Rangers hero Ally McCoist has called for Celtic to show sufficient respect to Martin O'Neill amid suggestions the veteran boss should be axed.
O'Neill's men suffered another setback on Sunday when they lost away from home to Falkirk, making it two league defeats for the season and six defeats across all competitions.
O'Neill does not have a particularly strong squad to work with having been let down by the board over the summer, and it's clear that there are personnel issues that would be difficult for many a manager to paper over.
But there are also issues with how Celtic are playing, including a clear lack of style and an inability to find tactical tweaks that protect the team from its biggest issues, such as the midfield being overrun time and again.
And so O'Neill is fighting off criticism with each passing week, there have been some suggestions early this week that he is back under pressure.
But according to Rangers hero McCoist, O'Neill has earned enough respect to be in charge of his own future. He told TalkSPORT: "I think Martin has absolutely earned the right and deserves the respect to stay for as long as he feels right. I really do. I would hate Martin to overstay his time at Celtic, first and foremost for his health.
“That’s the most important thing, because I’ve always gotten on really well with Martin. Obviously I want Rangers to win the league 100%, but Martin has more than earned the right to see things out for as long as he wants at Celtic, and that should be the case.”
It's going to be a balancing act for Celtic to manage as this season goes on. They are not likely considering sacking O'Neill at this jucture, especially because the board knows it failed him during the summer transfer window.
But if results to spiral, then they may be forced into a decision they don't want to make. Comments from club chiefs during the last international window suggest the board are in line with what McCoist is saying here, but football is a results-based business, and such an approach cannot be applied regardless of how things are doing on the pitch.
Realistically, O'Neill will be given more rope than most, but he is still going to have to deliver results if he wants to keep his job until the end of the season.
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