| Player Homepage | Player Pictures |
Celtic fans are a special breed
By Tony Cascarino
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,4465-684985,00.html
May 19, 2003
THE BURDEN of expectancy weighing on the shoulders of Martin O’Neill in the east end of Glasgow is formidable. As great, perhaps, as any manager can experience anywhere in Europe. Celtic are steeped in tradition; a club whose supporters feel that they are uniquely bonded to the players, who, in turn, should consider themselves privileged to wear the colours.
To many of the supporters, the club is the most important thing in their lives. The Uefa Cup final against Porto on Wednesday is a reward for their, at times, long-suffering commitment. In terms of match-day atmosphere, Celtic have a ground to compare with anything in Europe.
During my brief stay at Celtic Park, when I arrived for matches it would take me nearly an hour to walk through the throngs of supporters outside the stadium. Many wanted to shake your hand or for you to sign an autograph, and you were expected to oblige. The supporters followed the team in droves on pre-season tours and for European matches and I expect between 30,000 and 50,000 will go to Seville from Ireland and Scotland.
O’Neill has restored Celtic’s credibility in Europe and this team can follow the Lisbon Lions into the club’s folklore. In the 33 years since they last reached a European final, when they lost to Feyenoord, there can have been few experiences as chastening as the one suffered by the team I was in. We travelled to play Neuchatel Xamax, a little known Swiss club in the Uefa Cup in 1991. We were told that they had a good manager in Roy Hodgson, but little else. We were humiliated. Three down at half-time, we lost 5-1 at the Maladière Stadium. The supporters were disgusted and those who travelled back on our plane made their feelings known.
If I am honest, I don’t think I realised how big the club was. I joined them from Aston Villa, then a pretty big club in England, and I felt as if my career was taking a step backwards. At the time Celtic wallowed in the shadow of Rangers. We were a poor side, barely making an indent into Rangers’ supremacy in the league.
It was, perhaps, the biggest regret of my career that I was unsuccessful there. I was proud to play for them but, on reflection, I should have stayed and endeavoured to develop. But I wasn’t a strong enough personality to be able to cope with the religious bigotry off the field.
It was overwhelming and incessant. You couldn’t escape from it. On a few occasions I found myself in a precarious situation merely for wandering down the wrong street. It’s an added pressure for the players.
People have questioned the quality of teams in the Uefa Cup this season. But Celtic have beaten Blackburn, Liverpool and Celta Vigo, among others, which will further fuel the argument for their participation in the Premier League. They, and Rangers, are good enough to join.
Victory against Porto, though, might raise questions about O’Neill’s future. If they win, the only thing left for him will be to win the European Cup, as he did as a player with Nottingham Forest. He is a man driven by a desire to elevate Celtic to become one of best teams in Europe. If he doesn’t believe that’s a possibility, his ambition will take him somewhere else.
I’ve never met O’Neill, but was once told an illuminating story about him. He was sitting before some assembled press, one of whom raised the point that O’Neill never worked with his players in training during the week. Don’t you think, the journalist continued, that you could go one step further and improve the players’ technical skills if you were to work with them more?
“Do you know what, that has never occurred to me,” O’Neill replied. “It’s such a great idea I am going to start that next week. The only problem is I’ve been so busy winning matches I haven’t had time to do it!”
O’Neill was making the point that managers are judged by the matches they win and not necessarily for the team’s style. He is a clever man but even he could not have anticipated the success achieved during his short time in charge. He handles players so well. Chris Sutton refused to play for England B under Glenn Hoddle, but for O’Neill he has played in defence, midfield and up front. The manager has a great eye for a bargain in the transfer market, Bobo Balde being a prime example.
O’Neill will ensure that his players won’t fear Porto. They have done consistently well away from home in the competition and they know no other way to play than to attack, leaving Porto, a strong side, to play on the counter. I think there will be a lot of goals, but hopefully Celtic will just shade it.