Celtic are in a state of flux - Martin O'Neill should get a knighthood if he delivers two trophies this season
A Celtic legend has suggested the interim Hoops boss would deserve serious credit if he managed to win silverware with current squad
Frank McAvennie has jokingly suggested that interim boss Martin O’Neill should be given a knighthood if he were to successfully guide a sub standard Celtic side to a cup double this season.
The Hoops have been clinging on to hopes of defending their Premiership crown and remarkably sit just three points adrift of leaders Hearts in third spot with five post-split games left to play.
They also remain firmly in the hunt to reclaim the Scottish Cup with a semi-final showdown against St Mirren at Hampden Park on Sunday to look forward to, while their title rivals have a free weekend.
Given the current state of the Celtic squad, club legend McAvennie is of the belief that O’Neill should be etched into club folklore and awarded one of the highest accolades if he manages to win both the league and Scottish Cup.
He admitted: “If Celtic go on to win two trophies this season, I think Martin should be knighted. Not given a statue, a knighthood!
“Billy (McNeill) used to tell us you've got to make your own bit of history, you've got to forget everything else. I would hate for this group of players to make history by getting a place in the Conference League.
“It's in their own hands, whether they're good enough to go and do that (win both trophies), it's down to the players. Nobody is scared of Celtic anymore, that's the biggest problem. Every team is having a go. It's a wee bit different now, the opposition were used to playing on the halfway line, but they're not anymore, they're playing at the edge of the box now.
“Callum (McGregor) used to play across the halfway line in the opponents half and dictate the play. There's nobody here doing that now, it's only Callum, because we need him going forward. Yang (Hyun-jun) is arguably the most improved player this year, I think he's still got more to come. Celtic have got a lot of injuries as well, that’s cost them a lot.
“But would you be surprised if St Mirren beat Celtic on Sunday? I don't think anybody would. It wouldn't be as big of a surprise in the same way it would’ve been a couple of years ago. I don't get it. 18 months ago, we went toe-to-toe with Bayern Munich, a great team. What's happened since then? It's very quickly gone downhill and they’re not the best show in town at the moment.
“But hopefully Celtic win on Sunday, because realistically they could finish third in the league this year. If they finish third and don't win the cup, they'll be in the Conference League... that's for teams like West Ham!”
*Frank McAvennie was promoting Premier Sports’ live and exclusive coverage of Celtic v St Mirren on Sunday from 1.30pm on Premier Sports 1. Watch Premier Sports via your TV provider on Sky, Virgin TV, STV Player and Amazon Prime as an add-on subscription, and on the Premier Sports’ Player.