Former Celtic manager Martin O’Neill has been named as the League Managers Assosiation Chairman, after being head-hunted by his fellow professionals to take the role. The 72-year-old hasn’t managed a club since 2019, when he took over temporary charge of the team he won two European Cups with as a player, Nottingham Forest.
A dejected Celtic manager Martin O’Neill after the UEFA Cup Final match between Celtic and FC Porto held on May 21, 2003 at the Estadio Olimpico in Seville. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)
The Irishman was also in charge of the Republic of Ireland for a spell a few years back and had former Celtic midfielder Roy Keane as his assistant. The two men with Celtic connections then set about guiding the Irish to their first major tournament since Giovanni Trappatoni had stepped down from the managers hot seat in 2013. They managed to qualify for Euro 2016 and caused a major upset by beating Germany during that run to the finals, also beating Italy at the tournament in a major coup for O’Neill as boss.
But it’s at Celtic Park where Martin O’Neill is best remembered for his wonderful service during five trophy-laden seasons. It was O’Neill that brought Celtic out of the doldrums of the nineties and set about bulldozing the financially doped Ibrox club to the ground.
Winning a landmark Treble in his first season and being the first man since the legendary Jock Stein to do so, the Irishman laid the foundations for our unprecedented success since the millennium.
Celtic manager Martin O’Neill is mobbed by supporters at the end of the Scottish Premier League match between Kilmarnock and Celtic at Rugby Park on April 18, 2004. Celtic won the game 1-0 to secure the Scottish Premier League Title. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)
The former Aston Villa and Leicester City boss was delighted to take over the role from the departing Howard Wilkinson, who spent 30 years in the role, saying: “I am extremely proud to be voted the new LMA Chair by my fellow managers. I am succeeding Howard Wilkinson who has, for over 30 years, overseen the growth of the LMA and served its members with great distinction, dedication and passion,” as reported by Herald Sport.
“The support I have received from the LMA throughout my time as a manager has been hugely important to me and I am delighted to have the opportunity to give something back to the association. I very much look forward to working alongside [chief executive]Richard Bevan and the team. I would like to build on the work Howard has done so diligently and hopefully continue to support the current and next generation of LMA members.”
Paul Gillespie
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