Football Daily | Martin O’Neill proves doubters wrong again with remarkable Celtic return

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MAGIC MARTIN

Martin O’Neill has always been a little underrated. As a player at Nottingham Forest, he endured a testy relationship with Brian Clough and was once told by his manager that the linesman was having a better game than him. “You’re arrogant, with very little to be arrogant about”, Clough would regularly say to the Irishman, who ended up doing a pretty good job of proving his manager wrong. But maybe that was Cloughie’s genius, knowing which buttons to push.

As a manager, O’Neill earned back-to-back Evening Standard London Five-a-Sides titles (with Wycombe Wanderers, incongruously), promotion to the Premier League and two Milk Cup triumphs at Wembley with Leicester, and became the most successful Celtic manager since Jock Stein (played 282, won 213), in his first stint at Parkhead from 2000 to 2005. Despite that resume, O’Neill never got that big, big job either in England or with England, with whom he was occasionally linked. Even as a softly-spoken, bespectacled elder pundit slightly later in life, O’Neill often did not get the respect he deserved. As part of a three-person panel at the 2014 World Cup covering France v Switzerland, O’Neill briefly found himself as the butt of a joke, only to remind Fabio Cannavaro and Patrick Vieira that “despite the fact that there are two World Cup winners [here], actually when it comes to [Bigger Cup], which used to be the European Cup, I’ve won two of them. I’d just like to know, how many have you two have won?’” It’s zero, by the way.

It seems that O’Neill, actually 73, is belatedly getting his flowers, back in interim charge of his beloved Celtic and surely the best caretaker since Will Hunting. Given how he was able to silence Cannavaro and Vieira and keep that twinkle in his eye, it is perhaps not a surprise that O’Neill was able to kickstart Johnny Kenny into goalscoring form. His record since being parachuted back into Parkhead: played seven, won six. Scored 18, conceded six, including an Old Firm win over Rangers in the League Cup semi-final, tricky away victories at St Mirren and Hibernian, and a famous victory at Feyenoord in Bigger Vase.

O’Neill confirmed on Monday that Wednesday’s Scottish Premiership match against Dundee will be his final match in charge, with Wilfried Nancy arriving from Columbus Crew to assume the hot seat. Many fans have urged O’Neill to stay on for an important run of fixtures before Christmas – the visit of league leaders Hearts on Sunday, a crucial Bigger Vase game against Roma, the Scottish League Cup final against St Mirren at Hampden – but he has insisted he will step aside.

Regardless, O’Neill has only furthered his legend at Celtic with this second stint in charge, although he revealed following Sunday’s win at Hibs that when he turned up, “Half the team wouldn’t have known who I was. They’re thinking, ‘this gentleman has arrived, quite old, grey hair. Who is he? And has Father Christmas come early?’ But it’s reinvigorated me, being around young people. I’ll go back into the sunset, finish off that coffee I was having down the King’s Road [in Belfast] four odd weeks ago, and watch from a distance.” Go well, Martin!

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QUOTE OF THE DAY

“As predicted, [the IOPC report] confirms what survivors and families knew all along – David Duckenfield is a liar. His first thought as he stood over Liverpool fans, watching them fight for their lives, was to blame them and protect himself. Despite multiple opportunities over the course of 25 years … he chose to remain silent and watch as we fought for justice, truth and accountability. We reiterate again today that we do not accept his apology” – Charlotte Hennessy, whose father, James, was among the 97 people unlawfully killed at Hillsborough in 1989, speaks out after an Independent Office of Police Conduct report confirmed Duckenfield and 11 other officers would have faced gross misconduct charges for failings around the disaster, had they not already retired.

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Charlotte Hennessy (left) and Margaret Aspinall speak to press after the release of the IOPC report.

Although Krishna Moorthy (Monday’s Football Daily letters) points out that Billy Bonds declined an offer from Spurs, he did accept the challenge of crossing the Thames to take the manager’s job at Millwall. Despite his history at our biggest local rivals, Millwall fans will eternally be grateful to Bonds for signing two club legends in Neil Harris and Tim Cahill. May he rest in peace” – Michael Lloyd.

In the old days in the Kippax at Maine Road, there was a supporter who booed the Manchester City players during their prematch kickabout. He knew he was going to be disappointed so was getting his retaliation in first” – John Steele.

As a lifelong Spurs fan (and shareholder) I’m not booing ... I’m crying. The players are clearly giving 100%. The problem is not effort, but talent. Unless all of our recent managers have been duffers, the issue seems to be the players aren’t quite at it” – Chris Brown.

Are we sure Spurs fans were not fainting in horror, rather than booing, given that according to Barry Glendenning, Vicario’s ‘rush of blood to the head led to him charging out of his penalty area like a headless chicken’?” – Neil Rose.

Nestling in the nether regions of the Scottish Highland League is a team called Keith. Hello, Keith. Never fails to bring a chuckle. How about if Football Daily readers clubbed together to buy another Highland League club (maybe bottom side Rothes), chucked a bit of money their way and then changed their name to Kevin. How much fun to be had when Keith v Kevin pops up on the fixture list, how we would laugh. Come on Football Daily readers, send me your cheques and postal orders, let’s make it happen” – John Collins (not that one).

Send letters to [email protected]. Today’s prizeless letter o’ the day winner is … John Steele, who wins a copy of Mary Earps: All In. It caused a bit of a stir, you may remember.