Whenever this ends – with the answer surely “imminently” – Celtic’s supporters will not be the only ones to look back with outright bemusement. Wilfried Nancy’s appointment as the manager of a team who were serious operators in the Champions League a matter of months earlier will go down as one of the most bamboozling episodes in the history of Scottish football.
Nancy used his Friday press conference to plead for time and context. He railed against the media, who presumably continue to err by highlighting his woeful record. By Saturday afternoon, he was wandering down the tunnel as a beaten man. Nancy’s position is untenable. He cannot be the only Celtic employee who exits, such is the scale of calamity. The simple solution for Celtic would be to call Martin O’Neill, who presided over seven victories out of eight while in pre-Nancy caretaker charge. The 73-year-old retains capacity to revive Celtic’s fortunes. Crucially, unlike Nancy, O’Neill has the experience and wherewithal to comprehend this unusual football environment.
Nancy’s stat sheet reads six defeats from eight games. Eighteen goals have been conceded over that run. Nancy’s Celtic team, which includes serial winners, cannot handle adversity. There is enough time for Celtic’s directors – who received sustained abuse during the defeat against Rangers – to back out of the Nancy experiment and rescue the season but it must be simultaneously asked why they implemented it in the first place. A full and frank explanation is required; accountability from a business that does not tend to specialise in that very thing. Nothing in Nancy’s backstory suggested he was capable of managing a club of Celtic’s stature or demands. This was a reckless punt, which has unravelled virtually from the outset. Nancy knows as much; his Friday sentiment was of a man indulging in self-preservation. Those who preached about Nancy’s coaching methods and why they would inevitably prevail in Scotland already look silly.
Anyone who watched this game without knowledge of Celtic’s shortcomings would have spent the interval wondering what on earth all the fuss was about. This was, however, the continuation of a theme; Nancy’s Celtic have occasionally been able to perform for a 45 minutes at a time. When an opponent jabs back, they wilt. Danny Röhl, the Rangers manager, knew that all too well when pointing to Celtic’s “nervousness” before a ball was kicked here.
Hearts had to endure a fraught second half before securing a 1-0 home victory over struggling Livingston to extend their lead at the top of the table to six points. Hearts spurned a host of chances to add to Craig Halkett's 18th-minute header during a dominant first half. Livingston piled on the pressure in the second half with goalkeeper Alexander Schwolow pulling off a big save to deny Tete Yengi as the hosts held on to move six points clear of both Celtic and Rangers.
Dundee secured local bragging rights with a deserved 1-0 win over Dundee United at Tannadice. Ash Hay netted the only goal on the stroke of half-time as his side registered a third league triumph in a row - the last time they accomplished that was in 2014 - and back-to-back away derby victories for the first time since 1999.
Elie Youan scored twice as Hibernian claimed a 3-1 victory over troubled Kilmarnock. Hibs took the lead after five minutes when Youan headed home, but they then wasted a number of opportunities and paid the price just before the hour mark as Tyreece John-Jules equalised. Youan restored Hibernian's advantage and Kilmarnock's misery was complete when David Watson was sent off with eight minutes remaining and Jamie McGrath converted a penalty in stoppage time.
Goals from Tawanda Maswanhise and Elliot Watt helped Motherwell extend their excellent run of form with a comfortable 2-0 home win over St Mirren. Stephen Robinson's side had come out on top when these teams met in the Premier Sports Cup semi-final in November but Motherwell got their revenge after dominating for much of the contest.
Falkirk claimed a thoroughly deserved 1-0 win over Aberdeen to move into the top six and increase the pressure on Jimmy Thelin. The hosts were completely dominant but spurned numerous opportunities in the first half. Filip Lissah was the hero with the Swansea loanee heading home his first goal for the club on 58 minutes to seal the points.
Yang Hyun-jun had lashed Celtic into the lead, a moment of stunning quality that conjured thoughts that the South Korean almost signed for Birmingham in the dying embers of last year’s summer transfer window. Yang’s return to prominence rather sums up Celtic’s muddled approach. He strode past Nicolas Raskin and Thelo Aasgaard before cracking the ball into the roof of Jack Butland’s net. This was a goal of stunning quality, raising hopes of Nancy salvation. Johnny Kenny and Auston Trusty missed opportunities as Celtic dominated Rangers during the opening half.
Whatever Röhl did during the break – the German insisted it was simply a “change to the press” – worked. Damningly for Celtic, the midfielder Luke McCowan later claimed his team could not handle a Rangers shape change. McCowan, who was clearly hurt, is due great credit for fronting up. That Callum McGregor, Celtic’s hugely influential captain, has been recently absent from media duties feels like a subtle but damning indictment of what Nancy is presiding over. Ordinarily, McGregor would stick up for a manager. Instead, he has been heavily linked with a Brendan Rodgers reunion in Saudi Arabia.
Perhaps Röhl also reminded his players of Celtic’s fragility. Raskin shrugged off the attentions of Trusty, with the Belgian’s cutback converted by Youssef Chermiti. Rangers now swarmed forward; Chermiti picked the pocket of Anthony Ralston from a Celtic throw-in before racing through on Kasper Schmeichel. The former Everton striker, who is finding his feet in Scotland after a fraught arrival, beat the advancing goalkeeper.
Rangers’ third belonged to Mikey Moore. The Tottenham loanee collected Djeidi Gassama’s pass before finding the bottom right-hand corner of Schmeichel’s net. The veteran’s form does not rank among the top 50 of Celtic’s problems but he was again woefully slow to react to the attempt. Rangers, who endured the nightmarish Russell Martin spell earlier this season, amazingly now find themselves level on points with their oldest foes. Rangers are serious title contenders, assisted by Celtic’s woes.
The afternoon ended with fans gathered outside the front door of Celtic Park, venting their disgust. Upstairs, Nancy was bemoaning problems with “small details”. Celtic’s issues run much, much deeper than that.
