The Celtic first team are under immense pressure heading into the Premier Sports Cup final against St Mirren this afternoon.
Celtic’s defeats to Hearts and Roma have made this Hampden showpiece match even more crucial for Wilfried Nancy to win especially after all the negativity surrounding the new Hoops boss’ first two results.
The start of Nancy’s Celtic tenure has been fraught with some over-the-top headlines, criticism and, in parts, very strange pundit takes, as the Hoops boss has been ridiculed by some in the media.
Rate your optimism for Wilfried Nancy out of ten…
And responding to that, Anthony Ralston has shared how he and his Celtic teammates are coping with it all ahead of the Premier Sports Cup final showdown with St Mirren.
Anthony Ralston says the Celtic team are ‘very much together’ ahead of St Mirren game
The Celtic fullback has seen just 28 minutes of first team football under Nancy’s tenure, but despite that, Ralston has said that he and the rest of the Bhoys are firmly behind the new manager.
Ralston told The Herald, “There has been a change of manager, a change of staff and a slight change in the system.
“But it is the same group of players who have brought so much success to the club. You need to be able to adapt in these moments, and I believe that we will be able to do so.
“You need to take in all the information that you can. What is expected of us has all been explained as clearly as possible, and it is up to the boys to go out onto the pitch and implement that.
What changes are you making to our predicted XI?
“That is our job. It has been a change, but we need to adapt to it and we need to get on with it.
“Being in the squad and in the changing room every day I don’t see a change in the team. I don’t see it out on the pitch either. I feel we are very much together. There is a cohesion.
“There maybe is a slight dip in confidence when a couple of results go against you. We are only human. But there is also an extra will to go on and change things because that is the mindset we need to have.”
What Wilfried Nancy has said about Celtic vs St Mirren Premier Sports Cup final
Nancy has the chance to shut his critics up with a win against St Mirren at Hampden to lift the first trophy of his Celtic career.
The former Columbus Crew boss has tasted victory in a final with the MLS club and will be keen to add the League Cup to his honours list.
Speaking ahead of the final, Nancy said, ““I know where we are. I know where we want to go and I know what we need to improve on.
“The fans for me are like the players. The way they are behind us all over the world, you know.
“Everybody knows Celtic and the fans and the atmosphere like I said. Obviously we want to win the trophy for them. They are so important.”
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