Celtic pledges support for O'Neill after difficult week

Celtic's leadership says it will stand behind manager Martin O'Neill following a turbulent week for the Scottish club, chief executive Michael Nicholson has confirmed.

The 74-year-old O'Neill had earlier suggested he would use the international break to weigh his future at the club. That came after Celtic suffered two losses to rivals Rangers, sandwiched around a home defeat to Hungarian side Ferencvaros in the Europa League. Following Sunday's 1-0 derby loss at Celtic Park, O'Neill remarked that it might be time to step away.

Nicholson, however, indicated the club intends to rally around the manager, who has won nine trophies across two spells in charge.

Revenue falls sharply

The chief executive's comments accompanied Celtic's latest financial results, which showed revenue falling by almost £33m. The club posted a loss of £4.8m, largely attributed to missing out on last season's Champions League. Celtic again failed to qualify this year, blowing a 4-0 aggregate lead in a play-off tie against Austrian side LASK.

In a written statement released alongside the figures, Nicholson said the club had made a strong start to its Premiership campaign but described the Champions League play-off exit as a disappointment. He said reaching the competition's league phase remains a shared objective and apologised for falling short.

Nicholson added that the past week's defeats had been painful for everyone connected to the club, but said Celtic would now unite behind O'Neill and the playing squad, focusing efforts on domestic success and the Europa League.