Wilfried Nancy's appointment as the new permanent manager of Celtic has been derailed further, meaning that Martin O'Neill will take charge of the club one last time when they take on Dundee FC. But it looks like the Frenchman is going to be making his debut in the Hoops dugout in a top-of-the-table matchup against Hearts at Parkhead.
He is set to be handed a tough start to life at Parkhed. After Hearts, they have a home fixture against AS Roma in the Europa League, the premier match of the first phase for the Hoops. That will be followed by the Scottish League Cup final against St Mirren.
Now, it is up to Nancy to make a positive first impression on the fans over this three-game run. If he fails to do so, it might be a tall mountain to climb for the Frenchman.
On the other hand, it looks like Nancy has been handed the first transfer blow of his managerial stint at Parkhead, even before arriving as the manager of the club. As reported by Football Insider, Celtic may struggle to sign Wessam Abou Ali in January due to Columbus Crew’s reluctance to part with the striker.
Wilfried Nancy handed transfer blow before even joining Celtic
Pete O'Rourke said regarding the situation involving Celtic, Columbus Crew and Abou Ali:
"Trying to sign Abou Ali I think will be a difficult deal to do in January just due to the fact of the cost."
The journalist further went on to add regarding the potential deal and the stumbling blocks on its path:
"[There are] obvious links of Wilfred Nancy being linked with players that he’s worked with before, but it looks like a really difficult deal to pull off in January for Celtic."
Columbus Crew were believed to have signed the striker for a transfer fee believed to be in the region of £5.7 million in the summer. He has played only five times for them since then but has managed to score thrice and provided an assist as well.
Also, he has a positive goalscoring record pretty much wherever he has been in the past as well. So, it is hard to imagine that the club would be willing to part ways with him without a significant transfer fee coming in. On the other hand, would Celtic be open to the idea of splashing out on a striker who is proven in Denmark and Sweden but not in a top European league?