Wilfried Nancy’s Rocky Start at Celtic

Disappointing Debut for Nancy

Wilfried Nancy became the first Celtic manager to suffer defeats in his first two matches as his team faced a 3-0 loss at home against Roma.

First Half Struggles

Celtic struggled significantly in the opening half, falling behind by three goals before halftime. The scoring began with an own goal from Liam Scales, followed by two goals from Evan Ferguson.

Arne Engels had a chance to put Celtic on the board but missed a penalty just before the break. Following a triple substitution at halftime, Celtic showed some improvement but could not change the outcome of the match, as second-half goals from both sides were ruled out due to offside after VAR reviews.

The defeat places Celtic at seven points in the Europa League with two matches left—an away game against Bologna and a home fixture against Utrecht.

Looking Ahead

Despite the setback against Hearts, who lead the William Hill Premiership, Celtic still has an opportunity to advance in European competition. However, Nancy needs to find a winning strategy quickly as his next match is the Premier Sports Cup final against St Mirren.

Tactical Changes and Struggles

The French manager took charge of a team that had recently enjoyed seven victories in eight matches under interim coach Martin O’Neill. Nevertheless, his tactical changes have led to difficulties for the squad.

He retained the starting lineup and utilized a system featuring three left-sided center-backs: Scales, Auston Trusty, and Kieran Tierney. The only modification involved repositioning Reo Hatate deeper in the midfield alongside Engels, who played a more advanced role.

Celtic struggled to transition effectively and lacked offensive presence in the first half, with wide players Sebastian Tounekti and Yang Hyun-jun appearing ill at ease in their roles.

Roma dominated the game from the start, taking an early lead in the sixth minute. Scales misdirected a corner aimed at Gianluca Mancini, resulting in an own goal that hit the crossbar.

Despite several opportunities to score, Celtic failed to establish themselves offensively, with Roma continuously creating chances. Kasper Schmeichel made a solid save, but Ferguson, benefiting from Zeki Celik’s low cross, scored in the 36th minute after being inadequately marked.

The home crowd, missing the spirited support of the banned Green Brigade, began chanting for management changes in light of Celtic’s lackluster performance.

Celtic finally mounted an attack of note near the end of the half, but Yang’s attempt went over the bar. Ferguson capped off the half with his second goal, taking advantage of space left by the defense.

Engels suffered a setback as a penalty was awarded but failed to convert, hitting the post instead.

Second Half Improvements

Nancy made adjustments by bringing Colby Donovan into the defensive lineup and adding Paulo Bernardo and Kelechi Iheanacho. Celtic appeared more dynamic in the second half.

Iheanacho squandered a potential scoring opportunity after being set up beautifully, and although he found the net later after a low cross from Engels, the goal was ruled out for offside.

Leon Bailey also had a goal disallowed by VAR following an impressive shot into the top corner, further compounding Celtic’s frustrations.