LIVINGSTON, SCOTLAND - DECEMBER 27: Celtic Manager Wilfried Nancy (L) and Assistant Kwame Ampadu during a William Hill Premiership match between Livingston and Celtic at the Home of the Set Fare Arena, on December 27, 2025, in Livingston, Scotland. (Photo by Craig Williamson/SNS Group via Getty Images)
Stephen McGowan has delivered an insider’s view into the 33 day, eight match chaos that Wilfried Nancy installed at Lennoxtown.
On the pitch the Frenchman sent nine players into attack with Auston Trusty left to keep an eye on things at the back.
Celtic roared forward without any pattern or discipline, six out of eight opponents picked them off with the hoops a shambles.
LLLLWWLL THE NANCY RECORD
Livingston, without a win since August twice took the leading the first eight minutes before going down to a rare victory for Nancy.
Three days after losing in Prague, Aberdeen were on level terms after 87 minutes at Celtic Park before losing out to two late goals.
Almost instantly Celtic fans raised concerns about the way Nancy tried to change the way that Celtic played.
Online a few xG hipsters tried to explain that Nancy was the light to take Celtic out of the trophy winning darkness of Brendan Rodgers.
In an early interview Nancy helpfully explained that ‘the ball is the ball’.
Some well placed media messengers weighed in as the parroted the views from the Celtic boardroom.
Chairman Peter Lawwell assured supporters:
We are really pleased to welcome Wilfried to Celtic. He is a Manager with a record which demonstrates the kind of football which we know Celtic supporters love to see. We will give Wilfried all our support as we look to once again bring success to our fans.
That support lasted 33 days.
Now the critics are slaughtering Nancy rather than the ‘brilliantly run club’ that undermined Rodgers at every turn to install a more compliant manager. Nancy was the definition of a club appointment.
Even if he was the seventh best coach in the MLS Eastern Conference.
It seems that life at Lennoxtown was every bit as disorganised as the soccer played.
Incredible ? no wonder the players didn’t know what they where doing pic.twitter.com/h0YnmZb9jL
— Quinn67 (@raisedonceltic7) January 9, 2026
MCGOWAN AND THE TIMING
The timing of the article in the Herald is curious, presumably McGowan only gained that insight after Nancy was sacked. He had no indication before Monday that things were so bad?
Two weeks after being involved in appointing Nancy, Lawwell announced that he was stepping down as Chairman.
On January 5 Celtic belatedly announced the sacking of Nancy alongside Paul Tisdale.
Martin O’Neill has again returned as caretaker manager.
So far action man CEO Michael Nicholson has failed to sign a single player to improve the squad that O’Neill inherited. A squad created by Tisdale, appointed on the watch of Nicholson.
A great read, I was hoping Stephen could’ve shared a bit more on the final days. The scrambling from senior people at Celtic to “take credit” for sacking him is disgusting.
The whole rotten lot need to go
— Dommieislegend (@dommieislegend) January 9, 2026
Everything everyone else could see or surmise except those paid buckets of money to do so.
Wilf had friendships with presidents and prisoners, I can now understand why.
I’m no apologist of WN
But I have to admit at being frustrated at the way our players receive the ball too.
IMO they position their body defensively when receiving passes meaning they stop the forward momentum of the play which leads to too many passes back to the defence and the dreaded “horseshoe of death ‘
I know it’s not as simplistic as that one thing but all players should be open to learning especially in training.
Editor: Martin O’Neill seemed to be able to live with it in seven matches out of eight. Nancy will never cut it in European football regardless of what the xG hipsters put out.
Cheech n Chong on the bench said it all.
Nancy’s pressers were confusing – and by default, the players must have been confused with his messages / instructions too?
The bottom line though is: who interviewed Nancy – and who didn’t interview Nancy?
Nancy would not have interviewed well at all, in my opinion?
And for that position, you would expect the CEO to – at the very least – have the final ‘chat’ before an offer was made.
But, with our pitiful Board and DD, it would not surprise in the slightest if MN was not involved in Nancy’s appointment
– as crazy as that sounds?
LLLLWWLL – His Record sounds like LAWWELL !