It’s not often that a club as storied as Celtic finds itself at the center of such rapid managerial upheaval, but the events of the last month have left fans and pundits reeling. On Monday, January 5, 2026, Celtic announced the sacking of manager Wilfried Nancy after just 33 turbulent days at the helm—a period that will go down as the shortest stint for any permanent manager in the club’s long history.
Nancy’s appointment on December 3, 2025, was seen as a bold move by the Celtic board. The Frenchman arrived with a burgeoning reputation, having led Columbus Crew to the 2023 MLS Cup and the 2024 Leagues Cup, and even steering them to the final of the 2024 CONCACAF Champions Cup. Fresh off being named MLS Manager of the Year for 2024, Nancy was handed a two-and-a-half-year contract and tasked with steadying a Celtic ship that had already weathered significant storms this season.
But if the board expected a smooth transition, they got anything but. Nancy’s reign began with a home defeat to Hearts—a sign of things to come. The team then suffered a 3-0 loss at home to Roma in the Europa League, followed by a bruising 3-1 defeat to St Mirren in the Premier Sports Cup final. The pain didn’t stop there: a 2-1 reversal away to Dundee United and a 2-0 loss at Motherwell piled on the pressure, as did a four-game losing streak not seen at Celtic since the days of Jock Stein in 1978.
“Celtic Football Club today announces that it has decided to terminate the contract of manager Wilfried Nancy, with immediate effect,” read the club’s statement. “The club thanks Wilfried for his efforts and wishes him and his family well for the future.” The announcement also confirmed the departures of Nancy’s assistants—Kwame Ampadu, Jules Gueguen, and Maxime Chalier—as well as head of football operations Paul Tisdale. Celtic promised fans that a further update would be provided as soon as practical.
For Nancy, the numbers make for grim reading. He became the first Celtic manager to lose his opening two matches and the first to oversee a four-game losing run in nearly five decades. Of the eight games he managed, Celtic lost six—a staggering fall from grace for a club that has dominated Scottish football in recent years. The 3-1 home defeat to arch-rivals Rangers on January 3, after leading 1-0 at half-time, proved to be the final straw. Fans protested outside Parkhead in the aftermath, their frustration boiling over after a dismal second half saw Celtic collapse against their Old Firm foes.
It’s a stark contrast to the run under interim manager Martin O’Neill, who had returned to the club in October following Brendan Rodgers’ resignation. O’Neill, a Celtic legend who previously managed the club to seven trophies between 2000 and 2005, steadied the ship with an impressive seven wins from eight matches. Many now expect O’Neill to be called upon once again, as Celtic search for their fourth manager of a chaotic season.
The rapid decline under Nancy was particularly jarring given the team’s form prior to his arrival. After O’Neill’s solid interim spell, expectations were high. But under Nancy, the team quickly lost its way. “He was fixated on changing Celtic’s style, moving to a 3-4-3, playing one particular way. He just wasn’t adaptable and for Celtic to lose six and ship as many goals as they did—it was kamikaze stuff from Nancy,” observed Sky Sports’ Chris Sutton. “You want to give a manager time, but I think Celtic have acted decisively because there is a league title to win. The players have to take their share of responsibility. Poor form has not just been under Nancy; there were issues at the start of the season.”
Indeed, the problems at Celtic seem to run deeper than any one manager. The club, Scottish champions in 13 of the last 14 seasons, now finds itself in an unusual position: second in the Scottish Premiership, six points adrift of leaders Hearts and level on points with Rangers, separated only by goal difference. With 38 points from 20 games, Celtic’s tally is 15 points down from the same stage last year. The last time a team outside the Old Firm won the league was Aberdeen, under Sir Alex Ferguson in 1984-85—a reminder of just how rare this level of competition is in Scottish football.
The board’s decision to part ways with Nancy came swiftly after the Rangers defeat, but the writing had been on the wall for some time. Not only did the team struggle for results, but the style of play failed to convince supporters. “Nancy came in and tore everything up, but the problems do run much deeper than Nancy,” Sutton added. “Nobody knows what Paul Tisdale was doing at the club. Dr Do-little. He had a large say in bringing Nancy in, and if he had a hand in recruitment over the summer that was also poor. Now Celtic are under pressure because this squad needs strengthening in January and quickly.”
Comparisons have been drawn with Rangers’ own recent managerial missteps, as Sky Sports’ Alison Conroy noted. The board’s gamble on Nancy’s philosophy echoed Rangers’ ill-fated experiment with Russell Martin, who lasted only 123 days. Both managers were lauded for their tactical ideas but struggled to implement them with squads ill-suited to their preferred styles. Nancy’s post-match comments after the Rangers loss—“I see many, many good things. That’s why the frustration is here because we deserve better and we have to stay together and everything’s going to move forward”—did little to assuage fan concerns.
Looking ahead, Celtic faces a daunting run of fixtures, including league matches against Dundee United and Hearts, a Scottish Cup tie at Auchinleck Talbot, and a Europa League trip to Bologna. Whoever takes the reins next will inherit a side in desperate need of confidence and clarity, with the January transfer window looming as a critical opportunity to strengthen a faltering squad.
For now, the dust settles on Wilfried Nancy’s brief and tumultuous reign. The club’s swift action signals a determination to rescue their season, but with Hearts flying high and Rangers resurgent, Celtic’s path back to the summit of Scottish football looks anything but straightforward. The eyes of the footballing world will be watching closely to see who steps up next—and whether they can restore the stability and success that Celtic fans demand.
