By Ronnie McCluskey
Just a year ago, the idea that Martin O’Neill could return to Celtic as manager would have been deemed preposterous. But with the great man having just delivered the most remarkable of league titles, and with the very real prospect of securing a double this weekend, we have to ask ourselves whether we actually want to bid him farewell.
They say management is a young man’s game, but Martin has made a mockery of that adage not once but twice this season. In October he parachuted into the hot-seat to save our season after the rot had set in, guiding us to seven wins from eight including a 3-1 derby victory, a first European away triumph in four years, and an important win at Easter Road.
After the Wilfried Nancy debacle saw us lose four consecutive games for the first time since 1978, not to mention collapse embarrassingly in a cup final, O’Neill was once again handed the task of rejuvenating a misfiring team and galvanising supporters. His reign started as the previous cameo had begun, with a thumping 4-0 win. From winning just two in eight, Celtic went unbeaten in ten across three competitions. Despair turned to hope. The dream was resurrected.
What Martin O’Neill did for Celtic this season will become the stuff of legend. Decades down the line, fans who lived through it will eulogise his achievements, his calm, steely demeanour on the touchline, comportment at odds with the often chirpy figure who asked journalists “How are you, young man?” in press conferences. The goals of Daizen Maeda and Benjamin Nygren may get a passing mention, but O’Neill will be the cynosure of any anecdote about Celtic’s astonishing comeback to claim the 25/26 title.
After the heroics of the last seven days, clinching the Scottish Cup will feel like a bonus, a pleasant coda to the latest O’Neill era. The glorious narrative has already been written, regardless of what happens at Hampden. But to return to the original question, do we actually want to say goodbye or appoint him on a permanent basis?
There are a few schools of thought on this. One: why deny the cinematic appeal of the fairytale ending? It’s hard to fathom a more perfect denouement, particularly if we do win the double on Saturday. Two: why not? His legacy is set in stone, his managerial talents are obvious, and if he wants the job, he’s more than earned it.
I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels ambivalent about this. And so in an attempt to clarify my own thoughts, I sought the opinion of some pals in our Julián Araujo CSC WhatsApp chat. ‘I’d take him for another season IF it’s due to managerial pool availability,’ said one. ‘We’ve got the perfect emotional send-off teed up now after next Saturday, why throw it away,’ said another. ‘It would send out all the wrong signals at a club that’s already stuck in the past in so many ways.’
While I understand both perspectives, and can’t deny the Hollywood aspect of O’Neill departing after an iconic double, I’d be inclined to offer him a two-year deal. Contingent, of course, on a proper plan of attack for summer transfer business. No-one can deny the squad needs serious reform.
I recognise the hypocrisy of supporting this course of action while also inwardly judging the board for considering it. Offering O’Neill the job is both the most obvious thing to do and the laziest thing to do, a move that tugs on the heartstrings and saves the board the trouble of identifying and recruiting a replacement. I am sure the executives are desperate to piggy-back on the manager’s popularity, to blunt the impact of the justified criticism they have received by basking in his reflected adulation. But at the same time, if the decision lay in my hands, I would want to keep him at Parkhead and give him the tools required to build on this season’s success.
Martin O’Neill is not a young man; he’s one of very few septuagenarian managers in world football. Ironically, one of the others is his old counterpart Dick Advocaat, who has just been rehired as Curaçao boss. Next month, the 78-year-old Dutchman will become the oldest coach in the 96-year history of the World Cup.
Personally, I believe managers should be judged on their capacity to win games of football, not the date on their birth certificate. Whatever happened to the notion that age confers wisdom and discernment rather than calcifying views, shutting off ideas? Every old person knows what it’s like to be young, the saying goes, but no young person knows what it’s like to be old.
Martin O’Neill has wisdom and discernment in spades, and if the board do their job as capably as he has done his, this magical story might yet have another chapter.
In all of this, we have not actually considered whether O’Neill wants the job, although his recent remarks about discussing the future after Saturday’s final suggests he’s at least open to the idea. And why shouldn’t he be? In the aftermath of the title win, he said Celtic had given him “reasons to live.” He admitted to being jealous when watching Brendan lead us to the trophy last season and referred to Celtic Park as “the most special place on earth.” Clearly, he is living his own kind of fantastical dream at the moment.
If, however, that dream is about to end, the great man’s last stint as manager – winning a fourth league title 21 years after his third – has burnished his legacy and enriched the lore of Celtic Football Club in an unforgettable way. No-one will forget the way he singlehandedly put our season on life-support and doggedly led us over the finish line, nor the way his bold tactical substitutions in the title decider bore fruit.
Legends rarely get to write their own ending. Maybe this time, Celtic should let O’Neill do just that.
Yes. He’s Desmond’s apologist.