It’s been a whirlwind 24 hours for Martin O’Neill, who would not have anticipated at the start of the week that he would be back at Celtic as interim manager. The Irishman has taken over following Brendan Rodgers’ resignation, and will be joined in the dugout by Shaun Maloney, starting on Wednesday night when the Hoops play host to Falkirk. And on his first day back at Celtic Park, Martin O’Neill spoke to Celtic TV about the unexpected turn of events. “I’m excited about the challenge,” he said. “I never thought any of this could ever happen, so to a certain extent, I’m probably still in a state of shock. “However, I have to get over that because there’s a game tomorrow night and it’s all happening right in front of you, so it’s until Celtic appoint a permanent manager. “That could be in a week or three weeks’ time, or it could be two months, so whatever the case may be, I’m delighted to be here, I’m excited by it. ‘I’m nervously excited by it, too. It’s coming in to try and hold the fort – call it what you want.’ “It’s exciting for me but, hopefully, it’s not really about me because I might be gone more quickly than anybody imagines but it’s an opportunity to help and, like everything else, it gives me a bit of excitement. “So in terms of the message, I know this is clichéd but a successfully football club has everybody on the same page, and the supporters on the same side as the players, would be the most important thing.”As well as Shaun Maloney, both Stephen McManus and Mark Fotheringham will be part of the coaching team, alongside Gavin Strachan and Stevie Woods. And they face a big week ahead, with a League Cup semi-final against Rangers at Hampden coming on Sunday after this Wednesday’s Premiership clash with Falkirk. Martin O’Neill is looking forward to returning to Celtic Park for his first game back, but he knows that the focus has to be on returning to winning ways. “I’m well aware that these things last for about 15 minutes,” he said, “but you have to win football matches, and that’s the most important thing, and Celtic have got to get back on a winning trail as quickly as possible.”Upcoming FixturesCeltic Vs. Falkirk – Sun, Nov 11th 2025, 14:00
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