Club Brugge boss Nicky Hayen directly addresses rumours linking him to Celtic job

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Club Brugge boss Nicky Hayen has addressed rumours linking him to the Celtic manager’s job and admits just one thing.

Martin O’Neill got off to a flyer as he bossed Celtic’s hammering of Falkirk in his first game in temporary charge at Parkhead.

However, Celtic are still looking for someone to take permanent charge of the club after O’Neill admitted that his role at Paradise is only temporary.

Celtic appear to want Hayen as the man to take over permanently from the departed Brendan Rodgers and after the Brugge boss watched his team hammer Eendracht Aalst 6-1 last night, he was asked about the Hoops rumour.

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Nicky Hayen shares his ‘goal’ at Club Brugge as he addresses Celtic rumours

Hayen is highly rated at Brugge and is well on track to win the title this season. But after his latest victory, the Belgian boss was asked about the Celtic rumour and he refused to rule it out.

Hayen told Sporza, “I’ve said before that I know I’m on lists, although I don’t know which ones.

“As long as nothing is concrete, I don’t need to know about it. I’m happy here and I want to work hard to win the 20th national title. That’s still my goal.

“Never say never in football, but I’m happy here. As long as you have mutual trust between the club and me, there’s nothing wrong.”

Nicky Hayen’s record at Club Brugge as Celtic’s managerial search continues

Hayen took charge of Brugge last season and has faced Celtic in the Champions League in the 1-1 draw at Celtic Park back in November 2024.

Since then, he has finished second in the Belgian League and is just three points behind Union Saint-Gilloise this season.

So here is how Hayen’s managerial record at Brugge looks so far:

A very decent win percentage of 60.75 and an average of 1.97 goals per game are stats that would appeal to Celtic supporters as the search for a new manager continues.