Celtic chief executive Michael Nicholson has given his backing to Martin O’Neill in the wake of three successive defeats that left the veteran manager considering his future.
O’Neill admitted that he would “reflect” on his own position after a damaging week which saw back-to-back Old Firm defeats to Rangers sandwiched by a 3-1 home loss at the hands of Ferencvaros in the Europa League.
Addressing recent events, the Celtic CEO stated: “We owe a debt of gratitude to Martin O’Neill and his management team, who stepped up for Celtic, twice, and who guided the team to success.
“We were therefore delighted that Martin agreed to lead the Club again this season and we have worked with Martin and his team over the summer transfer window to invest in the squad. Having started well in the Premiership this season, we experienced disappointment in the UEFA Champions League play-off. Reaching the league phase of the Champions League is an objective for us all, and we are sorry not to have achieved it.
His post-match comments and demeanour after the 1-0 derby reverse at Celtic Park on Sunday led to speculation that the 74-year-old could decide to step down over the international break.
However, in a statement accompanying the club’s latest financial report, Nicholson indicated that the immediate plan was to “come together and support Martin”.
Addressing recent events, the Celtic CEO stated: “We owe a debt of gratitude to Martin O’Neill and his management team, who stepped up for Celtic, twice, and who guided the team to success.
“We were therefore delighted that Martin agreed to lead the Club again this season and we have worked with Martin and his team over the summer transfer window to invest in the squad. Having started well in the Premiership this season, we experienced disappointment in the UEFA Champions League play-off. Reaching the league phase of the Champions League is an objective for us all, and we are sorry not to have achieved it.
“On top of that, the losses in the last week have been painful for us all. We will now come together and support Martin and the players, as we focus our efforts on achieving success domestically and in the Europa League.”
O’Neill was appointed permanent manager in the summer after leading Celtic to a league and Scottish Cup double last season after twice stepping into the breach to replace Brendan Rodgers and Wilfried Nancy.
Celtic currently hold a two-point lead over Rangers at the top of the Premiership after seven matches but the defeats by Rangers, on the back of the Champions League capitulation against LASK, has raised concerns. Whether O’Neill may still choose to walk remains to be seen.
The position of Celtic chairman was also addressed in the report with the current interim, Brian Wilson, revealing that the club is working to identify his permanent successor.
“I was asked by colleagues to step into the role of Interim Chairman and have done my best to bring people together in order to maximise the team’s prospects of success and to encourage improvement in areas where we could have been doing better including communication and supporter engagement. This work is ongoing,” he stated.
Wilson also addressed the financial results which saw Celtic announce a loss after tax of £4.8m for the year ending June 30, 12 months on from making a profit of £33.9m. The figures also show that revenue reduced by 22.7 per cent to £111m (£143.6m in 2025), with the bank balance now sitting at £66.4m, down from £77.3m in 2025.
Wilson said the drop in revenue was “primarily as a result of dropping into the Europa League as compared to the Champions League in the prior year.”
He blamed the fall from profit to loss on “a combination of revenue decline, an increase in operating expenses primarily through wages and salaries, a reduction in gains from player trading to £16.0m (2025: £31.5m), and an increase in amortisation to £15.4m from £13.8m in 2025.”
Describing the campaign as “more turbulent than anyone would have wished for”, Wilson went on to say that Celtic spent £31.6m on new signings this summer but did not did not reveal how much had been made from the sale of players, including Daizen Maeda, Arne Engels and Reo Hatate.
“The events of the past 12 months have been dramatic, sometimes joyful and at other points deeply frustrating,” added Wilson.
“The departure of Brendan Rodgers was an unanticipated event which initiated a period of instability. In other circumstances, the appointment of Wilfried Nancy might have worked but his arrival in mid-season and the changes which followed clearly did not.
“Parting ways with Wilfried was hugely disappointing but decisive action had to be taken. The return of the great Martin O’Neill, supported by his backroom team as well as a fine squad of players, then proved to be a triumphant success.”
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