Martin O’Neill ‘calling the shots’ as Celtic close on £2m Marcelo Saracchi deal
Celtic’s move to sign left-back Marcelo Saracchi on a permanent deal shows the power that Martin O’Neill currently has over the club hierarchy.
That is according to former Aberdeen chief executive Keith Wyness, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, who believes that the pursuit of the Uruguayan is a clear “vote of confidence” in the 74-year-old boss.
O’Neill urged the Bhoys to sign the Boca Juniors man permanently on several occasions last season, despite him regularly playing second-fiddle to Kieran Tierney.
Wyness believes that there is “no big risk” in a permanent move for the 28-year-old due to the insignificant £2million price tag, but acknowledged that it is a clear show of O’Neill’s power.
The board desperately tried to convince the veteran to stay in charge of the team for another season, and he eventually obliged after lengthy negotiations.
O’Neill’s future was up in the air for several weeks, and Wyness believes that he may have put conditions in place for him to stay on.
Martin O’Neill’s ‘network’ to bring success again
Aberdeen’s former chief Wyness – who served as CEO at Pittodrie between 2000 and 2004 and now runs a consultancy business advising elite clubs – believes that O’Neill has a close “network” of people that he trusts behind the scenes at Celtic Park.
He has backed the permanent move for Saracchi to prove to be a success next term, and believes that the transfer fee is “negligible” for a club of the Bhoys’ stature.
Speaking on the latest edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, he made it clear that O’Neill is “calling the shots” behind the scenes at Parkhead.
“I think the amount involved is pretty negligible. I've seen the quotes of about £2m, it's not a significant sum, but it does show that Martin is calling the shots as he should do at this stage,” Wyness said.
“He is a player that he's talked about for a while. It’s no big risk at that price. But I think he will prove to be a success. Martin will show once again that he's got the eye and his network of people that he trusts.
“There's just something still not right at Celtic though in terms of the top level of the relationship between the board and the fans, it’s still a bit of an uneasy truce.
“Look, it's a vote of confidence in Martin, but it's not exactly a huge vote. This is one that really hasn't got any risk, and Martin will be proven to be correct again, I'm sure.”
Celtic ‘confident’ of sealing Marcelo Saracchi deal
Football Insider revealed last week that Celtic are “confident” of getting their move for Saracchi over the line in the coming weeks.
The Bhoys have held talks with Boca Juniors over a fresh move for the defender, after their initial offer of another loan deal was swiftly knocked back.
The Argentine giants are instead looking for a permanent sale this summer, something which Celtic are also happy to oblige with.
Talks are ongoing between the two clubs, and the Glasgow side are hoping to have the deal concluded as soon as possible.