Chris Sutton has warned Celtic that they must provide the conditions for Martin O’Neill to remain successful.
We are currently awaiting the confirmation of O’Neill’s permanent extension as Celtic manager, with the 74-year-old expected to sign a one-year deal with the option of another.
The news is a surprise to some, given the extent of the rebuild that awaits Celtic this summer. Many players are expected to move on.
For Sutton, the club can’t afford to continue in their old ways, regardless of who the manager is.
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Chris Sutton: Martin O’Neill needs ‘proper backing’ at Celtic
Sutton wrote in his column for the Daily Record: “O’Neill covered a multitude of sins last term and he bought Celtic more time to sort themselves out off the pitch again.
“I would argue a lot of those things should have been well underway by now.
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“A new head of football operations, a director of sport, or whatever you want to call it, should have been sourced and in place on the Monday after the season finished.
“The revamped recruitment team should have been up and running to give Celtic the best chance of avoiding the shambles of the last couple of windows.
“O’Neill managed to achieve what I thought was impossible last season but the board can’t just assume he’ll be a miracle worker again this time.
“He will need proper backing. There could be a huge turnover of players this summer and several key men could go.
“It would be nice to hear from someone at Celtic what the grand plan might be. Who is going to be leading the recruitment? Who is going to be responsible for incomings?
“There can’t be a repeat of the January nonsense with O’Neill and Shaun Maloney hammering the phones all day and watching clips sent in by agents.
“That’s no way for a modern football club to behave and you see how those January arrivals fared.
“Celtic supporters have stumped up yet again for season tickets and I am sure most will be delighted O’Neill is sticking around – even if they are concerned about how the club got here in the first place.
“They deserve to know what is going on and the direction of travel. They’d stumped up for season tickets again but it’s out of blind loyalty because no one had told them what’s going on.”
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Martin O’Neill’s impact in the 2025-26 season at Celtic
Upon the sudden resignation of Brendan Rodgers, we were also given the news that O’Neill would return to Glasgow after six years away from football management.
Any questions over his age were completely quashed as the Hoops won seven of their eight games under his interim charge… only to make way for the disastrous reign of Wilfried Nancy.
Upon his return, the team’s form picked up again, but a league and cup double looked a long shot.
23 games, 19 wins and just two defeats later… O’Neill delivered a double that nobody foresaw… or wanted, outside of Celtic Park.
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