Former Man Utd coach says Old Trafford returnee should take notes from O'Neill while tipping Celtic for league glory
The former Sir Alex Ferguson aide believes Martin O’Neill’s experience is ‘shining through’ as The Hoops get back to winning ways.
As Manchester United enter a new managerial era through Old Trafford icon Michael Carrick, his former mentor has told him to take a leaf out of Martin O’Neill’s book on his return to the club.
Like O’Neill, Carrick has a legendary status to uphold on the red side of Manchester, having won five Premier League titles and a Champions League during his 12 years at Old Trafford as a player. Appointing former players as a manager has been a route the Glazers have went down before, however Carrick will be hoping, unlike Ole Gunnar Solksjaer, that he doesn’t tarnish his legacy.
In his first match last weekend, Carrick steered United to victory in the Manchester Derby. In a similar vein, O’Neill beat Rangers in the League Cup early on in his second stint as Hoops boss. Former Fulham manager and United coach, Rene Meulensteen believes Carrick should be looking at the 73-year old philosopher of the game for inspiration.
Carrick urged to take notes from O’Neill to steady ship
According to Edinburgh Evening News, he said: “I rate Martin O’Neill and he’s got a great career as a manager and what he's done at Celtic shows what kind of an impact he can have. His experience shining through. He’s calmed things down, put the right players in the right spot, played the right system and off you go.
“Does Carrick need to come in and do what Martin has done at Celtic? That’s exactly it. United’s players aren’t bad. Be clear on what you want, especially with the defensive side of things. The defensive structure needs to be better. These are non-negotiables.”
Meulensteen, who spent over a decade at Old Trafford in various coaching roles, believes O’Neill’s experience and know-how will eventually get them over the line in this season’s league campaign, despite Celtic currently sitting six point behind league leaders Hearts.
O’Neill ‘effect’ not to be underestimated
He continued: “for Celtic. Is that the Martin O’Nell effect? No, that’s the Celtic effect. Of course, Rangers are only six points off Hearts and I think Hearts have done extremely well. I just don’t think they will be able to sustain it because the gap is not big enough and they will drop points.
“Both Rangers and Celtic could overtake them but it’s going to be an interesting one because it might end up being the closest run-in we’ve seen up in Scotland for years. I do think that Martin O'Neill and Celtic’s experience of winning leagues will eventually make the difference.”
O’Neill will have a chance to gain ground on the league leaders this weekend as Celtic prepare to take on the Jambos at Tynecastle. With the news of injuries to key Hearts duo Cammy Devlin and Lawrence Shankland emerging, it may be the best opportunity the Hoops will get to beat their Gorgie rivals this season for the first time.