Tom English completely dismissed Martin O’Neill after Celtic’s defeat to Midtjylland. Months later, O’Neill ended the season with a domestic double.
Now Celtic have secured a domestic double, those comments have aged terribly after O’Neill’s success this season was confirmed at Hampden.
And on reflection, English will look back on these comments and cringe.
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Tom English went too early on Celtic boss Martin O’Neill
During O’Neill’s first interim tenure as Celtic boss this season, he suffered a 3-1 defeat to FC Midtjylland. That was back in November.
But the BBC reporter was clear in his feelings back then on the temporary Celtic manager.
Speaking on BBC Sportsound after the European loss, English said: “The whole ‘Martin O’Neill Effect’ thing was so overblown by so many people.
“His team beat a poor Falkirk and took extra-time to beat a 10-man Rangers. Some small signs of improvement along the way, but it was hugely exaggerated.
“Celtic’s record in Europe, particularly away from home in Europe, is an abomination and another grim chapter is getting written tonight.”
No Celtic supporter was pretending the defeat to Midtjylland was acceptable. European away performances had become a genuine issue and criticism was fair after another damaging result.
What now looks excessive is the attempt to completely dismiss the impact O’Neill was already beginning to have on the squad.
Managers are judged far too quickly at Celtic. One poor result instantly becomes proof that nothing has changed. One difficult European night suddenly wipes out every sign of progress elsewhere.
Celtic’s double changed the conversation completely
The reality is simple. O’Neill answered the criticism in the best way possible by winning trophies.
Celtic recovered from that difficult European moment and finished the campaign with a domestic double. That achievement alone makes the idea that the “Martin O’Neill Effect” was exaggerated look difficult to defend now.
This is why reactions around Celtic can become so over the top. The pressure is enormous and every setback gets treated like a full blown crisis.
O’Neill did not need to win every European away game overnight to prove he was improving Celtic. He just needed to build a winning team again.
By the end of the season, the silverware spoke far louder than the criticism ever did.
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