Next Celtic manager odds: Ex-Spurs & Wolves coaches among early favourites

Celtic have sacked manager Wilfried Nancy just 33 days after putting him in charge of the first-team – an unsurprising end to a disastrous experiment just days after a 3-1 home defeat to Rangers hammered the final nail into the Frenchman’s coffin.

All of which means that the board are back to square one barely more than a month after they ended Martin O’Neill’s tenure as caretaker manager. So which way will they turn this time after their instincts about Nancy proved to be so spectacularly far off the mark?

Below, we’ve listed the ten managers who have emerged as the very early betting favourites with the bookmakers, along with the longest odds you can currently get on each of them. Much may change and many of these names will no doubt disappear from view very quickly, but this is where the bookies think that Celtic are looking as they try to put the disaster of Nancy’s reign behind them.

Will Martin O’Neill be back in charge of Celtic before long?

Martin O’Neill – 13/8: O’Neill hadn’t worked in management for six long years before Celtic asked him to come back as caretaker when Brendan Rodgers left – and given that he won seven of his eight games in charge, they may well decide that the simplest way forward is to ask the 73-year-old if he wants to come back again on a permanent basis. It would certainly be a popular appointment, if not necessarily a forward-thinking one.

Shaun Maloney – 2/1: Extending that same logic would suggest that if O’Neill simply doesn’t want to come out of retirement for the long haul, then turning to his assistant, former Celtic player Maloney, would be the smartest move. Maloney struggled at Hibs a few seasons ago when he first forayed into management but did well under difficult circumstances at Wigan Athletic and would be a quick appointment if nothing else. Certainly the bookies reckon that Celtic will head back to the O’Neill/Maloney axis if given the choice.

Ange Postecoglou – 4/1: Another old flame ripe for rekindling here. Postecoglou had a distinctly Nancy-esque stint at Nottingham Forest this season, lasting just 39 days at the City Ground, but was impressive during his first spell at Celtic and, as we know so well, would guarantee a trophy in his second season… Right?

Frank Lampard – 12/1: After the three clear favourites, the bookies arguably start to get a little more fanciful from here on out. Would Lampard be willing to jump ship with his Coventry City side flying high in the English Championship table? Perhaps not, but his name has been coming up in conversations for other vacancies as well.

Former Wolves & Leeds men also in the mix after Nancy’s sacking

Kjetil Knutsen – 14/1: There are five managers who are available at the same odds here, although some markets have Knutsen as low as 8/1. A name that always seems to come up whenever the Celtic job is mentioned, the long-serving Bodø/Glimt coach has never taken the step many pundits seem to have expected for years.

Robbie Keane – 14/1: Having cut his teeth as an assistant at Leeds United and Middlesbrough, Keane is making his way in management with Hungarian side Ferencváros and has been doing a good enough job that his paymasters extended his contract with the club just last month. Another former player and one of the more intriguing gambles on the shortlist.

Gary O’Neil – 14/1: The former Wolves and Bournemouth manager has a pretty solid record in the Premier League, even if his teams have usually improved after moving on from him. A logical name for the list, but he’s also being linked with RC Strasbourg after their coach Liam Rosenior became favourite for the vacant Chelsea job.

Brian Barry-Murphy – 14/1: The Irishman is doing a cracking job at Cardiff City after a few years working with Manchester City’s academy, but his CV isn’t especially long. He took charge of the Bluebirds in the summer and has them top of the English League One table so far.

Kieran McKenna – 14/1: After Ipswich Town’s promotion to the Premier League, McKenna was linked with the Manchester United and Chelsea jobs – following their relegation, perhaps Celtic wouldn’t have quite such fierce competition if they wanted to get hold of him. It’s unclear how easy he would be to prise away from Portman Road.