glasgow v. Porto Bobo Balde, Neil Lennon, Alan Thompson, Chris Sutton, Joos Valgaeren, Johan Mjällby, Didier Agathe, Stilian Petrov, Henrik Larsson, Robert Douglas

Martin O’Neill:  “If I can go back to 2003, I thought it was terrific. We were definitely very, very focused on that at the time. And obviously, domestically, Rangers and us were vying for almost everything at that stage. They were very strong. But I think that the games… I think probably after Liverpool game, I know we’re now into the semi-finals, but then there was a total focus on that and trying to see if we could come out and win the competition. And at the same time, the battle with Rangers was raging every single week. There just didn’t seem to be any respite, but I felt as if the squad that I had there could cope with the games. I think that was the major thing. And that they loved… Those boys loved playing European football.”

FEBRUARY 27: UEFA Pokal 02/03, Stuttgart; VfB Stuttgart – Celtic Glasgow; Enttaeuschte VFB Spieler – Andreas HINKEL, Steffen DANGLMAYR und Timo WENZEL/Stuttgart (Photo by Sandra Behne/Bongarts/Getty Images)

Q: Do you feel like you’re in a similar position now? Do you feel like this squad can cope with the same demands?

Martin O’Neill:  “Well, please, this is not an excuse for me. Far, far, far, far from it. But by 2003, I knew my squad inside out. I knew what they could do. I knew what physical prowess they had. I knew what ability they had. And so I knew them inside out. So believe it or not, I’m still learning here quite detailed, you know, all the time. And mostly excellent stuff about them as well too. But, yeah, I don’t know is the answer.”

Q&A continues on the next page…

Celtic fans show off their flags during the UEFA Cup fourth round second leg match between VFB Stuttgart and Glasgow Celtic held on February 27, 2003 at The Gottlieb-Daimler Stadium, in Stuttgart, Germany. VFB Stuttgart won the match 3-2, with Celtic winning the tie 5-4 on aggregate. (Photo by Stuart Franklin/Getty images)

Q: To what extent is this game against Stuttgart your toughest test in these two spells this season?

Martin O’Neill:  “Oh, yeah, without a doubt it would be, yeah, the toughest one, considering the position that they’re in, considering the opposition and considering the league that they are in as well too. So this would be pretty tough.”

Head coach Sebastian Hoeness of VfB Stuttgart looks on during the Bundesliga match between FC St. Pauli and VfB Stuttgart at Millerntor Stadium on February 07, 2026 in Hamburg, Germany. (Photo by Selim Sudheimer/Getty Images)

German media Q: Would you please share some more of your thoughts about your opponent tomorrow and your opponent as a manager, Sebastian Hoeness, in particular?

Martin O’Neill:  “Yeah, well, way back in 2003, when I was a much younger man, we had the two games against Stuttgart. We were a very fine side. We won the first game 3-1 and Stuttgart had a man sent off as well too, so that obviously helped us.

“And then we scored two early goals there in Stuttgart. So we were flying at the time, and we thought, yeah, this is going to be fine. We were hanging on at the end in the game and Stuttgart, I think they had a chance about 10 minutes to go in the match and had they scored then, another one would have put us out.

“So that’s from an almost invincible position that we were in, to be hanging on at the end. And Stuttgart were a very fine side then. So for us, over the two games, to come through was big news for us. And as for the present team, yeah, just as I mentioned earlier there, I have watched them, we’ve had scouts out watching them live and the reports coming back are the same things that I see for myself on the screen. Really, really, really fine team.”

Watch below Martin O’Neill’s mainstream media conference ahead of the Celtic v VfB Stuttgart play-off first leg match in the Europa League at Celtic Park tomorrow evening (kickoff 8pm)….

Celtic in the Thirties by Matt Corr. Click on image to order

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