Celtic’s defeat to Stuttgart highlighted many things.
Firstly that Celtic fans aren’t happy, as evidenced by the kick-off protests and general lack of noise in the stadium through night.
It also showed that Martin O’Neill is no miracle worker. Celtic were individually second-best on the night against a high-quality Europa League opposition.
Speaking on CBS Sports in the USA, Chris Whittyngham picked the situation apart, saying: “We talked about Brendan Rodgers, we talked about Wilfried Nancy, we talked about Martin O’Neill taking over twice.
“This is a squad that got rid of Nicolas Kuhn, who is now at Como. A squad that has gotten rid of multiple players that led them in this period…
“When they did really well last year in the Champions League, made it to the knockout round and competed with Bayern until the very last minute of the tie.
“This is not that team anymore. They just don’t have the same level of talent.”
After seeing the protests at Celtic Park, did you agree with them?
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USA pundits on Celtic vs Stuttgart
Celtic fans don’t need to be told about the impact of Brendan Rodgers and Wilfried Nancy this season, as it was a continuation of a trend that had already started.
But whilst O’Neill may have enough to get the team over the line domestically, it’s a different challenge against teams of Stuttgart’s level.
READ MORE: Simon Jordan questions ‘silly’ Ross Desmond, tells Celtic to speak with fans
Whittyngham was keen to stress this, saying: “Going into this game, I just looked at this tie and thought: ‘Stuttgart are just flatly better’.
“We’ve seen [Stuttgart], at their best, in the home games that they’ve showed. The talent level… there is a disparity, and that showed today.
“That’s the one thing that no coach can mask. Celtic have taken significant steps backwards, year after year, in terms of the talent that they have in their squad, and Stuttgart revealed that today.”
Ex-USA striker Charlie Davies then said: “Brendan Rodgers fell out with the board, because he had bigger plans for Celtic.
“He had to take in a lot of new players, and maybe move on from some of the players that they already have.
“That breaks down. Wilfried Nancy comes in, and that was more of a tactical input that went completely the wrong way, with the wrong decisions on how to play and changing formation, on top of not having the quality.
“Martin O’Neill said: ‘I’m going to get the best out of what I have’, and get players to be bought in – and he did – but at this level, there’s only so much you can do with fight and determination and heart.
“Because in the end, if the team that you’re playing against brings that, then the quality is what you rely on. And Stuttgart has much more quality than Celtic.”
How do Celtic fans get the board to listen to their concerns?
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Who is to blame for Celtic’s defeat to Stuttgart?
The situation that led to Rodgers’ departure is still there, regardless of how much the club may think it isn’t.
If a panel of US experts can tell the Celtic reality from afar, then it should be pretty obvious to anyone inside the club.
After the departure of Paul Tisdale, the club will now need to build a new football structure if they want to continue with a ‘head of football operations’ model.
There have even been calls from some for O’Neill to take that kind of role, though his comments on fans Thursday may change some minds.
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