Celtic v Dundee United – Jim Goodwin on Martin O’Neill

Goodwin arrives in Glasgow with confidence after guiding his team to a victory over Wilfried Nancy’s Celtic at Tannadice last month.

His own connection to the Hoops dates back to his early playing days, when he came through the club’s youth ranks and made a single senior appearance under Kenny Dalglish before moving on to Stockport County in 2002.

With the pair set to cross paths again on Saturday, the 44-year-old reserved high praise for O’Neill, acknowledging the influence of the Irishman even though their time together at Celtic did not see him feature in the first team.

Speaking via The Courier, Goodwin said: “I remember Martin came in and very quickly realised that I wasn’t good enough. He put me right back down in the reserves!”

“No, he carried a great deal of respect within the dressing room. There were some strong characters in the dressing room, like Chris Sutton, John Hartson, Paul Lambert, Neil Lennon; lots of big guys who have done great things in their careers.”

“But as soon as Martin entered the room, you could hear a pin drop. He had a certain aura about him that demanded respect from all the players. He was brilliant at a time when Celtic were going through a difficult patch. Martin sorted things out pretty quickly, and they had good success together.”

Dermot Desmond has once again turned back to Martin O’Neill in a bid to restore stability, little more than a month after he stepped aside following Wilfried Nancy’s disastrous appointment.

Across that short run in the dugout, O’Neill delivered an impressive return, claiming seven wins from eight matches including Celtic’s first away victory in European group phase football in four years.

Conor Spence

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