Martin O’Neill is the oldest active manager in the United Kingdom.
But since returning to Celtic, O’Neill has made an absolute mockery of the idea that football has ‘moved on’ from the great managers of his era.
Alongside younger coaches Shaun Maloney, Mark Fotheringham and Stephen McManus, O’Neill struck a balance in his first interim spell that was then desperately lacking under Wilfried Nancy.
His seven wins in eight matches reinstalled some much-needed confidence in a Celtic team which had been seriously struggling for consistency.
How did he do it though? Charlie Mulgrew has shared the insight he has received from the Hoops boss.
Charlie Mulgrew on Celtic boss Martin O’Neill
In more ways than one, Nancy and O’Neill are polar opposites.
Where Nancy came from outside the Glasgow goldfish bowl with a radically different approach to coaching and communication, O’Neill couldn’t have more knowledge of the Celtic landscape.
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And sharing what he heard in a past encounter with O’Neill, Mulgrew told the Go Radio Football Show exactly how he operates.
He said: “Martin O’Neill knows the game, there’s no doubt about that. He understands the game.
“He might not get bogged down on exactly how he wants his team to play, but the players will understand, from the words he says, what he wants from them.
“He’s got people in the building, like Shaun Maloney, who loves his tactical side of the game. He’ll take the players aside and show them.
“Mark Fotheringham, I’m sure, as a young coach, will have learned that side of the game as well – he’ll be into his tactics and stuff.
“And it take many people – McManus as well. So Martin O’Neill’s got a good staff there.
“But it doesn’t mean to say that he’s either a tactical manager or a man-manager, as if you can’t be both.
“All the best in the world, in my opinion… Pep Guardiola can do both, you can go through them all. My point is: Martin O’Neill knows the game.
“You can’t cover everything, so his main thing is how he manages people and gets people motivated. I’ve spoken to Martin O’Neill before. I asked him advice on management and coaching when I was doing my coaching badges, I met him at an event.
“He saves his energy for matchdays. A big part of being a coach, I feel, is the energy you give off. That can be different kinds of energy, it doesn’t always need to be 100 miles an hour.
“Martin O’Neill chooses to use that to motivate his players. He’s got people around about him that can do the tactical side of things.
“I don’t think these guys don’t know the game. They just choose to manage in their own way.”
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What changes will Martin O’Neill make for Celtic against Dundee United?
Liam Scales had virtually played every game for Celtic until Nancy dropped him against Dundee United – given his form under O’Neill, he seems the most likely to return to the side on Saturday.
Anthony Ralston had been struggling with his form in an unfamiliar wide centre-back role. With Julian Araujo in the door, Ralston now has more competition for his place in the side.
Sebastian Tounekti and Michel-Ange Balikwisha are both back in the building after AFCON, bolstering Celtic’s wide options.
If one of that pair starts, we could see Daizen Maeda put back into a central role in place of Johnny Kenny.
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