Celtic Board and fans should take note of Martin O’Neill’s job references
Robbie Keane endorsement more than a passing comment
Martin O’Neill has become something of a Joe Duffy figure around Parkhead this season - more lifeline than Liveline perhaps but still a man who can listen and a man to be listened to when Celtic need help.
Twice this season, he answered the call when the Bhoys found themselves in a managerial crisis and looking for a replacement boss, first for Brendan Rodgers and then for the unfortunate Frenchman Wilfried Nancy.
On both occasions, the clear inference was that O’Neill’s return to the dugout was merely a sticking plaster, that the former Ireland boss would not be returning to work on a long-term never mind permanent basis having recently turned 74.
That’s fair enough. O’Neill owes nobody anything in Scottish football. His first stint in Glasgow produced trophies and his third go at the job may yet come with a silver lining before the season concludes in May.
But O’Neill may well have a bearing on what happens when the Celtic players return to work after their summer break. And his words of support for Robbie Keane in recent days may be more significant than a simple answer to a simple question about Robbie’s credentials for the Parkhead job.
O’Neill is not the sort of man to refuse to answer a question. Sometimes, he can take pleasure in twisting the question and turning the expected answer on its head. But more often than not, he speaks from a position of strength, he speaks safe in the knowledge that those who run Celtic will listen to what he says.
So his response when asked about Keane’s suitability for the job should be analysed as the opinion of a man in the know.
Here’s exactly what he said the other day. “Robbie has done really fine at Ferencvaros, so why shouldn’t he be? The club should be looking at someone of that calibre. I don’t know enough about Robbie as a person to say how he’d manage a group in a dressing room, but he’s made a fair fist of it so far.”
That sounds like an endorsement to these ears. As more than one Scottish football commentator has not, it’s the biggest endorsement yet of Robbie Keane’s suitability to return to the club he played for briefly, on loan.
What’s important for Celtic now, as they look to become a real force again, is that Robbie’s reported interest in the job and the Martin O’Neill endorsement are taken seriously.
Keane has proven he can win things in both Israel and Hungary. On Tuesday night his Ferencvaros side welcome Puskas Academy for a huge game in this season’s race to the NB1 crown, on Sunday they go to current league leaders Gyori for a potential title decider.
Celtic need a winner to turn their club back around. They need someone who understands their unique culture. They also need their fans to back the next boss - which is where the O’Neill factor will really come into play.
Robbie Keane can deliver a team on the pitch that will upstand the Celtic traditions with a hunger to match the ambitions of those in the stands.
What he needs is a support prepared to give him a chance, prepared to let his football silence all the noise around his previous employment locations.
If Martin O’Neill thinks Robbie Keane is a good candidate for the Celtic job, and he clearly does, then the Board and the fans should take note and give Martin’s opinion a real chance. He’s never let them down before.