Wilfried Nancy enforces ‘radical’ change already: ‘Celtic players spooked’
Celtic lost 2-1 to Hearts on 7 December in Wilfried Nancy’s first game in charge in Glasgow.
Following a long wait, Celtic fans were finally greeted with the news of Nancy’s appointment prior to his first match against league leaders Hearts.
Martin O’Neill’s departure as interim boss was received with mixed feelings by Celtic fans, after he lost just one game whilst at the helm.
Yet, the Frenchman’s start to life with the Hoops did not begin well, as they were unable to get the better of the Jam Tarts in front of their home crowd.
Neil McCann highlights drastic tactical changes as Nancy in for rude awakening at Celtic
Director of Football Operations Paul Tisdale fell asleep during the Hearts match to encapsulate a rough start for Nancy at the club.
The Glaswegian outfit dominated possession yet struggled to take their chances as the visitors won with limited control of the ball and a clinical nature in front of goal.
In his post-match comments, the Frenchman talked about his focus on ensuring his side deliver with solid performances, rather than paying attention to winning or losing.
Conversely, the ex-Columbus Crew manager’s tactics caught the attention of pundits with a drastic shift away from O’Neill‘s sturdy 4-3-3/4-2-3-1 to a bolder 3-4-2-1.
Clearly, the players hadn’t had much time to get used to the new system with several individuals struggling to adapt to the new philosophy.
Speaking on BBC Scotland’s Sportscene (7 December), ex-Rangers player Neil McCann highlighted the struggles Nancy may face by switching to a new formation so soon, saying: “I think it is about the tactics today.
“I think the players were spooked. I highlighted the fact that Hearts were very good, very structured, very disciplined.
“If you are going to change so radically, and it was a radical change. You’re playing with three left-sided centre-backs playing across that back three.
“If you’re going to be aggressive, we know at Columbus Crew he liked to play with five forward players. If you’re going to make your two wing-backs two forward players, then you need to get the ball to them.
“You are effectively playing with two wingers. [Benjamin] Nygren was getting into wide areas, [Reo] Hatate was going wide, so they were flooding that area.
“They weren’t leaving them isolated. So, there’s a lot of work needing to be done. He’s not going to get a lot of training pitch time.”
Nancy endures baptism of fire as he quickly turns his attention to Celtic’s onslaught of fixtures
It certainly wasn’t the ideal start for the 48-year-old as he strives to get his first win on the board in the Hoops’ next game.
The Bhoys will host Roma on 11 December in the Europa League as they desperately look to climb the table, sitting in 21st after five matches.
The Italian outfit are flying high in Serie A and are only four points off leading Napoli, highlighting that this will not be an easy game for Celtic.
Whether Nancy opts to change his formation remains to be seen but, to McCann’s point, he won’t have a lot of time to embed his philosophy, due to the onslaught of winter fixtures.
A victory against Roma would certainly do much to prove to the Hoops fanbase that Nancy is the right man for the job, yet supporters may need to be very patient with an evident long-term project.