Martin O’Neill’s unlikely Celtic return was a fairytale one.
Coming in to replace Brendan Rodgers on short notice, O’Neill delivered some unforgettable wins, finishing his interim spell with a record of seven victories in eight.
It didn’t end how most wanted it to, with Wilfried Nancy abruptly taking over ahead of the biggest week of the Hoops’ season.
But Nancy’s struggle for results has only made O’Neill’s record look more impressive with time.
The day he was offered the job, O’Neill had been on talkSPORT with Jim White and Simon Jordan – and White has revealed discussions with the Celtic hierarchy.
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Jim White on ex-Celtic boss Martin O’Neill
Aged 73, O’Neill had been out of work for six years, and certainly wasn’t expected by anyone to return to Celtic.
So it perhaps isn’t a surprise that the club did their due diligence before offering him a chance to return.
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That’s what White has revealed on the radio network, discussing his conversation with a member of the Celtic hierarchy about O’Neill.
He said: “Somebody came up to me in the office there, Simon…
“They said, ‘in terms of your biggest achievement – yours and Simons – what do you think your biggest achievement was in 2025?
“And I said, ‘undoubtedly, getting Martin O’Neill back in management.’ We did well there, did we not? We did well.
“We were approached by these people, Martin. We said, ‘go for it, Celtic. Go for it, mister Celtic hierarchy.'”
“He will not let you down.”
O’Neill was in the studio when White said this, and made sure to show his gratitude to White for his role in getting him back to Glasgow.
The Hoops legend hasn’t ruled out another return to management.
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Martin O’Neill’s Celtic return
O’Neill had a whirlwind start to life back at Celtic, guiding the team to a 4-0 win over Falkirk after less than 48 hours in the job.
He had the small matter of a Glasgow Derby semi-final just days later, and again guided the team to victory, albeit in extra time.
Domestic wins over Kilmarnock, St Mirren and Hibs were representative of a team with a new-found confidence, as O’Neill closed a seven-point gap to league leaders Hearts.
But the best night of his spell was surely the 2-1 win over Feyenoord in Rotterdam, Celtic’s first win in the Netherlands since O’Neill himself beat Ajax in 2001.
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