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Per the words of caretaker manager Martin O'Neill, the Columbus Crew head coach will be leading Celtic during Sunday's Premiership clash against Heart of Midlothian.

The head coach has been engaged in detailed discussions with the Glasgow club for almost seven days and currently looks set to complete a deal.

O'Neill has held the role of caretaker manager for over four weeks since Brendan Rodgers resigned, achieving six victories in seven games, reducing Hearts' lead in the Scottish Premiership while also steering the Parkhead outfit to a League Cup final spot.

The 73-year-old, a former boss of Celtic between 2000 to 2005, had already said he believed the visit to Hibernian – which ended in a 2-1 win – was likely to be his final act of his second spell in charge.

But, O'Neill revealed he will lead Celtic in the midweek league encounter with Dundee before Nancy takes over.

"He is the man set to be arriving," stated O'Neill to the radio station. "I believed it was over last weekend, but there's some formalities yet to be dealt with. Wednesday will assuredly be the end for me."

A Bizarre Experience

"It's been surreal," he added. "It's like a part of your life where you think 'did that really happen?' Am I pleased that I took the role? Most certainly."

Should the Hoops beat Dundee while the Jambos see off Killie in midweek, the incoming boss could guide his new club to the top of the table if they win in his first match in charge.

"It's a good fixture for Nancy against Hearts," O'Neill said. "A gentle introduction. It is going to be a difficult game of course but I wish him well. At least he takes over a team full of confidence."

That confidence comes from the positive run in matches in the last five weeks, where he has suffered just one defeat – a 3-1 defeat at the Danish side in the European competition.

However, the former Republic of Ireland manager along with his squad were then able to claim their first away win on the continent since 2021 with a win over Feyenoord 3-1 last week.

Rebuilding Belief

"We were defeated to them," O'Neill said. "That proved to be a hard fixture – a couple of weeks earlier they mauled Nottingham Forest, so that was a challenge. To travel to De Kuip and win away from home was terrific. We've given the team an opportunity, there are three games remaining to attempt qualification, however, the victory in Rotterdam helped restore belief."

Thoughts on the Future

Upon being asked for his thoughts during his spell as caretaker, O'Neill says it has led to consideration about whether he desires to carry on in management in the future.

"I honestly don't know," he admitted. "I'll take a little think about things following Wednesday evening."

"It was challenging," he added. "There was the fear of failing – that is an ever-present major worry. I once joked I could do the job just as poorly as a lot of other gaffers."

"I have learned a lot. I've got some great coaching staff working with me and it has served as a reinvigoration personally in several respects, working with young players every day."

A Potential Advisory Position?

Regarding whether he will stay at Celtic in a consultancy role, the former Leicester, Aston Villa and Republic of Ireland manager says that is entirely up to Nancy.

"That decision is really for the incoming manager to decide," O'Neill stated. "He should be given full autonomy. Should he desire my advice on things, that is acceptable. If not, that's not a problem either. It becomes his team the minute he enters the job."

TalkSport host Jim White ended the interview if O'Neill if he would be emotional or sentimental once the full-time whistle blew on Wednesday.

"Are you asking am I going to get tearful?" O'Neill responded. "Don't be ridiculous."