Wilfried Nancy’s Immediate Celtic To-Do List as New Boss Arrives

Wilfried Nancy has officially been announced as Celtic’s new manager – and he has plenty on his to-do list already.

The Hoops have improved in recent weeks following what was a poor start to the season by their own standards.

It is Hearts who have been leading the Scottish Premiership before their recent collapse has allowed Celts to make up the ground. The current holders now have a game in hand over the Jambos and are level on points.

Celtic’s improvement coincided with Martin O’Neil becoming interim boss following Brendan Rodgers’ shock resignation earlier this season. And the Irishman, 73, has won all his Premiership games to ensure Nancy is beginning his tenure on the right foot.

The Frenchman, 48, will start his time in Glasgow with a head to head clash with Hearts on Sunday which could go a long way to deciding where the trophy ends up come May 2026.

But between now and then there is plenty for the gaffer to sink his teeth into to hit the ground running.

Build Celtic backroom staff

Kwame Ampadu, fitness coach Jules Gueguen and video performance coach Maxime Chalier have all been confirmed by MLS club Columbus Crew to they have followed Nancy to Parkhead.

The Frenchman has a strong working relationship with all three of his staff and made sure to bring them with him. Ampadu is interestingly the main link between Nancy and Celtic in the first place with the Irishman having worked with head of football operations, Paul Tisdale, previously.

The question now becomes whether or not Nancy will hire a Scottish coach with Celtic connections to ensure the transition goes as smoothly as possible.

It won’t be Martin O’Neill, that is for sure. But it could potentially be one of O’Neill’s lieutenants who worked with him during the six-week period since Rodgers left. Shaun Maloney is a strong option as an assistant coach, as is Mark Fotheringham who have both been trusted within the squad.

Other options include Stephen McManus and potentially someone such as Darren O’Dea who is currently interim head coach at Swansea City. The Irishman has experience within Celtic having been their pathways manager before he left for the Swans. Should he wish to continue coaching after Swansea’s new boss inevitably arrives, he could be convinced to return north of the border.

Celtic January transfer window

The summer window was abysmal for Celtic and Nancy will have to convince the hierarchy to part with their cash in the winter window.

The fans have been critical of the boardroom and that has been well documented. However the higher-ups have promised to support their new manager in any way they can which hints towards bringing in new signings to compete on all fronts.

Celts are still in with a shout of qualifying for the next round of the Europa League but they will have to add to their squad. A new striker is paramount to their chances and Nancy has already identified a possible transfer from his old club in the MLS.

It will be an ambitious swoop for Crew striker Wessam Abou Ali who cost the club close to £6million when he joined earlier this year. The Palestine international, 26, hit 22 goals in 39 showings last season and he has had decent spells at other clubs such as Aalborg and Silkeborg as well.

FootballBlog understands Celtic want two wide players – which could see Yang and Michel-Ange Balikwisha shipped out on loans – while midfield options would also be important.

Rebuild bridge between Celtic fans and boardroom

Fans and the board members have been at loggerheads as we have mentioned, and their relationship is almost at breaking point. One could argue it has been teetering on the brink for some time.

The transfer window and lack of spending to qualify for the Champions League has been a major issue while the ultras group the Green Brigade being banned from matches has also exasperated proceedings.

The Celtic AGM was a horror show and even icon O’Neill could not bridge the gap between both parties.

Nancy may be able to do so as an outsider coming to the club with a fresh eye and an open mind. He will hear both sides of the story and will surely urge both to get on the same page.

It is possible that fan furore has hurt Celtic this term, which is as much as Rodgers said previously. So Nancy has his work cut out if he hopes to bring everyone together for the same cause.

Premier Sports Cup Final

It seems almost unfair to Martin O’Neill that he will not be the man in the dugout for the coming cup final at Hampden later this month.

The interim helped his side knock out fierce rivals Rangers in the semi in a 3-1 extra-time victory to take them into yet another showpiece at the national stadium.

It will be Nancy’s third game in charge of his new club on Sunday, December 14, which means the ex-Montreal CF coach certainly has a baptism of fire against Hearts and then Roma in the Europa League before his first crack at silverware.

If the new manager can convincingly defeat St Mirren on the day – hell, if he can just make sure they win – he will have got off to the perfect start because at the end of the day, managing Celtic is about winning by any means necessary.

It is about trophies. Winning one just three matches in would take some beating.

Win Premiership title

This is the be-all, end-all for Celtic, their bread and butter.

The Hoops will become Scotland’s most successful club if they can lift the trophy this season and that is where all their attention must go between now and then.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5y4Jx9Goxw

Hearts gave them a scare considering Celtic’s early season form but O’Neill steadied the ship and Nancy has to guide that ship to their destination and park it successfully.

If the new boss can secure the winners medal it will go a long way towards endearing him to the punters and grabbing full support from even those fans who have been skeptical about an unknown coach taking the reins.