When Wim Jansen was appointed Manager in 1997, less than one in a hundred of Celtic supporters could have told you who he was. Possibly the more geekish of us recalled that he had played against Celtic in the 1970 European Cup final for Feyenoord, but he was hardly a household name. And this was the man called upon to stop the 10 in a row!
Murdo and Wim with the League Cup in 1997 after a 3-0 win over Dundee Utd in the final held at Ibrox
He started badly with a defeat at Easter Road and his new signing Henrik Larsson a distinct flop.a few other signings followed, not all of them great ones! Some horrible games followed, but gradually Jansen, with the help of his assistant Murdo MacLeod (now there was an appointment we were all happy with!) got on top of things and a credible challenge emerged. Midwinter was good with the capture of the League Cup (something that convinced Celtic that they could win things again!), the signing of Paul Lambert, and the defeat of Rangers at Celtic Park. Although Celtic were still behind, the chase was on.
It was tense. Hearts were involved as well until a fairly late stage, and Celtic couldn’t always reproduce the form that the huge fanbase in the now three-quarters completed stadium craved. Jansen had learned quickly about Scotland, and was increasing in popularity, although we were all distressed to hear that he and Jock Brown the General Manager were not getting on.
9 May 1998: Celtic Coach Wim Jansen and Murdo McLeod celebrate after a Scottish Premier League match against St Johnstone at Celtic Park in Glasgow, Scotland. Celtic won the match 2-0 to become the league champions. Photot: Shaun Botterill/Allsport
It was a close run thing, but we eventually pulled through that bright May Saturday in 1998. Things looked good for the future, but then Wim suddenly resigned and disappeared! He was seldom seen again. This was a pity, for we hardly really got a chance to get to know him, and yet we owe him such an awful lot!
Wim died with dementia in 2022.
David Potter
Wim Jansen Former Dutch international Wim Jansen and Former Celtic manager Wim Jansen died aged 75 after dementia battle. Issue date: Tuesday January 25, 2022.
HUGE SAVINGS IN THE CELTIC STAR’S FATHER’S DAY SALE! BECAUSE YOUR CELTIC DA’S WORTH IT!
The Celtic Star’s Father’s Day Promotion is in full swing with hundreds of books already on their way destined for Celtic Dads and Grandads on Sunday 18 June. We’ve reduced all six books currently available from their usual retail price of £20 and prices are as low as £6 (see below).
All books are high quality hardback, with some signed by the author. And it’s also worth noting that you only pay postage on one book, so it’s free for the second, third and so on. ORDER HERE or click on The Celtic Star image above…this is how it feels to be Celtic!
