Celtic’s Magic Man: Martin O’Neill

Celtic’s Magic Man: Martin O’Neill

Martin O’Neill is back in the Celtic dugout once again, so we took a look back at why he is regarded so highly at Parkhead.

Martin O'Neill is one of the names synonymous with Celtic football club and is possibly one of the most well-liked figures in the fanbase. After the disaster of John Barnes, where Celtic finished 21 points behind Rangers, O’Neill came in as manager in June 2000. In his first season, he beat Rangers 6-2, the biggest margin of victory over Rangers since the 1957 Scottish League Cup Final.

O’Neill also completed the infamous domestic treble, a feat that hadn’t been accomplished by Celtic since 1968-69. In 2002, he retained the league title, and the follow season, guided Celtic to their first European final since 1970, eventually losing to Jose Mourinho’s Porto in the final.

O’Neill still boasts the club’s highest managerial win rate of 75.5% and announced he would resign at the end of the 2004-05 season, to care for his wife, who had Lymphoma. O’Neill bowed out with yet another Scottish Cup win over Dundee United, cementing his legend status at Paradise.

By many, he is regarded just as highly as the greats of Celtic football club like Josh Stein, Jimmy Johnstone, and Henrik Larsson. So, can the 73-year-old step up again for Celtic in a time of dire need after Wilfried Nancy's disasterclass?