Celtic have no intention of sacking Martin O'Neill, according to a fresh report, which is good news.
The Bhoys are on a rotten run, losing all three of their last three games, which have included two Old Firm derbies and a Europa League opener with Ferencvaros. The performances have been poor, and what's worse is that the effort levels have been, too.
That will frustrate O'Neill as much as any fan, but he also knows this team has personnel limitations that are going to make it difficult to find solutions to the results issue.
Some have called for O'Neill to be sacked, while the veteran boss himself has hinted that he could walk away if he looks over the game footage and feels as though he cannot offer the solutions.
But according to journalist Stephen McGowan, Celtic are not considering sacking O'Neill. He told BBC Sport Scotland: "And I’m sure Martin O’Neill will have spoken to Dermot Desmond, who has no intention of pulling the trigger himself.
“I think there’s no question of Celtic expediting this process. So it will be entirely down to Martin and where he feels about it.”
Good news for all connected with Celtic
O'Neill has his limitations, that has become clear, but make no mistake, he shouldn't be in this position. The club's poor recruitment have created this situation, and the board cannot throw O'Neill under the bus to get away from that.
You also have to consider what O'Neill has given to this club, both in his first spell and last season, when he came in at the age of 73, and he has since turned 74, to win a league and cup double, dragging the club out of the mire. Make no mistake, very few could have dragged that team to a double last season.
So, like it or not, Celtic are in debt to O'Neill, and they must show enough respect to resist sacking him and to allow him to make up his own mind when he wants to walk away, at least until the summer.
Come the summer, the Bhoys need a new manager. It's acceptable to say that, and we cannot ignore some of the issues that have arisen under O'Neill tactically, but until then, Celtic must remain patient, especially given there are no clear replacement candidates, and this board are not very good at recruitment.
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