“I might as well enjoy it while it lasts. It was great,” Martin O’Neill | OneFootball

Well, that was magnificent, Martin O’Neill is certainly going out with a bang rolling back the years and getting Celtic back on track, first of all domestically with a first win of the year over theRangers in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final, then shaving a highly significant seven points off Hearts’ lead over the Hoops and now getting Celtic back on track in the Europa League with a performance and a result away against Feyenoord.

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)

This is the Day, this is the Day that we Win Away! Here’s what Martin had to say in the media room after the match…

Q: Focusing on what was a magnificent result for Celtic, when you consider the problems the club has had away from home in Europe, and you’ve come up with a magnificent result, haven’t you?

Martin O’Neill: “Yeah, and played really well. Really, really well. I mean, we were, there was a period in the game, a fairly lengthy period, where we were totally dominant controlling the ball. There was a lot of confidence, which was a lovely thing to see.”

Q: It was a real team performance, wasn’t it? It was a good individual performance, but as a collective, that really stood out tonight?

Martin O’Neill: “Yeah, I think that, obviously, going the goal behind as well, we could have crumbled, I thought they have shown in the usual words, character, resilience and that thing. But then, when we got the equaliser, the confidence just flooded into the side, and they played wonderfully well.

Yang Hyun-Jun of Celtic scores a goal to make the score 1-1 Feyenoord v Celtic, UEFA Europa League, Group Stage, Football, Stadion Feijenoord, Rotterdam, Netherlands – 27 Nov 2025Rotterdam Stadion Feijenoord Netherlands Photo Kieran McManus Shutterstock

Q: What they’ve done there tonight is they’ve set a standard as well, haven’t they? So, not to have, perhaps, trepidation coming to these venues and playing these teams in European competition?

Martin O’Neill: “I said this to them before the game, you know, you will get a chance to play tonight. You will get a chance. Because they’re a very fine side, Feyenoord, who are just going through a dip at this moment, they’ve got players who can play. But they will also give you a chance to play, and we took that chance.”

Q: Martin, you said yesterday that this was going to be your final European match in charge of Celtic. Was that the perfect way to sort of bow out in your European spell as Celtic boss?

Martin O’Neill: “Oh, absolutely. Yeah, I mean, I’m obviously thrilled for the team. There’s a bit of selfishness attached to it all as well too. But, yeah, it was lovely to win. And, you know, just to win away from home, but to win in Feyenoord was just terrific.”

Reo Hatate of Celtic celebrates scoring a goal to make the score 1-2 Feyenoord v Celtic, UEFA Europa League, Group Stage, Football, Stadion Feijenoord, Rotterdam, Netherlands – 27 Nov 2025. Photo Kieran McManus/Shutterstock

Q: Is there a feeling of pride there as well, that when you now look at the Europa League table, Celtic are in a much better position than they were at one point, and it sort of puts the club back in a position where they can come back to a qualification?

Martin O’Neill: “Yeah, judging from last season, the format, and both the Champions League, you’re still looking at probably 10 points, maybe 11 points to qualify. So that won’t be easy, like anything else. But Celtic have two home games, Roma and Utrecht. But the confidence is in the side now, and it’s really up to them to drive that home.”

Q: The second goal, the desire shown by Daizen Maeda to block the clearance from the goalkeeper, that just summed him up perfectly?

Martin O’Neill: “Yeah, he’s a great little player. He’s tireless in many aspects, and he did great. The whole team did wonderfully. I keep saying that. Yeah, we did great.”

Q: The fans at the end were serenading you. You’ve had that over the course of the last few weeks. Is that something that will stick with you, the backing that you’ve had from the supporters over the last few weeks?

Martin O’Neill: “Well, I told my two brothers who came to the game, I told them to start the chant. They must have done so. Honestly, I’m in great fettle now, and then I’ll wake up and just get ready for the Hibs game. But I might as well enjoy it while it lasts. It was great. The dressing room lads are full of it. Even some of the Japanese lads are beginning to learn a few extra words, which is nice. They didn’t realise there were swear words put into it.”

Q: Martin, you’ve spoken a little bit about Yang recently, and how he has to believe in himself a little bit more?

Martin O’Neill: “Well, they say to me that sometimes if it doesn’t work for him, he might go back into his shell. But there’s a player there. He does things that we can’t do. He can turn players, he can beat players. He’s strong, and he can manoeuvre it, and he can do all of those things. It’s just a matter of giving him a boost of confidence the whole way through. And even if he loses it, the hardest thing in the world is for a wide player to lose it twice in succession and then try and go again. Only great, great players can do that. So that was the encouragement. If you lose it, if you’ve lost it, trying to do something really positive, don’t worry about it. You’ll get another opportunity, because you feel as if he can go past players. He can make things happen for them.”

Benjamin Nygren of Celtic celebrates scoring his team’s third goal with teammates 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)

Q: You mentioned yesterday as well the importance, if they did lose an early goal, not to let it affect them, not to let the game get away from them. How proud are you that they actually stood tall?

Martin O’Neill: “Yeah, really proud. Yes, very much so, because we could have crumbled at that stage in the game. But they were just beginning to find their feet when they go a goal behind. From our viewpoint, not the best goal in the world. But yeah, that was really pleasing. Really pleasing for the team. They’re in fine fettle at this minute, but down to earth again for Sunday.

Q: How would you assess your time at the helm here? Now it’s five wins out of six, cup final, back in the mix in Europe. Was this what you’d hoped and planned when you first took charge?

Martin O’Neill: “Hard to say, really, apart from what I’d thought. I think I told you, my two daughters were all on for going for it. And then my wife said that we’d probably mess it up. So, yeah, I’m trying to phone her there now to find out, we haven’t messed it up so far, but it’s been great. The results are everything. It’s what you live by. And the results have been terrific.

Q: We’re obviously now talking about the transition of power, so to speak, soon. What is the new manager going to be inheriting in this team just now?

Martin O’Neill: “That’s a very, very good point. He’s got some players in here who are big winners, which is great. And as I said to you last night, I think the most important thing is that he steps in there. I’m quite sure he’ll lean on some of those lads. And then it’s to try and improve the other players. That’s the most important thing, because if you start to improve, then you can go into games with more confidence. Confidence was obviously very, very low at the time after a couple of defeats. But, yeah, it’s just the restoration of confidence is big, and it’s keeping it going.”

Q: Martin, it’s been well documented that the club’s away form in Europe has been poor for a long time. What will it give the players, you think, to get that away win tonight in terms of going forward in this tournament?

Martin O’Neill: “Winning away from home is terrific. That’s not easy in Europe, certainly not easy here. And, yeah, so the very obvious thing is it gives them confidence to go on, and it gives them a bit of belief that they can actually come and compete. And that was the thing tonight. Even if the result had gone against us, I thought at least we were competing.”

Q: Martin, you enjoyed some fantastic nights in Europe during your first spell at the club. I just wonder, given the circumstances of how everything’s happened over these past few weeks, how does that compare tonight?

Martin O’Neill: “Do you know what? Yeah, it’s really big, I must admit. It’s really great. Yeah, it’s really good.”

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