Sam Allardyce was one of the very first to unleash on Wilfried Nancy when he joined Celtic in December.
Celtic were beaten by Hearts in Nancy’s first game in charge, and the call to not keep Martin O’Neill on board, as well as the new manager using a tactics board, seemed to irk Allardyce.
The former England manager even called Nancy a ‘schoolteacher’, as his 33-day reign proceeded to turn into a nightmare, and then came to an end on Monday.
Now all of that is over, and O’Neill is back in the Celtic dugout. Allardyce addressed matters at Celtic on his latest podcast.
What do you think is the main reason Wilfried Nancy couldn’t buy a win as Celtic manager? 🤔
The stats are damning…
Sam Allardyce reacts to Martin O’Neill’s return to Celtic
Speaking on The No Tippy Tappy Podcast, Allardyce suggested that O’Neill looked ‘slightly disappointed’ when he was on talkSPORT talking about Celtic after he left the first time around.
Allardyce also spoke about the ‘difficult’ nature of making the call that the Celtic board did.
Natalie Pike: “73-year-old Martin O’Neill is back at Celtic. Predicted by us here.”
Allardyce: “On talkSPORT, he sounded slightly disappointed, to me, reading between the lines on how it was done.
“By the fact that they didn’t ask him to see it through to the end of the season. Then bring in the new manager, especially when you have won seven out of eight.
“Lo and behold, the selection process of directors is very difficult for them to pick a new coach now.
“They aren’t just looking at coaches, ‘you are supposed to have this. He’s this type of coach. He’s that type of coach. He’s innovative. Forward-thinking.’”
Pike: “Imagine it comes to Celtic, they will do whatever Martin O’Neill wants.”
Allardyce: “Martin O’Neill. Good luck to him. Class.”
Would you follow these steps if you were on the Celtic board too?
Dean Saunders and Allardyce on Wilfried Nancy’s Celtic spell
Celtic fans are now breathing a sigh of relief that O’Neill is back in the dugout, and hopefully, it can result in the team getting back to winning ways.
Dean Saunders and Allardyce continued their plaudits of O’Neill, and how he is the ‘opposite’ of what you see in the dugout in the modern game.
Dean Saunders: “Martin O’Neill is an intelligent, experienced and proven manager. I don’t think they could have predicted it to go as badly as it did.”
Allardyce: “There are times new managers have to be given a new chance and earn the opportunity that they get.
“Then there are times, wherever you are, you can’t beat experience. But I would never have said that when I was 30-odd, looking for a job. It’s time to get me in.
“Understanding what’s needed comes with experience.”
Pike: “I think Wilfried Nancy’s biggest mistake was not keeping Martin O’Neill on for a few days and a few weeks.”
Allardyce: “Martin is the opposite of what people think a coach should be now. He isn’t. He is a man-manager. He is an organiser. He has a superb and a quick brain.”
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