Wilfried Nancy took charge of his first Celtic game in front of a packed Parkhead stadium on Sunday.
And while his Celtic side losing to Hearts was clearly not on the agenda, Nancy got to sample the famous Celtic Park atmosphere, albeit it was minus the Green Brigade.
The new Hoops boss had to deal with his first game without the Ultras after Celtic banned the Green Brigade indefinitely in a decision that looks ridiculous now considering the number of huge games coming up for Nancy.
In all honesty, the Celtic Park atmosphere was somewhat muted without the Green Brigade but as the voices of dissent grew louder as the Hearts defeat closed in, how did Nancy find the experience in his first game in charge?
- READ MORE: Celtic hero Pat Bonner forces ex-Hearts man into embarrassing climbdown over Wilfried Nancy rant
Wilfried Nancy says the Celtic Park atmosphere was ‘spot on’
Celtic fans strangely booed the team at half time after Hearts took a surprise lead against the run of play and some even started leaving after the second goal went in.
And as frustration and anger boiled over during the game, Nancy said he ‘loved it’ after being asked what he thought of the Celtic Park atmosphere.
Nancy told BBC Radio Scotland, “I love it. I love it. Because again, this is the passion.
“This is the passion from the club, this is the passion from the fans, and I do the job for that. So again, but me, the most important is to be focused on the pitch. These are the players, that I can control.
Are you concerned by Wilfried Nancy’s post-match comments?
“After that, yes, we want to give emotion to the fans, and they have the right to challenge us and to support us.
“So, but I’m fine with that, and the atmosphere was spot on. Spot on. When we were close to scoring, and when we wanted to come from behind, yes, they push us and they challenge us, but this is part of the situation.”
Wilfried Nancy’s next three games can change the narrative on new Celtic boss
Celtic’s next fixture is against Roma and not many supporters will give Nancy any chance of getting a result, despite the Europa League tie being at home.
However, the Premier Sports Cup final against St Mirren could be the catalyst to change the perception of Nancy at Celtic.
Picking up the first trophy of the season will be a huge boost and inject confidence into Celtic ahead of the visit of Aberdeen on the 21st of December.
If Celtic can avoid defeat against Roma, win the cup and beat Aberdeen, then things will start to look rosy in Nancy’s garden and the initial over-reaction to the Hearts defeat will make a lot of people look a wee bit daft.
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