5 things Wilfried Nancy must do immediately in order to save his job at Celtic

Ben Stewart • 19 Dec 2025

Wilfried Nancy already seems like a dead man walking at Celtic, having lost his first four consecutive matches since taking over from Martin O’Neill.

Some Celtic fans already think it’s too late for the Frenchman to turn things around and want him sacked before the weekend.

Indeed, several managers have been linked with the Celtic job in recent days, despite Nancy only taking over at the start of the month.

We’ve picked out five things that Nancy must do immediately if he wants to save his job at Celtic Park.

Ditch the three-at-the-back system

In the long run, Nancy could find success from using his 3-4-3 system, but it’s obvious that it’s not working at the moment.

Celtic simply doesn’t have the players to play in Nancy’s preferred style and he has to adapt if he wants to stand any chance of keeping his job.

With the same group of players that he’s lost four games in a row with, O’Neill managed to win seven of his eight matches in charge.

If any manager across the UK needs a result this weekend, it’s Nancy.

Despite their recent run of results, Celtic are still only six points away from catching league leaders Hearts, with a game in hand.

Nancy’s side are back at Celtic Park this weekend and there’s no doubt that they need all three points against Aberdeen.

If they lose, or even draw, the atmosphere in the stadium will likely get very toxic very quickly.

One of the biggest weaknesses of Nancy’s side so far has been their fragility in the second half.

Of the three domestic matches that Nancy has taken charge of, five of the seven goals that Celtic have conceded have come in the second half.

Indeed, Celtic looked decent enough in the first half against Dundee United in midweek and deservedly led going into half-time.

However, as has often been the case, they totally collapsed in the second half and allowed the opposition to build momentum early in the second half.

Either Nancy needs to work with his players on their mentality or he needs to switch up his half-time team talk.

Defending corners has been a real weakness for Celtic of late.

Dundee United’s winning goal came from a second ball after Celtic had failed to clear their lines after a corner.

They also conceded goals from set-piece situations against St Mirren, Roma and Hearts.

If the Frenchman manages to make it into the new year as Celtic boss, a huge game awaits him at the start of 2026.

On January 3rd, Celtic hosts Rangers at Celtic Park in a game that Nancy will be desperate to win.

Winning football matches is the easiest way to buy faith with the fanbase, especially when it’s against your bitter rivals.

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