da dobrowin： There has been plenty of speculation over who the next Celtic manager will be at Parkhead since Brendan Rodgers decided to resign from the role last month.
da apostaganha： The Northern Irish head coach decided to move on from the Glasgow giants after a defeat to Hearts in the Scottish Premiership left his side eight points adrift of first place.
Rodgers won the league title in both of his seasons back at the club, as shown in the graphic above, and it will take some doing to find an upgrade on the former Liverpool manager.
The latest on Celtic's manager search
The Daily Record claims that interim boss Martin O’Neill held talks with Dermot Desmond on Friday to discuss his future, and that he is willing to stay on longer if required.
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However, the report adds that the experienced manager has told the club that the sooner they find a long-term replacement for Rodgers the better, because of how important the January transfer window will be.
The outlet reveals that Bodo/Glimt boss Kjetil Knutsen was in the running to land the job – he was even reported to be a frontrunner – but that the tactician is now ‘likely’ to sign a new contract with the Norwegian side.
Meanwhile, the Daily Record’s latest update claims that the club are in talks with Columbus Crew boss Wilfried Nancy as their number one target to take the role, with the Hoops hoping to snap him up before the end of the international break.
It was recently reported that Club Brugge head coach Nicky Hayen is on Celtic’s radar as a possible replacement for Rodgers, and he could be the club’s own version of Knutsen if they decide to go down that route instead of getting a deal done for Nancy.
Why Nicky Hayen would be Celtic's own Kjetil Knutsen
Stripping style of play and formations aside for a moment, the Bodo/Glimt boss would have been an exciting appointment because of his domestic and European success.
Knutsen has won 39 of his 79 games in Europe, per Transfermarkt, and reached the semi-finals of the Europa League and the quarter-finals of the Conference League. On top of that, the Norwegian boss has won the Eliteserien title in four of the last five seasons, which shows that he can win titles and progress a team in Europe.
Hayen, meanwhile, qualified for the league phase of the Champions League this season, something Celtic failed to do, and reached the semi-finals of the Conference League in the 2023/24 campaign.
Matches managed
30
79
Wins
15
39
Draws
4
15
Losses
11
25
Points per game
1.63
1.67
Best finish
Conference League semi-finals
Europa League semi-finals
As you can see in the table above, Knutsen and Hayen have a similar record and set of achievements at European level, which suggests that they would both help the Hoops to compete in Europe.
Like the Bodo/Glimt boss, the Belgian tactician has had domestic success with one Pro League title in two seasons, whilst his team currently sit second in the division after 14 matches, per Transfermarkt, in his third campaign in charge.
The 4-2-3-1 manager, who was described as “unbeatable” by one scout on X, also won the Belgian Cup last season and the Super Cup in the current term, per Transfermarkt, which shows that he knows how to win domestic trophies.
Therefore, Hayen could come in as Celtic’s own version of Knutsen because he would arrive with a similar pedigree, as they are both managers who have had similar levels of domestic and European success with their current clubs.
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Whereas, Nancy has only ever managed in the MLS with Montreal and Columbus Crew, which means that he would not bring the same experience and proven track record in European football that Hayen would.