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As stated by interim boss Martin O'Neill, the Columbus Crew head coach will be on the Celtic touchline for this weekend's Scottish Premiership fixture against Hearts.

Columbus Crew's head coach has been engaged in advanced negotiations with the Parkhead side for nearly a week and currently appears ready to wrap up a deal.

O'Neill has held the role of interim boss for more than a month since Brendan Rodgers resigned, achieving six victories in seven matches, reducing the lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership while also steering the club to a Premier Sports Cup place in the final.

The veteran manager, a former boss of Celtic between 2000 and 2005, had already said he expected Sunday's trip to Easter Road – which ended in a 2-1 win – would be the last game in his second spell at the helm.

Yet, O'Neill stated he is to manage Celtic for Wednesday's Premiership match against Dens Park before Nancy takes over.

"He is the individual set to be arriving," stated O'Neill to the radio station. "I believed it was over on Sunday, however there's some paperwork still to be sorted. Wednesday will assuredly be my final game."

A Surreal Spell

"It's been like a dream," he added. "It resembles a part of your life where you think 'did that really happen?' Am I delighted that I took the role? Most certainly."

Should Celtic defeat Dundee and Hearts overcome Killie on Wednesday, Nancy could potentially take Celtic to the top of the Premiership with a victory during his first match in charge.

"That's a good fixture for Nancy versus Hearts," O'Neill said. "A nice introduction. It is going to be a challenging fixture of course and I wish him all the best. At the very least he inherits a team full of confidence."

That confidence stems from the positive run on the field in the last month or so, a period where he lost only once – a 3-1 loss away to the Danish side in the Europa League.

However, the former Republic of Ireland manager along with his squad subsequently managed to claim their first victory on the road on the continent since 2021 by defeating the Dutch club 3-1 recently.

Rebuilding Belief

"We lost to them," O'Neill recalled. "That was a hard fixture – a few weeks earlier they defeated Forest, so that was a challenge. To go to Feyenoord and secure a victory on their patch was terrific. We have given ourselves an opportunity, there are three matches left to try to qualify, however, the victory in Rotterdam was a restoration of belief."

Thoughts on the Future

Upon being asked for his thoughts during his spell as caretaker, O'Neill stated it has led to consideration about whether he desires to continue managing going forward.

"I honestly am unsure," he admitted. "I will have a little think about things following Wednesday evening."

"It was challenging," he added. "I felt apprehension about failing – that is always a major worry. I used to boast I could do this job equally as badly as a lot of other managers."

"I've learned a lot. I have had some great coaching staff working with me and it's been a refresh for me in many ways, working with young players every day."

A Potential Advisory Position?

Regarding if he might remain with the club as an advisor, the ex- Leicester, Villa and Ireland manager says that is entirely the decision of Nancy.

"That decision is really for the incoming manager to decide," O'Neill said. "He must be given free reign. Should he desire my input on things, that's fine. If not, that's not a problem either. It becomes his squad the minute he steps into the breach."

TalkSport host Jim White ended the interview by asking O'Neill if he would be emotional or sentimental once the full-time whistle blew on Wednesday.

"Are you asking if I will get tearful?" O'Neill responded. "Please don't be silly."