Two biggest mistakes in Martin O’Neill’s Celtic team selection at Ibrox | OneFootball

Starting Sebastian Tounekti was a big mistake, but so too was selecting Sam Johnstone over Viljami Sinisalo…

13th September 2026; Ibrox, Scottish League Cup Football, Rangers versus Celtic; Benjamin Nygren of Celtic and Sebastian Tounekti of Celtic. Photo Vagelis Georgariou

One of the biggest mistakes made by Martin O’Neill in the 3-0 derby thumping at the hands of The Rangers was his team selection, which raised more than a few eyebrows when it was announced on Sunday morning.

Starting Sebastian Tounekti was the main talking point, with the Tunisian being handed a start at the expense of the impressive Haissem Hassan.

13th September 2026; Ibrox; Scottish League Cup Football, Rangers versus Celtic; Haissem Hassan of Celtic. Photo Vagelis Georgariou

Tounekti once again flattered to deceive

Tounekti once again and as expected flattered to deceive in the cauldron of Ibrox, and was hauled off at the break with Haissem Hassan taking his place in the second half.

The Egyptian did more in the first few moments of the second period than Tounekti had done in the first 45 minutes, making his omission from the starting line up all that more bizarre.

13th September 2026; Ibrox, Scottish League Cup Football, Rangers versus Celtic; James Forrest of Celtic puts the ball in. Photo Vagelis Georgariou

Martin O’Neill later explained the reasoning behind Hassan’s place on the bench as due to the 24 year old having been deprived of sleep the previous night. But even at that, it would have been more beneficial to have started with a bleary eyed Hassan, opposed to a fully functioning Tounekti, or even the vastly experienced James Forrest who could easily have played for 45 minutes before the swap was made.

13th September 2026; Ibrox, Scottish League Cup, Rangers versus Celtic; Sam Johnstone of Celtic checks his gloves after Dan Neil of Rangers shoots and scores in the 75th minute to make it 3-0 to Rangers. Photo Vagelis Georgariou

O’Neill decision to start with Sam Johnstone was a massive blunder

The Irishman’s decision to stick with Sam Johnstone and bench Viljami Sinisalo also proved to be a massive blunder. To be fair, most of us understood the manager’s decision to stick with the former England international after his solid display in the midweek win over St Johnstone in Perth.

But in hindsight it was a major mistake, as was proven by the on loan Wolves keepers feeble, wobbly and nervous display. From the first few minutes he displayed those nerves by almost gifting the home side a goal after a slack pass, and from then on in he looked a complete and utter nervous wreck.

The home supporters and players sensed this, and the 34 year old began to resemble something of an untried youth keeper, rather than a proven international with years of EPL experience.

Viljami Sinisalo of Celtic reacts after the UEFA Champions League 2026/27 Play off round second leg match between LASK and Celtic at on August 25, 2026 in Linz, Austria. (Photo by Christian Bruna/Getty Images)

The safest, and most sensible choice would have been to start with Finnish international Sinisalo, who has had experience of playing in Glasgow Derbies, particularly at Ibrox.

These two selection errors not the only issue for Celtic

These two selection errors played a part in the 3-0 mauling Celtic suffered yesterday afternoon but this is not the entire story. The problem lies in the coaching and the lack of clear tactics.

13th September 2026; Ibrox, Scottish League Cup, Rangers versus Celtic; Celtic manager Martin O’Neill. Photo Vagelis Georgariou

Just having the better players is not enough

Just having the better players is not enough and Derek McInnes manufactured a solution that was perfectly implement as ‘same old’ Celtic turned up and played in exactly the same formation. Even before the opening goal, the Celtic manager could have changed it, recognising that the midfield battle had been lost.

McInnes has lost the element of surprise but will Celtic learn the lesson?

If we go in the same way on Sunday expect a similar outcome. McInnes has now lost the element of surprise but will Celtic learn the lesson? We have two huge games ahead in the coming week and next Monday morning we’ll know where we stand.

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