Celtic face perhaps their most important game of the season so far when they take on the Premiership leaders Hearts on Sunday at Tynecastle.
Martin O’Neill has been lauded and applauded for the job he has done at Celtic this season, given the troubles under Wilfried Nancy and even Brendan Rodgers at the start of the campaign.
To nobody’s surprise, O’Neill has kept it simple, and it has resulted in Celtic winning game after game, especially on the domestic front.
Celtic’s legendary coach has rightfully been applauded for it, but Darren O’Dea thinks what he has done with the defence deserves more recognition.
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Celtic defensively under Martin O’Neill
Under Nancy, Celtic were an utter mess from a defensive aspect, not even being able to keep a clean sheet against ten-man Aberdeen.
Yes, key players have been missing – Cameron Carter-Vickers and Alistair Johnston, in particular – but that has been for all three coaches this season.
But O’Dea told Go Radio that O’Neill has improved Celtic from a defensive aspect, but it has ‘gone under the radar’, including how the team is keeping clean sheets ‘the vast majority’ of the time.’
“I think the thing that goes under the radar with Martin O’Neill,” said O’Dea. “How many games has he had? The vast majority of them are clean sheets. They don’t concede.
“I am talking about, particularly domestically. They were playing St Mirren away when Callum McGregor scored late. Falkirk, who were excellent.
“They just stay in games. That’s what I am talking about, the mentality. Usually at Celtic, certainly in the last few years, it’s to go after teams. To go and play with a certain style.
“Nancy came in and tried to do that. Martin has come in with the experience he has.”
Celtic’s defensive record under Brendan Rodgers, Wilfried Nancy and O’Neill
Yes, Celtic were playing some dire football under Rodgers at the start of the campaign, but his issues were more off the field.
The same couldn’t be said for the man who effectively replaced him. Nancy’s 33-day reign was a nightmare, and the defensive side was the worst of the lot.
But as O’Dea touched upon, it has been far better under O’Neill, and this is how their records stack up against each other this season:
- Rodgers’ games: 16
- Goals conceded: 13
- Clean sheets: 8
- Nancy’s games: 8
- Goals conceded: 18
- Clean sheets: 0
- O’Neill’s games: 12
- Goals conceded: 8
- Clean sheets: 7
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