Pressure, and no shortage of it, sits on Celtic’s shoulders and St Mirren are unfavourable opponents at Hampden Park
I
t is very easy to root for Wilfried Nancy. A likable, passionate individual whose career has taken him from unheralded player to the forefront of a club the size of Celtic should be worthy of high praise. It also feels only two games into the Frenchman’s tenure in Glasgow that he requires all the support he can get.
Nancy will receive that backing from the stands. Whatever legitimate grievances Celtic’s fanbase has about the direction of their club and circumstance by which Nancy was coaxed from Columbus Crew, they are generally wise enough to give the man a chance. Which is not to say there were no howls of outcry when Nancy’s name was initially floated as a potential successor to Brendan Rodgers.
Nancy stood alone with his thoughts for much of Celtic’s humbling at the hands of Roma. He will encounter an even bigger gap between dugout and touchline at Hampden Park on Sunday as Celtic hope to navigate choppy waters by lifting the League Cup. A game that could ordinarily be shrugged off as a competitive non-event – Celtic’s resource dwarfs that of St Mirren – suddenly carries huge significance. Nancy is the first manager in Celtic history to lose his opening two matches. If the run stretches to three, the alarm bells will be heard in Ohio and beyond.
