If Martin O’Neill decides to go Celtic could do worse than enquiring about Craig Bellamy’s availability…
In my last article I explained the reasons why I felt Martin O’Neill’s current spell as Celtic manager may be coming to an end, and why I don’t want to see us delay the inevitable like we did during Neil Lennon’s last days as manager during the dreaded Covid season.
The tricky bit about all this is, who is actually capable of coming in and changing the course of this season, which seems to be a never ending downward spiral since that nightmare evening in Austria?
Most of us will have seen the betting odds for the next Celtic manager which was getting passed around WhatsApp recently, and all I can say is it was truly one of the most depressing things I’ve ever set eyes on.
Top six candidates to replace Martin make for depressing readingÂ
The top six were as follows: Neil Lennon, Shaun Maloney, Robbie Keane, Scott Brown, Steve Clarke and Alex Neil. If that’s not a reality check on where we currently are as a club I don’t know what is.
Let me be clear about this. It cannot be any of those mentioned. Seriously, each one of them would be a backwards step.
Neil Lennon? After what happened last time? Shaun Maloney? He’s already struggling and he has the experience and knowledge of Martin O’Neill by his side. Robbie Keane? The controversy over his time in Israel means his appointment would splinter the fan base even more than it already is and turn the whole place toxic. Brown, Clarke and Neil I can group as one. None have the credentials to even remotely qualify them for a job of this magnitude.
I think this is the reason why a lot of fans are happy to continue with he status quo. Names like these are inspiring nobody. One name which has cropped up which has pretty much universal appeal throughout the fanbase is Kieran McKenna.
He’s certainly impressed during his time at Ipswich Town and plays a good brand of football but a £7m+ compensation payout pretty much rules him out. Not a chance Celtic are spending that sort of money on a manager.
Celtic could trigger the release clauseÂ
A name I haven’t heard linked this time is Craig Bellamy, who there was plenty of talk around last season. Bellamy has a contract with Wales until 2028 but we already seen this summer that a certain amount of compensation will trigger his release clause, as Burnley proved only a few months ago.
Since then he has again said he’s committed to Wales, but would it be worth a try? We have seen the likes of Michael O’Neill double jobbing international football with club football recently, so could that be an option with Bellamy?
Could Celtic come up with a deal with Bellamy and Wales where he takes over say to the end of the season, while continuing his work in Cardiff?
It could be beneficial to see how he gets on
It could be beneficial to see how he gets on for a season before deciding whether trying to sign him up permanently should be pursued. Would Craig Bellamy normally be my number one candidate? Well no but I have read a considerable amount about his managerial style and it all seems positive, including many seasoned pros who have endorsed him after working under his guidance.
Unlike Brown, Clarke and Neil he has potential to be a very good manager. We know the other three’s limitations.
If you look into Craig Bellamy you will see a figure obsessed with becoming a managerial success. He demands his teams play a good brand of football and he is often acknowledged for being meticulous and very tactically astute.
He wants to play a modern, exciting style that would be welcomed at Celtic by this current set of players and by the fans. He would be a young motivator the players could relate to. We seen during his career the intensity he possesses and that certainly hasn’t dimmed as a manager.
We don’t have a great amount of options
At this very moment we don’t have a great amount of options. The names currently being bandied about are incredibly uninspiring. Will top managers want to take over at this juncture, with us already out of the Champions League, the Premier Sports Cup and badly struggling with confidence? Are we even prepared to pay the money for a top manager?
The reality is we are a club stuck in a rut. We have a board and a major shareholder who runs the club like it’s his own, who continue to operate like they did 20 years ago. We are in desperate need of restructuring, of modernisation.
Celtic needs to be run like a club in 2026 not 2006
Celtic needs to be run like a club in 2026 not 2006. We know too well however that these charlatans aren’t going to change overnight. This will be a long fight. These dinosaurs hate change and will repel it for as long as possible. We can clearly see however that we need some sort of change in the here and now otherwise this season could quickly become a disaster.
There are worse options out there than seeing if some sort of deal can be struck with Wales and Craig Bellamy.
Conall McGinty
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