'Drained' Celtic boss sums up bonkers end to Scottish Cup tie vs Dundee as boss gives verdict on fan boycott
Interim Hoops boss thought Scottish Cup campaign was over before late drama ensued against Dundee at Parkhead
They did it the hard way, but Celtic boss Martin O’Neill admitted the dramatic nature of his side’s Scottish Cup fifth round win over Dundee left him feeling completely “drained”.
The Hoops needed extra-time to overcome the Dark Blues and book their spot in the quarter-finals of the competition as Ethan Hamilton’s sensational strike early in the second half was cancelled out in the 97th minute Junior Adamu and Sebastian Tounekti’s winner.
O’Neill men were just 15 seconds away from suffering their first defeat at Parkhead to the Tayside club since 2001 and the emotional swing of the tie left legendary boss O’Neill visibly exhausted at full-time.
Speaking to Premier Sports, O’Neill admitted: “As you can tell, I’m really drained. I thought Dundee played very well, but we found a way to win the game. First of all, we find a bit of resilience in the last (seconds) of added time, and we get the goal.
“I’m just genuinely really, really proud of the team; the manner in which they kept going and kept going. It wasn’t looking as if it was going to be our evening at all. And we found a way to, firstly, save the game, and secondly to win.
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”It was great (for Adamu). Brilliant for him to score a goal on his debut. First of all, it saves the game for us. Seb coming on, he made a big, big difference. Trying to take people on, trying to dribble past a few players. He was a game changer for us.”
Martin O’Neill gives verdict on fan boycott decision
O’Neill has found himself stuck in the middle of an ongoing civil war between supporters and the club’s hierarchy in recent times. Despite the growing unrest, the 73-year-old is hoping a middle ground can be found soon to ensure Celtic can rally together for the end-of-season run-in.
“A disunited Celtic is not what anybody wants,” the interim boss added. “And I think the sooner we can resolve the differences between all parties, the better.”