How Nancy’s calamitous 33-day reign unfolded at Celtic

Eight games . Six defeats . The Wilfried Nancy Celtic reign is now over.

After leaving Columbus Crew, the Frenchman returned from a nightmare spell, setting records for all the wrong reasons.

Nancy has left the club after the club’s shortest managerial tenure, replacing interim manager Martin O’Neill, who had stabilized a rocky ship.

The similarities end when O’Neill and his successor are given the same number of games in charge.

O’Neill won seven of his eight games, with the only exception being the 3-1 Europa League defeat suffered by Midtjylland.

While Feyenoord was humiliated in Rotterdam during his reign, he defeated Rangers in a League Cup semi-final.

By the time the leaders were scheduled to visit Parkhead, O’Neill’s Celtic had already reduced Hearts’ lead over the Scottish Premiership summit to three points.

In his first game, Nancy had the chance to completely close that gap with a game up.

However, Hearts stunned Celtic with a 2-1 defeat despite making a strong opening in the Frenchman’s 3-4-3 system.

Nancy’s choice of formation immediately received criticism, but oddly not as much as his choice of footwear or his use of a handheld tactics board.

The 48-year-old was first exposed to the brutality of Glasgow football by the extreme fallout of the defeat. His distinctive green and white trainers were never seen again.

Four days later, Roma will face off in the Europa League.

In front of a shellshocked home crowd, Celtic, who were still deployed in a 3-4-3, were far off it. The Serie A side took full advantage of this.

Evan Ferguson, who scored two of Roma’s three goals, admitted on his own that at times it seemed like Nancy’s players “didn’t know what they were doing.”

The Scottish League Cup final, which was Nancy’s opportunity to earn silverware and a much-needed first victory just one week after his debut against Hearts, took place immediately after his debut.

However, there was so much discussion about whether O’Neill should have been Celtic’s coach during the most important week of the season in the lead-up to the Hampden game against St Mirren.

The Paisley side won their first trophy in more than a decade with a 3-1 victory, but those voices only grew louder.

Celtic remained unfocused at best despite Stephen Robinson’s men’s merits for their success.

Liam Scales could be seen running up the left wing for the majority of the first half. James Forrest, a winger, played central midfield to end the game.

No tactics board was present, but Captain Callum McGregor’s repeated appearances of being called over to the sideline to receive instructions were.

The most somber aspect of the game was how dominant St Mirren were throughout a game of this size.

Another significant blow, one that many fans had already criticized, was dealt to Nancy.

He said after the game, “I really believe we are going to click and advance.”

“We are a little fragile right now, but my job is to give them confidence,” he said.

Many Celtic supporters had long since changed their minds about Nancy’s appointment after the cup final defeat. The club’s board disagreed, according to them.

Chief executive Michael Nicholson outlined Celtic’s “absolutely solid” support for Nancy in the lead-up to their midweek game against Dundee United.

We know where we want to go and how to support Wilfried, his team, and the squad, he continued, adding, “I understand and respect the right of every supporter to express their discontent and share that with us.

The former head coach of the Columbus Crew had a glimmer of hope.

The defending champions’ best performance came in his team’s home league game against Aberdeen, which he led.

After scoring two goals late in the game, Celtic won 3-1, but it was completely dominant. 31 shots, ten woodwork attempts, and 73 percent possession.

I’m happy for the board, the players, the fans, the club, and I’m happy for the fans. “We chase anyone,” Nancy remarked.

Was there a new dawn here? Or just a victory over a erratic Aberdeen?

In West Lothian, Celtic and Livingston prepared a Christmas magic two days after the big day.

The Parkhead club had twice in the opening eight minutes, but each time they had excellent character should have been able to bring level before falling to a 4-2.

In essence, no.

With a complex defensive system built on defensive stability, Motherwell are the team that arguably play the most attractive football in the country.

Motherwell were 2-1 up in their previous meeting before capitulating in a rare defensive lapse. No such graciousness was displayed here.

Jens Berthel Askou’s team won 2-0 at Fir Park, giving Celtic a deserved victory. Supporters of Nancy’s men’s performance were so disgusted that Auston Trusty received the highest Player Rater score of 2.78 for the same man in green and white.

Rangers, now.

Celtic fans pointed across the city to cheer themselves up from a mediocre Champions League qualification campaign and their own side’s shortcomings at the start of the season.

Ibrox wasn’t a happy place. Their own Champions League attempt ended in humiliation, as did manager Russell Martin’s tenure, who was last seen getting bundled into a car in Falkirk.

Rangers were still unappealing in the backview mirror despite Celtic not having won the title race.

After Danny Rohl’s team won 3-1, the Old Firm rivals are now tied on the same points heading into Sunday.

Yang Hyun-Jun’s solo goal gave Celtic the lead. Under Nancy, he is likely to be the one player to improve.

However, his team sank in the second half. Before Kasper Schmeichel flapped at Mikey Moore’s flimsy shot, the much-critched Yousef Chermiti scored an extraordinary double.

Some fans had already canceled their seats before the main stand front door was open. They had sufficient evidence.