Martin O’Neill and Celtic Dream again after Nancy Nightmare

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The Celtic Star

·7 January 2026

Martin O’Neill and Celtic Dream again after Nancy Nightmare

Martin O’Neill yesterday joked that he had a séance where he met Elvis and Sinatra. The legend said that the minor-celebrities were peeved because he had more comebacks than them!

Celtic Manager Martin O’Neill speaks at a mainstream conference on Tuesday 6th January 2026 at Lennoxtown after returning to the club following the sacking of Wifred Nancy. Photo Andy Buchanan Shutterstock

That is the essence of our joy and relief at the return of, arguably, Celtic’s greatest manager since Jock Stein. He knows what buttons to push, and how to wrap the fans around his educated finger. He also knows how to win a game of football.

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Celtic have had a virtual nightmare under Monsieur Nancy with a shocking return on his watch. You know the stats, so I don’t need to regurgitate them. His tenure was untenable, and the departure of Tisdale (however it came about) was long overdue.

So, Martin is back, and we need to focus on, not what’s gone before, but what we have, and what we can achieve. I’m not focussing on the board squabble or the politics surrounding the Green Brigade-that will sort itself out in due course.

Celtic are six points off Hearts at the top and have another trip to Tynecastle coming up shortly.

Celtic Manager Martin O’Neill speaks at a mainstream conference on Tuesday 6th January 2026 at Lennoxtown after returning to the club following the sacking of Wifred Nancy. Photo Andy Buchanan Shutterstock

theRangers, courtesy of a 2-0 win over Aberdeen last night, have pole-vaulted us, albeit we have a game in hand. Aberdeen are very poor, so that should not be a concern. We were red rotten against the Ibrox entity this week, but that was under Nancy.

Now, O’Neill has Shaun Maloney pulling the recruitment strings, although the gaffer has the final say, naturally. It’s starting to come together again. The Irishman wants to push the boat out on bringing in quality players in order to close the gap and see off the aspirational imposters.

The team formation will revert to the one which, despite a severely depleted squad, fleeced the majority of points from our competitors in Martin’s last innings. He did the simple things, simply.

All may not be rosy in our east end garden, but the shoots of hope are sprouting again, and the Celtic fans are dreaming again. Given the current circumstances, what an ending to the season it would be if Martin O’Neill pulled this squad together to do the, currently, unthinkable.

Will the League flag fly over Paradise, and the Scottish Cup adorn the Parkhead trophy room in May?

Hebrews 11:1

‘Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.’

Keep the faith good people of Celtic and help make our dream a reality.

Hail Hail!

Eddie Murray

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