Auston Trusty of Celtic is seen at full time during the Scottish Premiership match between Celtic and Hearts at Celtic Park on December 07, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
Q: How disappointed were you with the first goal that was conceded? The team seemed to switch off?
Wilfried Nancy: “No, they didn’t switch off. To be honest with you, we were still in the game after the first goal. The second goal, again, I need to know a little bit more about my players also. We played with urgency. But sometimes we played with panic at the same time because we missed many passes. But again, because there was a good intention, good desire to go forward. So obviously, the first goal is disappointing. But when I look at the second goal, the way they scored, it could have been better. But again, this is part of football. Now, how can we come back from that? And I think that we can do better on this.”
Kieran Tierney pulls a goal back for Celtic 🍀 pic.twitter.com/DdbLeKfpiM
— Sky Sports Scotland (@ScotlandSky) December 7, 2025
Q: The atmosphere here was quite subdued. The fans are obviously quite restless just now. How difficult is that going to be for you as a manager to try and turn this around, turn the atmosphere around?
Wilfried Nancy: “I focus on the pitch, what I can do for my players to get better. And after that, the fans, they want to push us, they want to help us and sometimes to push us. So challenge and support all the time. So for me, it doesn’t change. I’m focused really on the pitch, what I can do better, what I can do to help the team to have better performance, and what can I do to give confidence to the team. But again, it’s only one game. They did well previously in terms of results. I showed them that we could have done something better. And the next time, it’s going to be the same too. But again, my job is to be really focused on the pitch. And after that, the fans, I am with the fans and they’re going to push us.”
Celtic manager Wilfried Nancy reacts during the Premier League match between Celtic and Heart of Midlothian at Celtic Park on December 07, 2025. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
Q: This was your first experience of Scottish football. What did you think of the standard? Was it what you expected it to be?
Wilfried Nancy: “To be honest, the way they played, it was something that we saw already. This is not because I come from a different country that football is going to change. This is the same rules. This is the same players. So the intensity was high and they fought. And they played with big guys and they put a lot of intensity. And this is also the tendency here. But where I come from, in MLS, it was the same. When I was in France, also it was the same, depending on the team. So it doesn’t change too much. But now, this is about how we can bounce back with that.”
Q: Is it too early for you to have learned anything about your team after one game?
Wilfried Nancy: “Yes, I’ve learned a lot. As a coach, again, my players did everything. So me, if we didn’t have the performance that we had, but we had a good performance at certain moments, it’s because I need to help them a little bit more. And I learned a lot of things today. It was a really, really good learning, regarding the way we want to attack, the way we want to defend, how we need to play with more personality at certain moments. For me, it was important in terms of learning process, regarding your question. So now, we’re going to move from that.”
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A crucial save at a key moment 😱@JamTarts‘ Alexander Schwolow 👏 pic.twitter.com/LeS6GLxEpl
— SPFL (@spfl) December 8, 2025
Wilfried Nancy took the bold decision to change the team and the formation and backed his players to deliver. His post match comments clearly shows that he understands what he has to fix and he’ll be starting on that today. So while it’s a difficult and disappointing start, there were still encouraging signs in the game and also his post match analysis seems to offer the support enough reasons to be optimistic that the new Celtic boss will be delivering positive results, hopefully in his next two matches.
Match highlights below…
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Nancy certainly talks a good game, and knows what he is looking for from our team, by the sounds of things imo?
Yet there needs to be the connection between the players and manager, to be successful in gaining the results, which are a demand for our club.
That disappeared from Rodgers methods, reinstalled under the MoN and Maloney partnership.
So no-one really knows what to expect in that regards just yet, under Nancy?
So how much time is available within the club, with a new system in operation, an injury list as it currently is, want away players within the squad, and weakness throughout the playing squad to implement all the changes that are required, going forward?
Never going to be an easy fix.
Regardless Nancy needs to help himself also by ditching that tactic board for a start imo?
We already have enough spotlight upon our club in such a negative manner already, than adding to it?
Must admit to being disappointed to see Strachan being involved in the decision making process, moreso than Maloney or even fozzy?
Both were instrumental for MoN, yet both seems to have been discarded already?
Personally thinking that may be a big mistake from Nancy imo?
Still haven’t a clue what Strachan brings to our coaching set up, despite being in place for years now?
All in favour of a new coaching set up installed within our club.
Promoting Strachan within it, wouldn’t be a decision from Nancy that I would feel comfortable about imo?