Celtic stars make feelings clear on Martin O’Neill’s possible exit

Celtic’s players are still fully behind Martin O’Neill despite growing uncertainty over the manager’s future at Parkhead.

O’Neill admitted recently that he would use the international break to think carefully about his position after Celtic suffered their second defeat to Rangers in the space of just seven days.

The Hoops remain at the top of the Premiership, but their season has taken a difficult turn. They have been knocked out of the Champions League and also suffered defeat in their opening Europa League match.

Despite those setbacks and the increasing pressure surrounding O’Neill, the Celtic dressing room does not appear to have turned against the manager. The players would like the 74-year-old to remain in charge and are still working towards getting the campaign back on track.

Celtic chief executive Michael Nicholson also offered O’Neill public backing during the week, suggesting the club’s hierarchy are not currently looking to make a managerial change.

There had been suggestions that some Celtic players could be unhappy with the manager following Liam Scales’ comments after the defeat to Ferencvaros.

O’Neill had described the loss as a “European lesson”, but Scales pushed back against that assessment, raising questions about whether the squad shared their manager’s view of the performance.

However, that has not translated into a dressing-room split. The feeling around Parkhead remains that the players and staff are pulling in the same direction and want to give O’Neill an opportunity to turn things around.

The international break now gives the Celtic boss some time to assess the situation before the team returns to action.

O’Neill will also have decisions to make regarding his squad, particularly in goal. He brought Sam Johnstone in on loan from Wolves during the summer, but the experienced goalkeeper has made only two appearances since arriving.

Viljami Sinisalo has continued to be the preferred option between the posts, leaving O’Neill with another selection decision to consider as he looks for a way to improve Celtic’s fortunes.