Copyright scotsman
Martin O’Neill described being back in the Celtic dugout as a more nerve-racking experience than taking his 11 plus exam in Northern Ireland. He made the point that some of the players in the dressing room had no idea who he was and had not been born when he was last in charge of the Parkhead club in 2005. The 73-year-old handed a debut to 19-year-old forward Callum Osmand, who entered the fray in the second half with Celtic 4-0 ahead against Falkirk, which is how O’Neill’s first game back in interim charge finished. He admitted he was anxious pre-match while contemplating a return to the dugout where he enjoyed so many successes. O’Neill thanked his players for ensuring he made a winning return as Celtic began making inroads into Hearts’ lead at the top of the Premiership. “They becalmed my dreadful insecurity problems,” he said. “I was concerned about the game and the usual things. One, letting myself down, which I have done so many times it is untrue, but also letting other people down at the football club.” He met major shareholder Dermot Desmond afterwards. The Irish financier was instrumental in bringing O'Neill back to the club following Brendan Rodgers' departure on Monday. “I just saw him for a couple of minutes and hopefully I’ll have a (longer) chat," he revealed. "I’ve not seen him for some time. If we’d been beaten I’d have regretted the call!” O'Neill said his message to the players was to remind them they were winners. “Their confidence was low. But I said to them that some of the lads might not have any idea who I was, but then they are only about ten. However, we have quite a number of winners in this dressing room. And that is really important. And those lads have experienced some lows in the course of this season, but now it's time to fight back.” The captain, he added, with reference to Callum McGregor, “is a really quality player”. But he stressed there were "quality performances all round". Johnny Kenny, who scored a double, has played himself into contention for a starting role against Rangers in Sunday’s Premier Sports Cup semi-final although Daizen Maeda also made his return from a hamstring injury. He replaced Kenny after 65 minutes. On Kenny, O’Neill said: “He did really fine. He’s learning the game and took his goals like a proper striker and did really well. The physios said Maeda would get 35 minutes or so. How they calculate that, I don’t know. The things I have to learn!” Fans started singing O’Neill’s name around the 20-minute mark, when it was still 0-0. “It was the most surreal thing in the world,” he said. “One minute you are sitting in a coffee shop in London on Monday afternoon – the coffee was dreadful by the way – and the next I get a call. It was the last thing on earth to think I would ever do another game.” He addressed his comments on radio earlier that same day about believing it was Hearts’ time to win the league. He has now made a dent in his own prediction – the gap is now just six points between Hearts and Celtic at the top. “I didn’t actually say – or did I? – that it would be a good thing for the SPL (sic) if Hearts win the league,” he said. “Paradoxically, I said it wouldn’t be great for the league if Celtic and Rangers were not involved. I am probably talking a lot of bollocks, really. Nothing has changed there!” He also cleared up Kieran Tierney’s absence. The left back was not even named in the squad with Marcelo Saracchi deployed in his place instead. “He (Tierney) said he was feeling better, it is just a niggling thing,” he said. “I saw him in the dressing room before the game and he said he was feeling much better than he did, I know he played the game (v Hearts) but he said the injury, a stiffness as much as anything, was niggling him. But the wee laddie (Saracchi) who played at left back was great. He’s an international player, you know? I met him for the first time today. I asked him to go out and play. He said, ‘yes, that’s what I do!’”
