Martin O’Neill has former Aston Villa winger Shaun Maloney alongside him during his interim spell at Celtic
Martin O’Neill has embarked on a shock return to Celtic, bringing with him one of his former Aston Villa players.
The 73-year-old’s interim appointment – 20 years after leaving Celtic for Villa – was confirmed on Monday evening following Brendan Rodgers’ resignation.
“I was asked if I’d come in and hold proceedings until they found a permanent manager,” O’Neill revealed. “I had 10 minutes to make up my mind, which I did. No hesitation.”
He will be flanked by Shaun Maloney, whom he signed from Celtic in January 2007. The former winger later returned to Celtic 18 months later.
O’Neill joked at his unveiling that he was yet to vent his frustration at Maloney’s decision to rejoin Celtic all those years ago.
When asked how the dynamic would work with the former Villa player, O’Neill said: “If this had been 20-odd years ago, I would have definitely been dishing out all the instructions.
“But since this young man has been a manager, I’d have to be careful what I say to him, and I think that he might actually be giving me instructions.
“It’s nice to see him; he keeps me young. It’s nice because I took him to Aston Villa, and then he claimed he was homesick and came back to Celtic.
“I’ve never really forgiven him for that. This is the first time that we’ve, other than the time when he was working in Belgium, the first time we’ve really met up.
“So I’ve got a lot to say to him now when this finishes, and it won’t be positive!”
O’Neill and Maloney won their first game in charge of Celtic against Falkirk on Wednesday night, and are preparing to face Rangers in the Old Firm on Sunday.
What do you make of O’Neill’s return to management? Tell us here
Every day, the BirminghamLive football desk strive to deliver all manner of news, features and transfer-related stories as a part of our overall package of Aston Villa content.
Our dedicated reporter John Townley – who you can follow on X by clicking here – follows Villa home and away and offers you comprehensive coverage from matchdays, press conferences and everything that happens in between.
So much happens day to day and sometimes you can struggle to keep on top of the very latest updates as and when they occur – that’s why we have produced a daily newsletter which you can sign up to, for free, and which means you’ll have a round-up of the key stories land in your email inbox. Sign up to the Villa newsletter here.
You can also get all your favourite content from BirminghamLive’s Villa team on WhatsApp. Click here to sign up for breaking updates about the biggest stories in and around the club.
If you prefer reading our Villa stories on your phone, consider downloading the BirminghamLive app, in which you can personalise the content you see by selecting Villa as one of your designated topics. You can get it from Apple here and for Android here.
Our weekly Aston Villa podcast, Claret And Blue, is also available to watch and listen on all major streaming services. You can subscribe to the YouTube channel here, while you can access the podcast on Spotify here and via Apple here.
Watch Go Ahead Eagles vs Aston Villa on TNT Sports
Aston Villa continue their UEFA Europa League campaign as they face Go Ahead Eagles on October 23. Fans can watch the game on the TNT Sports Prime Video channel.
