One of the six games Wilfried Nancy lost as Celtic manager was against Dundee United.
At that time, it was four straight defeats for Celtic’s recently-appointed manager, as the anti-Nancy chants and pro Martin O’Neill shouts had begun from the stands.
Fast forward to the present, and Celtic eased past Dundee United on O’Neill’s second return to the dugout this season.
Jim Goodwin was in the opposite dugout, and he noticed a clear difference from both of those matches.
Jim Goodwin on Celtic’s ruthless nature under Martin O’Neill compared to Wilfried Nancy
Whilst Nancy’s reign was chaotic, one of the constants during his eight games in charge was Celtic’s inability to finish their chances.
Speaking to Dundee United’s official social media account, Goodwin mentioned the reverse fixture against Nancy, and how his side were ‘very lucky’ to just be one goal down at half-time before securing three points.
Goodwin explained that Celtic have ‘threatened to score four or five goals’ in the majority of their matches in recent times, but it hasn’t come to fruition.
But of course, with O’Neill back in the dugout, alongside Shaun Maloney for the champions of Scotland, they have simplified things for the team.
So, to nobody’s surprise, four goals were scored against Dundee United, including securing a clean sheet, and Goodwin admits that he can’t complain one bit.
“We knew coming into the game it was going to be a really difficult fixture, given the timing of the managerial change,” said Goodwin.
“We felt it would give the supporters and the Celtic players a real lift. They went back to playing a system they are all familiar with.
“You know you aren’t going to have the majority of the ball when you come and play at Parkhead – at half-time, at 2-0, we felt we were still relatively in the game. We felt the next goal was going to be important.
“But unfortunately, we weren’t able to get that. It turned out to be a heavy defeat again.
“Celtic have threatened to score four or five goals against a lot of teams recently, even against us at Tannadice in the first half. We were very lucky to go in at one goal down.
“Unfortunately, today, they capitalised on the mistakes that we made and the chances that they got.