Martin O’Neill had his company hat on as he faced the media following Celtic’s Champions League exit.
There were no gags or funny quips about his age as the veteran manager took responsibility for another humiliating exit from UEFA’s premier competition.
And no-one in the Scottish media was going to ask the hard questions about the state of Celtic.
About the comparison to a club with one third of Celtic’s turnover.
How well prepared, coached and fitter the Austrian side were. A club who brought on a substitute that played for St Mirren last season.
Eight times out of ten Celtic have now lost out to unseeded opponents for a Champions League place.
Failure is the norm. The two successful qualifications were against the grain. In 2016 and 2017 Celtic hung on grimly away from home to secure a group stage place.
There was no repeat against Linz on Tuesday night. It was a ‘miracle’ beyond O’Neill despite last season’s heroics.
On every metric Celtic should have been too big and powerful for LASK, champions of Austria for the first time in 61 years.
Except ambition. LASK have it in buckets. Celtic’s ambition is to maintain their cherished O** F*** branding.
European football was for the sixties. The Lisbon Lions is a marketing tool.
In 2026 European football is for clubs like Bodo Glimt and Sabah. The second best team in Norway and the champions of Azerbaijan.
O’NEILL VOLENTEERS BACK INTO CELTIC’S CYCLE OF EUROPEAN FAILURE
As Ross Desmond lectured Celtic shareholders the future of the club would be at risk if Celtic took a swing and missed. Funnily enough other clubs manage it, it is not a case of all or nothing.
For Celtic the conclusion is obvious. No fan can still be in denial.
It is better to get turned over by clubs like Kairat Almaty and LASK and revert back to the comfort of Thursday night’s in the Europa League.
Feed the fans the old line about the Road To Seville and you can shift 30,000 plus ticket packages. Throw in a mention of the Celtic Family and a few more will buy up tickets. It works every time.
QUESTION: Is it fair to say that a team of the calibre of Celtic shouldn’t let a four goal lead slip?
No, absolutely. Shouldn’t do, and I accept responsibility.
That is down to me, regardless of how it turned out to be, whether it’s fitness, whether it’s… it’s just everything perhaps, but we shouldn’t have done that.
From the position that we were in, you shouldn’t even have been near to this extent.
I’m responsible for the team. I’m responsible for it. I’m the manager of the side and I’m just hugely disappointed.
Disappointed for obviously for the side, for the aspect, and for the people who come to the performance, and hugely disappointed.
QUESTION: On Celtic’s grim record of qualifying just twice in their last 10 attempts at reaching the Champions League.
I’m responsible for this one, and I don’t know what’s happened in the last… but it’s not a good statistic.
I think that what these games, these type of games show you is that we obviously a lot of work to do in that aspect.”
People say you can overcome that at certain stages, you know, but overall, like, these games are real, real tests for you, and unfortunately, we failed that test tonight.
NICHOLSON AND DESMOND ESCAPE MEDIA SCRUTINY
There wasn’t a single question about the repeated failings of Michael Nicholson.
It can be traced back to Celtic’s last Champions League victory.
When YB Berne were beaten in January 2025 Nicholson put the foot down on selling off the better players in the squad.
Kyogo Furuhashi was first. A replacement arrived 18 months later.
Nicolas Kuhn, Adam Idah, Daizen Maeda and Arne Engels have also been sold. Nicholson has no problem dealing with agents when he is selling players.
Last night in Linz Nicholson say alongside Dermot Desmond and Brian Wilson watching their plans come to fruition.
No-one asked O’Neill about Celtic’s recruitment failing again.
About signing striker Camilo Duran and playing him as a winger. About Mika Baur being pitched straight into a Champions League Play Off. Or Haissem Hassan being behind Sebastian Tounekti for playing time.
No chance. Nothing that might answer the questions that fans were asking.
All of the media lads knowing their place, hoping to be included for some of the Europa League jollies.
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6 Comments
by Stevie Bhoy
Didn’t even realise hassan was behind tounetki when he should have started the f***in game as I missed most of the first half
by M
Shambles FC strike again
I switched OFF at the FT whistle couldn’t take further
I feel for MON stuck between knowing what we need & a. board that seems determined to destroy our dreams
Also a board that seems to love gambling with these CL qualifiers…. ❌COSTLY✅
Even if they went out & bought 4/5 players with £80m spend…
IT IS SIMPLY TOO LATE THAT SHIP HAS SAILED
I feel that board think the Europa Lge is our level; well they’ve had their wish granted
GET NICHOLSON SACKED …. IMMEDIATELY hunt that charlatan ootae CP once and for all PLEASE
MON and his legacy are gonna take a pounding if he remains in his position.
by Terence Nova
I’m glad someone called MON out ….Although if you want to hear him bad mouth the Board…you’ll wait a long time…And its right that he takes responsibility…..His tactics and substitution choices were really poor….Who knows where we go from here.
by antony
Disgraced the fans again. The only way to force change is to stop buying season tickets.
The more things change the more they stay the same.
The 4 players we bought were needed last year. Now we have weekened the midfield. Last year it was the forward line.
This year its the middle of the park. Watch us get run over in the middle of the park time and time again this season
by CHRISTOPHER CURRIE
I simply couldn’t understand our tactics 2nd half nor the substitutions.. we were so exposed with what came on the pitch.. McCowan ?… wow.. what a let down.. Tony.. too slow… why Tounetki replaced Yang was mystifying with a £9m player in the bench and a speed merchant in Osmand sitting there too…piss poor management of a bunch of weaklings
by BlackSox
Bookkeeping, bean counter, Nicholson must be the most incompetent CEO we’ve ever had – he was Lawwell’s gofer and probably now just doing whatever DD tells him. He’s unqualified and thaveless and I wouldn’t trust him to go to the corner shop for a pint of milk.
By weakening the team instead of strengthening from a strong position last time Rodgers did well in the CL, Nicholson has cost the club CL qualification with the loss of some £80m in the last two years. He’s so risk averse with money, that even with nearly £100m sitting in the bank (making money for the taxman( he won’t buy until he sells and has paid the price by not getting quality replacements in but instead bringing in substandard players (remember loanees Cvancara, Mvuka, Adamu and Simpson Pusey).
What other business would put up with that performance from him. He needs replacing with a qualified CEO who is actually capable of doing the job.