Celtic plan ambitious move to replace O’Neill with new version of Rodgers

Celtic remain in contention for the Scottish Premiership title and SFA Cup this season, but work is already underway behind the scenes to find a new manager.

Martin O’Neill has been interim manager since Wilfried Nancy was sacked at Parkhead, and the Hoops need to find a long-term manager by the summer.

Nancy, the last permanent manager to lead the Scottish giants, lost six of his eight games in the dugout after arriving at the club with no managerial experience in Europe.

Prior to joining Celtic, the French head coach had only managed in MLS and did not seem to understand the Scottish style of football right away.

Nancy’s struggles and ultimately short-lived career with the Hoops should serve as a lesson for the club to learn when appointing their next manager.

The type of manager Celtic need to recruit this summer

Celtic need to hire a manager with a proven track record of managing physical, intense style teams in Europe and the league. Because Nancy didn’t seem ready to deal with it after coming from MLS.

The Scottish giants also need a manager who can mix their playing styles, rather than sticking to one, after Callum McGregor suggested they were too quick to change to suit Nancy’s style of play.

Brendan Rodgers was twice an ideal choice for Celtic as he was under pressure at Liverpool, but Swansea City also had to be realistic if they were to win promotion and survive in the Premier League.

The Northern Ireland head coach’s diverse background and experience in competitive leagues gives him the coaching versatility that Celtic are looking for, winning league titles in each of his four full seasons at Parkhead.

Celtic must make ambitious move to hire new Brendan Rodgers

Dermot Desmond may be able to find a new version of Rodgers for the club this summer, after reports emerged that he was linked with an ambitious move for the unemployed head coach.

Hoops bosses are reportedly considering an “ambitious” move to bring former Brentford and Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank to Parkhead to replace O’Neill.

Football Insider reports that a number of European teams are interested in hiring the Danish manager, who was sacked by Spurs in February, and that it will take some convincing for Celtic to agree to take over as manager in Glasgow.

Before his bad luck with the Lilywhites, Frank did a phenomenal job at Brentford. He led them from mid-table in the Championship to consistent survival in the Premier League.

His career so far has been strikingly similar to Rodgers’ career before his move to Celtic. The Northern Ireland manager spent several seasons in the Championship with Reading and Watford before leading Swansea to promotion in the play-offs.

Rodgers then kept the Swans in the Premier League for one season before joining Liverpool. Unfortunately, he never won a title with the Reds and was sacked in his fourth season in charge.

Described as “one of the best managers” by Manchester City manager Josep Guardiola, Frank followed a similar path, enjoying huge success at Brentford before being sacked by Spurs.

Although things didn’t work out for him in the long term at Spurs, the Dane showed a willingness to change shape and style to suit different matches in August, and was praised by Jamie Carragher for his tactical versatility.

That’s exactly what Celtic need to do to compete in the Premiership and European competition. This is because a different style is needed to effectively break down the low blocks in Japan, whereas it is necessary to sit back and play on the counter against higher-ranked opponents.

Therefore, with his experience in an intensely physical league, his tactical versatility and the success he has had in advancing Brentford as a club, Frank could be the ideal person to help the Hoops flourish on the domestic and European stages.

It will be up to Desmond and the rest of the board to convince the Danes to come on board as the next version of Rodgers in the summer.