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Celtic interim head coach Martin O’Neill has been told to keep proving the doubters wrong if he wants to remain in his role until the end of the current campaign. The 73-year-old boss guided his side to victory in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final on Sunday, as goals from Johnny Kenny, Callum McGregor, and Callum Osmand sealed a 3-1 extra-time win over Rangers at Hampden Park. After the game, O’Neill admitted he would be open to talks about extending his stay at the club, even if he feels it is not currently being considered. However, the experienced manager’s impressive start could see the club opt to keep him in the role until the end of the campaign, before looking to appoint a permanent manager in the summer, according to former Celtic midfielder Joe Ledley, who namedropped one of his former teammates as a ‘perfect’ option for the Hoops managerial role. “You can't really rush into big decisions like these,” said Ledley. “I've liked the way he [Martin O’Neill] has set out the team. His starting line-ups and his substitutions have been spot on as well. It just seems like there's been more of an attacking feel to the team, and [the players are] expressing themselves a lot more and not just playing in a certain zone of what they have to do. “Nobody really knows how long Martin is in for and how many games he's got. But as a manager, all you can do is tick off the wins, and that's what he's doing at the moment. That's down to the board and whether they want to go down a different route and maybe try someone younger. “There have been a lot of links down here [Wales] with Craig Bellamy. He's had a fantastic start to his managerial career at Wales. There’s a lot of hype around him. The way Wales are playing has been fantastic - really attacking minded, always on the front foot. He'd be a perfect option for Celtic. Whether it's too early for him, and maybe Craig wants to continue with Wales and get to a World Cup, we'll see. The way they're doing it with Martin coming is is the right way. “But I think for Craig [Bellamy], he'd almost definitely want to see if he can get this Welsh team into the World Cup before deciding, and it’s whether Celtic would agree to that. We just don't know. I’ve told people up there he'd be a fantastic candidate for the Celtic job because of the way he plays. He’s always attacking minded, enthusiastic, and lives and breathes football. That's one I’d definitely look at.” The former Wales international, who won three Scottish Premiership titles during his time at Parkhead, also believes Celtic have enough in their ranks to overturn the six-point deficit to Hearts at the top of the table, as he gave a key reason for why he thinks Derek McInnes’ side will stumble in the second-half of the campaign. "They have wo very good strikers who are doing well,” Ledley told Gambling.com. “The only thing, and we saw that with Aberdeen last season, when injuries sort of creep in, have they got enough depth in the team to come in and perform? Can you keep your strikers fit? “It's great to see Hearts up there. They’re a well supported club. But Celtic and Rangers, and the players they have, they've under-performed a lot this season. I just can't see Hearts winning the league and Celtic not winning it. Celtic have too much at the moment in their squad - a lot of players. So if they do get injured, they'll be able to step up and contribute to the team. Time will tell. We [Celtic] have still got to play Hearts a few times, and they're the six pointers.” Sign up to The Scotsman’s daily football newsletter to get unrivalled Scottish football news and analysis - subscribe for free here.
