🔗 Share this article

As stated by interim boss Martin O'Neill, the Columbus Crew head coach is expected to be in the Celtic dugout for this weekend's Scottish Premiership match against Heart of Midlothian.

Columbus Crew's head coach has been involved in advanced negotiations with Parkhead side for nearly seven days and now seems poised to wrap up a deal.

Martin O'Neill has served as caretaker manager for more than four weeks ever since the previous manager resigned, achieving six victories out of seven matches, cutting into Hearts' lead in the Scottish Premiership while also steering the Parkhead outfit to a Premier Sports Cup final spot.

The veteran manager, who once coached Celtic from 2000 to 2005, had previously suggested he believed the match at Hibernian – a 2-1 victory – would be his final act of his second spell in charge.

However, O'Neill stated he is to manage Celtic in the midweek Premiership match with Dens Park prior to Nancy assumes control.

"He is the individual that will be arriving," O'Neill said to TalkSport. "I assumed my time was up last weekend, however there's some paperwork yet to be completed. Wednesday will assuredly be my last match."

A Bizarre Experience

"It has been unreal," O'Neill continued. "It resembles a part in one's life where you think 'did that really happen?' Am I happy to have taken it on? Without a doubt."

If the Hoops beat Dundee and Hearts defeat Killie in midweek, Nancy could lead his new club to summit of the Premiership with a victory in his opening fixture in charge.

"It's a nice one for Nancy versus Hearts," O'Neill said. "A good way to start. It will be a challenging fixture of course and I wish him all the best. At the very least he's getting a team full of self-belief."

That confidence stems from O'Neill's success on the field in the last month or so, where he has lost only once – a 3-1 defeat away to Midtjylland in the European competition.

However, the ex- Republic of Ireland manager along with his squad were then able to claim their first away win in Europe since 2021 by defeating the Dutch club 3-1 recently.

Rebuilding Belief

"We lost by them," O'Neill said. "That was a hard fixture – a couple of weeks earlier they defeated Forest, so that was difficult. To go to Feyenoord and secure a victory away from home was fantastic. We have given the team an opportunity, there are three games left to attempt qualification, but that Feyenoord game was key for belief."

Thoughts on the Future

When asked for his thoughts on his spell as interim boss, O'Neill says it has prompted consideration on if he would like to continue managing in the future.

"I genuinely don't know," he admitted. "I will have a wee think about things following the match on Wednesday."

"It was challenging," he added. "I felt a fear of failure – that is an ever-present big concern. I once joked that I was capable of doing the job equally as badly as many other managers."

"I've learned much. I've got some great coaching staff alongside me and it's been a new lease on life for me in many ways, dealing with young players daily."

Consultancy Role?

On the subject of if he might remain at Celtic in a consultancy role, the former Leicester City, Villa and Ireland manager says that is entirely up to Wilfried Nancy.

"That is really for the incoming manager to make," O'Neill stated. "He must be given full autonomy. Should he desire my opinion on matters, that's fine. If not, that is perfectly fine at all. It's very much his squad the moment he enters the breach."

TalkSport host Jim White ended the interview if O'Neill if he would be emotional when the final whistle sounded on Wednesday.

"Do you mean if I will get tearful?" O'Neill replied. "Don't be silly."