Celtic manager Martin O’Neill’s future at the club was thrown into doubt before the international break when he said that he would have to consider his position at Parkhead.
The experienced Northern Irish head coach has the backing of the board, though, and looks set to lead the team to Fir Park to take on Motherwell after the break.
After three successive losses and seven goals conceded in the last three games, O’Neill needs to find a way to turn the team’s form around in the coming weeks.
The frustrating part of the team’s struggles may be that the manager has been put in a difficult decision by choices made by previous managers, including Brendan Rodgers.
The Celtic position that is letting O’Neill down the most
Celtic have conceded 15 goals this season and seven times in the last three matches, which shows that keeping the ball out of their own net is their biggest problem at the moment.
The centre-back position has been a problem area for O’Neill, as Cameron Carter-Vickers, Auston Trusty, and Liam Scales have struggled for form, and the Hoops boss did not sign any of them.
He inherited all of his current centre-back options and has not had the chance to sign any senior players permanently in that position this year, which has led to some defensive frailties this season.
Celtic in the Premiership this season | ||
|---|---|---|
Opponent | xG faced | Big chances conceded |
Rangers | 1.75 | 3 |
St. Johnstone | 0.69 | 1 |
St Mirren | 1.95 | 3 |
Aberdeen | 0.68 | 1 |
Falkirk | 0.57 | 1 |
Kilmarnock | 0.98 | 4 |
Dundee | 0.49 | 1 |
Celtic have conceded 14 ‘big chances’ in their seven league games, an average of two per game, and they need to tighten up their backline if they want to improve their form in the coming weeks.
O’Neill was not done any favours by decisions from previous managers because the club sold a centre-back last year who would now make a difference at the back at Parkhead.
Why Rodgers made a mistake by selling £2.2m Celtic star
In the summer of 2025, Rodgers decided to make a few changes to his backline by bringing in Jahmai Simpson-Pusey on loan and signing Hayato Inamura permanently.
Inamura played one match in the Scottish Premiership for Rodgers and Simpson-Pusey did not play a single minute for him before playing one game under O’Neill, which prompted Manchester City to recall him in January.
As part of the switch that led to those two centre-back signings, the former Liverpool boss decided to sell Gustaf Lagerbielke to Braga on a permanent deal for £2.2m, after he had spent the 2024/25 campaign on loan at FC Twente.
Celtic signed the Sweden international from Elfsborg in the summer of 2023, but Rodgers only provided him with seven Premiership appearances before pushing him down the pecking order.
That decision was confusing at the time because the Hoops only conceded one goal in his first 404 minutes on the pitch in the Premiership, keeping five clean sheets in his first six games.
Since leaving Parkhead to sign for Braga, Lagerbielke has made himself undroppable for the Portuguese side, starting 31 of his 33 Liga Portugal appearances for the club.
Lagerbielke’s defensive form in 26/27 | |
|---|---|
Opposition | Goals conceded |
Estoril | 0 |
Estrela Amadora | 2 |
Alverca | 1 |
Vitoria | 0 |
Austria Wien | 0 |
Austria Wien | 0 |
Dinamo Minsk | 0 |
Moreirense | 2 |
In the 2026/27 campaign so far, Braga have kept five clean sheets in the Sweden international’s eight appearances in all competitions, including in the Conference League.
Lagerbielke won 11 of his 12 duels and completed 91% of his attempted passes in his side’s most recent win over Estoril, keeping a clean sheet in a 1-0 victory in Liga Portugal.
At league level this season, the Swedish titan has won 84% of his aerial duels, winning 3.2 per match on average, whilst Liam Scales, for example, has only won 58% of his aerial contests for Celtic.
Lagerbielke has a habit of being in teams that rarely concede goals, as shown by his form for the Hoops and now for Braga, and O’Neill could do with a player who is as dominant and reliable defensively as him right now.
At the moment, given Celtic’s defensive struggles and his impressive form in Portugal, it looks like Rodgers made a huge mistake when he decided to sell the defender instead of giving him an extended run of games in the team to prove himself.
Lagerbielke is now completely undroppable at Braga, starting every league game this season, and has been a key part of a successful defence for the Portuguese side, whilst the Hoops struggle defensively under O’Neill.
Source: www.footballfancast.com
