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Per the words of interim boss Martin O'Neill, the Columbus Crew head coach will be leading Celtic for Sunday's Scottish Premiership match against Heart of Midlothian.

Columbus Crew's manager has been part of serious talks with the Glasgow club for almost a week and currently appears ready to finalize a deal.

O'Neill has held the role of caretaker manager for more than four weeks ever since the previous manager departed, securing six wins in seven games, cutting into the lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership and guiding the club to a Premier Sports Cup final spot.

The veteran manager, a former boss of the club between 2000 and 2005, had already indicated he thought Sunday's trip to Hibernian – a 2-1 victory – was likely to be his final act of his return at the helm.

However, O'Neill stated he will oversee the team in the midweek Premiership match against Dens Park prior to Nancy takes over.

"He is the man that will be taking over," O'Neill said to the radio station. "I believed my time was up on Sunday, but there's some paperwork yet to be sorted. Wednesday will definitely be my last match."

A Surreal Spell

"It has been like a dream," O'Neill continued. "It's like a part of your life where you think 'did that really happen?' Am I pleased that I took the role? Without a doubt."

If the Hoops defeat Dundee while Hearts see off Kilmarnock in midweek, Nancy could potentially take Celtic to the top of the Premiership with a victory in his first match as manager.

"That's a good fixture for Nancy against Hearts," remarked O'Neill. "A gentle introduction. It will be a difficult game naturally and good luck to him. At the very least he takes over a team with a bit of confidence."

The team's morale stems from the positive run in matches over the past five weeks, a period where he lost only once – a three-one loss at the Danish side in the Europa League.

Nevertheless, the ex- Republic of Ireland national team boss along with his squad then bounced back to secure a first away win in Europe since way back in 2021 as they beat Feyenoord 3-1 recently.

A Confidence Boost

"We lost to Midtjylland," O'Neill recalled. "That proved to be a difficult match – a few weeks before they defeated Nottingham Forest, so that was a challenge. To go to De Kuip and win on their patch was fantastic. We have given the team an opportunity, there are three matches remaining to try to qualify, but that victory in Rotterdam helped restore belief."

What Comes Next

When asked for his thoughts on his spell as caretaker, O'Neill says it has led to thoughts about whether he would like to carry on in management in the future.

"I honestly don't know," he said. "I will have a moment to reflect on everything following the match on Wednesday."

"It was not simple," he continued. "I felt the fear of failing – that is an ever-present major worry. I used to boast that I was capable of doing the job equally as badly as a lot of other gaffers."

"I have learned a lot. I've got some excellent young coaches alongside me and it has served as a reinvigoration personally in several respects, working with young people daily."

A Potential Advisory Position?

Regarding whether he will stay with the club as an advisor, the former Leicester City, Villa and Republic of Ireland boss says that is entirely up to Nancy.

"That decision is solely for Nancy to decide," O'Neill stated. "He must be given full autonomy. Should he desire my advice on things, that is acceptable. If he doesn't, that is perfectly fine at all. It becomes his squad the minute he steps into the breach."

TalkSport host the interviewer concluded by asking if O'Neill if he would be emotional or sentimental when the full-time whistle sounded in the Dundee game.

"Are you asking am I going to cry?" O'Neill replied. "Please don't be silly."