The 'box office' manager has been tipped for the Celtic job by someone who has worked with him.
Who will be the next Celtic manager? That is a question that a lot of fans will want to know the answer to. The club will need to provide one sooner or later.
As things stand, it does look like Martin O'Neill is going to continue in his role in the Celtic hot seat, despite all the speculation around his future.
Is that for the long run though? If results do not improve, things will need to change at some point. That is just the reality of life at Celtic.
That being said, finding a replacement for O'Neill, especially in the middle of the season, is going to be very difficult.
Manager tipped for Celtic job
Niall Quinn, who has worked with Roy Keane at Sunderland, said while speaking on the Graeme Souness Tackles podcast (via CeltsAreHere): “If Roy wanted to put his name in the hat, it would be huge. He hasn’t managed for a while, but you’d be a testament to say that when it’s in you, it’s in you forever.
“I think he’s more or less said that himself, and I certainly wouldn’t object to thinking that would be a hell of a thing to do. I had him myself at Sunderland, and he really got the city going – because he’s box office, the man. There’s no doubt about that.”
Keane recently opened the door to a potential return to management if the opportunity presented itself to him.
Of course, the timing of the admission is quite interesting. It is worth mentioning that he has not been the head coach of a club for more than a decade-and-a-half now, going back to his time with Ipswich Town in 2011.
But Keane has been linked with the Celtic job in recent times, while there is uncertainty around the future of O'Neill. Interestingly, the two have worked together extensively in the past.
O'Neill's team has faced some struggles on the pitch in recent times. And off the pitch, there are some question marks around the manager's health, as he is 74 years of age.
Is Roy Keane good enough to manage Celtic?
If O'Neill does end up leaving, could Keane be the one to replace him? If the club does make that decision, it is going to be one that will face heavy criticism for sure.
Keane is not the most accomplished manager by any means. Yes, he did win the Championship with Sunderland, but that remains his biggest achievement in coaching.
Overall, he has only managed two clubs in his career. Sunderland and Ipswich Town. He would not have faced top-level pressure in either job.
Following that, he worked as an assistant manager to O'Neill for both the Republic of Ireland national team and Nottingham Forest. But even the latter of those roles came back in 2019. Football has changed a lot since then.
