Report: Celtic do have interest in Jesse Marsch after this week's comments

By John McGinley

March 18, 2021

Jesse Marsch is indeed on the radar of Celtic.

The Scottish Sun reports that senior people at the club are aware and have admiration for the RB Salzburg boss as they look for a new permanent manager following Neil Lennon’s exit.

Marsch created headlines in Scotland yesterday after an interview with the BBC in which he stated interest in the vacant managerial job at Celtic.

Some voices have looked to quell the prospect of Marsch taking over at the Bhoys since then, believing he is destined for the German Bundesliga.

However, Marsch comments were more than the usual diplomatic pandering to Celtic. Now, we know that the club board also have Marsch in mind as they consider the next steps.

There’s a compelling, but ultimately harsh, narrative that Celtic as a club have little knowledge of football outside of Scotland and may settle for an ineffective ‘big name’ rather than an up-and-coming manager.

However, it’s no surprise to hear that Marsch is a name well known inside Celtic Park. It’s already been extensively reported that the club sponsored his coaching course at the Scottish FA a few years ago.

They’ll know exactly who Marsch is, his ambition, potential career path, strengths and weaknesses.

One of Celtic’s director of football candidates has also touted Marsch for the job recently. In the immediate aftermath of Lennon’s exit, he was one of the first names mentioned by John Collins as a potential successor.

Speaking to talkSPORT on 27th February (9am), Collins said: “A name I’ll throw into the hat; Jesse Marsch. Sometimes when you sit and watch the Champions League on Tuesday or Wednesday nights, you see a performance that sticks with you.

“I remember watching (Salzburg) play at Anfield; 3-0 down after 36 minutes. They brought it back to 3-3 and lost 4-3 and I thought; ‘wow, that’s a good football coach.’

“Probably people in England have never seen Salzburg but that performance stuck in my mind.”

Jesse Marsch has spoken about the Celtic job / (Photo by David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)

Collins on the record stating he wants the director of football role at the club, which makes all of this fit in an interesting web!

Are we dreaming when talking up Marsch’s chances for the job? Possibly. But there’s no harm in that as supporters. We should be wanting the absolute best for the club and urging the powers at be to at least try for that.

In other news, Marvin Bartley wants Celtic to consider Valerien Ismael for the job.