Ronny Deila could be on our screens at this summer’s World Cup.
The Norwegian boss, who led Celtic for two seasons between 2014 and 2016, has had a fairly interesting career path since leaving Glasgow.
After being replaced by Brendan Rodgers, he returned to Norway to spend three years at Valerenga, before joining New York City in MLS.
Deila won the title there, leaving to join Standard Liege, whom he left to join Club Brugge after just one season.
Since being sacked by Brugge, he has had brief spells at Al-Wahda and Atlanta United… but next on the horizon could be his first international role.
The player that has impressed the most since Martin O’Neill’s return is…
Ex-Celtic boss Ronny Deila in talks for World Cup job
The Africa Cup of Nations is often a catalyst for managerial change, sometimes in the middle of the tournament.
Sebastian Tounekti’s Tunisia were eliminated by ten-man Mali in the round of 16, leading manager Sami Trabelsi to pay the ultimate price.
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And now, according to Rudy Galetti, Deila is on the shortlist to replace him and lead Tunisia in North America this summer.
Franck Haise, Olivier Dall’Oglio, Eric Chelle, Walter Mazzarri and Sabri Lamouchi are all also in contention according to the report.
Despite the North African nation’s heritage on the continental stage, they have never qualified for the knockout stages of the World Cup.
At this summer’s World Cup, they are in a tough group alongside Japan, the Netherlands and the winner of the European play-offs between Ukraine, Sweden, Poland and Albania.
Tounekti earned rave reviews at AFCON for his substitute appearance against Nigeria, but wasn’t given a minute in their defeat to Mali.
It’s fair to say that the dismissal of Trabelsi was a popular decision among fans of the Eagles, who won just one of their four games at the tournament.
Sebastian Tounekti’s Celtic career so far
Tounekti completed eight dribbles in his debut in Ayrshire, more than the rest of the Celtic team combined that day. This is the positivity that the Hoops had been crying out for.
He scored his first goal the next week against Partick Thistle, establishing himself as a mainstay in the team under Rodgers. However, he was criticised for a relatively poor number of goals and assists.
After Rodgers’ last game, a 3-1 defeat to Hearts, the Northern Irishman said of Tounekti: “He’s a left-sided player. He doesn’t play off the right. He doesn’t enjoy playing there.”
Fast forward two months, and he was starting a Premier Sports Cup final at right-wing-back under Wilfried Nancy. A lot can change in a few months.
But under O’Neill, he has returned to the left flank, with a greater emphasis of getting the winger one-v-one as quickly as possible.
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