It could be that silence is the only confirmation Celtic fans get amid the ongoing Martin O'Neill uncertainty. The Bhoys went into the international break on the back of three straight defeats that included consecutive Old Firm defeats, leaving O'Neill under pressure.
Since then, O'Neill has strongly hinted he will walk away if he cannot fix the current issues, while the club has confirmed they will not sack the veteran boss.
There have been reports claiming that Celtic would clarify O'Neill's position with a statement this week, but that does go against usual PR strategy. Nothing says confidence like pretending there is no issue at all, while a statement would suggest O'Neill did indeed come close to quitting, and that would only ensure more questions whenever form starts to dip between now and the end of the season.
Based on that, and the fact Celtic's usual PR strategy is to say nothing, it would be a major surprise if we got such a statement. O'Neill is far more likely to sit quietly and confirm he is staying the next time he speaks to the press, whether that comes at a formal press conference or while speaking on a radio station.
And the reality is that this extended international break that spans three weeks would have been the perfect time to find a replacement for Celtic, allowing that new manager to come in and spend some time with players, rather than being thrust in during the thick of match action.
O'Neill also knows that, and we can likely deduce that him not leaving by this point, which is halfway through the international break, very likely suggests he will be staying on for now.
For those who want to see O'Neill stay on, no news is good news, and it would be incredibly clumsy from all parties if they decided to let the situation run until the week of a game.
O'Neill has spoken regularly about leaving the team in a better place for his successor, so he is not likely to want to hand over the reins in messy circumstances, and beyond that, it seems strange that he would walk away now.
He knew the recruitment issues were going to be a problem for his team weeks ago, and when he sat down, when the dust settled from those disappointing results, he will have thought about his side still being top of the league and how the run of poor form can be taken in isolation as just that - a bad run of form.
Are there bigger issues at play? Absolutely. But competitive people always believe they can fix such issues, and O'Neill knows he still has every chance of walking away with another league title, even if his side stick around at or near the top by beating all the lesser teams between now and January.
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