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Martin O’Neill boasted an imperious record against Rangers when he was first Celtic manager, so can he continue that now that the 73-year-old is back in the Parkhead hot-seat two decades later?

To date, the Northern Irishman has won 16 of his 27 Glasgow derbies, losing only eight, the first of which was certainly the most memorable, a 6-2 victory in 2000, in which both Chris Sutton and Henrik Larsson bagged braces.

Now though, having been parachuted back into the role, following Brendan Rodgers’ shock resignation on Monday, O’Neill is faced with a huge League Cup semi-final on Sunday, coming after Wednesday night’s confidence-boosting 4-0 victory over Falkirk.

If the Hoops are going to prevail at Hampden, thereby setting up a final date with either St Mirren or Motherwell, O’Neill has to make some tough selection decisions, but simply must start one star in place of Celtic’s club-record signing.

Arne Engels' Celtic form

Arne Engels arrived at Celtic on deadline day in the summer of 2024 with sky-high expectations, given that he was replacing Matt O’Riley, one of the best midfielders the club has seen in modern times, as well as the fact that he cost £11m, a club-record fee.

Well, so far, the Belgian international has not flourished in the way many hoped, or indeed expected.

In 68 appearances for the Hoops, Engels has scored ten goals and registered 15 assists, but just two of these goals have come from open play, most recently on target against St Mirren on 1 March, converting a penalty during a 5-2 victory in Paisley.

Prior to starting the last three matches, Engels had not been a regular in the lineup this season, introduced off the bench on nine occasions, with Rodgers favouring summer signing Benjamin Nygren in his position.

Well, the 22-year-old has not grasped these recent opportunities with both hands, considering the Scotsman awarded him a 5/10 rating following last Sunday’s 3-1 defeat to Hearts at Tynecastle, a match in which he lost possession on 25 occasions, nine times more than any other Celtic player.

The Celts can ill-afford that level of wastefulness at Hampden on Sunday, so O’Neill should relegate Engels back to the bench and start a midfield alternative.

Who Martin O'Neill should start in place of Arne Engels

O’Neill does have plenty of midfield options.

Callum McGregor is a lock, while Nygren returned to the midfield three on Wednesday, having been deployed further forward for Rodgers’ final two fixtures, with Reo Hatate the obvious candidate to complete the trio.

Since arriving in January 2022, the Japanese international has made 156 appearances in hoops, scoring 28 goals and registering 28 assists.

His only goal of this campaign, to date, was a rocket at Pittodrie against Aberdeen in August, thereby only brought on for the final 13 minutes against Falkirk this week.

Nevertheless, Hatate’s statistics from last season underline his importance to this Celtic side.

Minutes

3,849

6th

Goals

11

5th

Assists

9

5th

Shots

92

1st

Big chances created

18

1st

Average rating

7.29

7th

As the table highlights, Hatate was a vital figure in Celtic’s team last season; in fact, of the four players who scored more goals than he did, only Daizen Maeda is still at the club, with compatriot Kyōgo Furuhashi, Adam Idah and Nicolas Kühn having all departed.

Hatate also led the way in terms of shot and big chances created, while he has previously netted three times against Rangers, on target twice during his Glasgow derby debut in February 2022, one of the most famous nights Parkhead has witnessed in a long time, as well as firing into the bottom corner in vain back in March.

Callum McFadden describes Hatate as “one of the most naturally gifted players” Celtic have had in recent decades, while Martin Crawford of Breaking the Lines asserted that he is ‘the best player in Scotland’, adding that the ‘naturally refined technician’ possesses incredible ‘energy, determination and…. football intellect’.

Arriving from Kawasaki Frontale for just £1.5m, Football Transfers believe the midfielder’s current market value to be around £9.23m, representing one of the best bargain buys in Scottish football history, and there were a few contenders during the Ange Postecoglou-era.

Bringing it back to this Sunday’s derby, Hatate’s on-ball quality and out-of-possession work-rate makes him a must starter for O’Neill.

Danny Röhl is set to deploy Rangers in a 3-4-2-1, giving the midfield pairing of Mohamed Diomandé and Nicolas Raskin a lot of ground to cover, so Celtic need to do everything they can to win this midfield battle.

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

Unlike Engels, Hatate has proved consistently capable of producing big moments in the biggest matches, so the Japanese international, alongside captain McGregor and Nygren, is surely the way to go, with midfield the real strength of this Celtic team.

Centre-back and centre-forward, given the ongoing injury crisis….. not so much!

O'Neill 2.0: Celtic chasing "one of the best coaches" as Ange alternative

Rather than Ange Postecoglou, should Celtic appoint “one of the best coaches” in the EFL who would repeat Martin O’Neill’s success from 2 decades ago?

Oct 31, 2025

Starc picked up his 100th Ashes wicket but Stokes wrecked Australia with a five-for as 19 wickets fell on the opening day

ESPNcricinfo staff21-Nov-2025

Ben Stokes wrecked the Australia batting unit•Gareth Copley/Getty Images

19 – Number of wickets on day one of the Perth Test, the most on the opening day of an Ashes Test since 1909, where both teams were bowled out on the first day in Manchester.It is also the most wickets on the opening day of an Ashes series, surpassing the 18 that fell on the first day of the one-off Test in Sydney in 1888, and 18 wickets on the first day of the three-Test series at Lord’s in 1896.5 – Ben Stokes is the fifth England captain to take a five-wicket haul in Australia. The last England captain to achieve this feat was Bob Willis in 1982, when he picked 5 for 66 in Brisbane.36 – Stokes took only 36 balls to complete his five-wicket haul (5 for 23). It is the third-quickest five-for by an England seamer (where data is available). Only Stuart Broad has been quicker than him, completing a five-for in 19 balls vs Australia at Trent Bridge in 2015 and 34 balls vs New Zealand at Lord’s in 2013. Stokes has the quickest five-wicket haul for an England seamer away from home.7 for 58 – Mitchell Starc recorded his best figures in Test cricket, topping his previous best of 6 for 9 in Australia’s previous Test, against West Indies in Kingston in July 2025, making it back-to-back five-wicket hauls for him.It was the 17th five-wicket haul in Tests for Starc, the third-highest for Australia among fast bowlers, pipping Graham McKenzie’s tally of 16.Starc also completed 100 Ashes wickets against England in the process. Among the 11 fast bowlers with more than 100 wickets in Tests against England, he is the only one to have made his debut in the 21st century.10 – Number of times Starc has dismissed Ben Stokes in Test cricket, the most by any seamer. R Ashwin is the only one to have dismissed Stokes more times in Test cricket (13).Starc has also bowled Stokes five times in Tests, the most for any bowler.Mitchell Starc acknowledges his career-best seven-for•Getty Images32.5 overs – The second shortest first innings for England in the first Test of an Ashes series. They were bowled out in 35.3 four-ball overs batting first in the first Test of the 1886-87 Ashes in Sydney.4 – England have not batted more than 41 overs in the last four international games that they have played. They were bowled out in 35.2 overs, 36 overs and 40.2 overs batting first in the three ODIs in New Zealand preceding the Ashes.5.23 – Of the 1995 instances of a team being bowled for under 200 in Test history, England’s scoring rate is the third-highest. In the Sydney Test in 2013-14, England were bowled out for 166 batting at a rate of 5.24. West Indies had a run rate of 5.40 when they were bowled out for 137 against Pakistan in Multan earlier this year.0 for 1 – This was the first time both England and Australia lost their first wicket without a run on the board in the first innings of an Ashes Test.Overall, it was only the eighth such instance in Test cricket.6 – Number of times England have been 0 for 1 in the first innings of an opening Ashes Test in Australia. Three of these instances have come in their last five tours – 2010-11, 2021-22 and this time. They were 2 for 1 in their first innings of the 2017-18 tour.2 – Only the second time in Stokes’ 38 Tests as captain that England didn’t pick a specialist spinner in the XI. The other instance also came in the Ashes – at Lord’s in 2023.For England, this is the first red-ball Test match in Australia without a specialist spinner in the playing XI since the 1998 Boxing Day Test.1946 – The last time Australia handed debuts to two players aged 30-plus in a men’s Test before Jake Weatherald and Brendan Doggett in Perth. This was in Wellington against New Zealand almost 80 years ago. Don Tallon and Ernie Toshack, both past 30, were among the seven debutants for Australia in what was their first Test match since World War II.

Leeds United are on the lookout for attacking potency in January and could be set to back Daniel Farke in his pursuit to bring a talented forward to Elland Road.

The Whites find themselves embroiled in a fight against the drop, and not everyone is feeling wholly confident in the former Norwich City boss, even if his side has produced some encouraging moments this term.

All too often, fine margins determine the outcome of Premier League matches, and Farke’s side has been on the wrong side of them, leading some to question his ability to lead the Whites forward.

With that in mind, Leeds are keen to source proven quality in the form of Chelsea winger Raheem Sterling, even if his £325,000 wages may prove to be a stumbling block in negotiations.

Signings or no signings, Farke has vowed that his side won’t change as they aim to secure top-flight football for next term, claiming that their approach to being successful will pay off in the long run.

He said before his side took on Aston Villa: “If you follow our way of working over the past two and half years, you know exactly what we are doing, how we try to approach a game and try to be successful. This won’t change at all.”

Sticking by your principles can be the defining choice that determines whether a manager is successful in keeping their job. Farke has been a nice fit for Leeds since arriving at Elland Road, though he has routinely come under scrutiny and is now back under the spotlight.

Either way, the January transfer window is creeping closer, and the 49ers could now be set to back their man as they pursue an exciting striker.

Leeds in pursuit of Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Garcia

According to The Mirror, Leeds are willing to sign Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Garcia on an initial six-month loan with a £20 million mandatory purchase option in the summer as the 49ers aim to back Farke in the New Year.

However, there has been a twist as Los Blancos boss Xabi Alonso is said to have blocked the move, notifying the forward that he is still part of his plans both in the immediate term and further down the line.

Gonzalo Garcia at Real Madrid – all competitions

Appearances

21

Goals

5

Assists

3

Intriguingly, Leeds were confident that they could lure Garcia to England before the ex-Liverpool star’s intervention, and the Spain Under-21 international was also said to be keen on a move to the Premier League after finding regular minutes at the Santiago Bernabeu hard to come by.

Alonso is aware he will need to utilise his whole squad, potentially offering more openings for the 21-year-old to feature as Real Madrid chase more silverware both domestically and in Europe.

Leeds are also eyeing an alternative £20m forward

Bursting onto the scene at the Club World Cup, Garcia would certainly be a viable option in the Leeds attack if they were able to complete a deal, though any chance of that now looks to be unlikely unless circumstances change.

يبدأ النجم المصري محمد صلاح من على مقاعد البدلاء في مباراة ليفربول وسندرلاند، على ملعب أنفيلد، في الدوري الانجليزي الممتاز.

وكان آرني سلوت قد أعلن تشكيل ليفربول ويتكون من: أليسون، جوميز، فان دايك، كوناتي، روبرتسون، سوبوسلاي، ماك أليستر، جرافنبيرخ، إيزاك، جاكبو، فيرتز.

ويجلس محمد صلاح على مقاعد البدلاء بجانب كل من: مامارداشفيلي، إندو، كيركيز، كييزا، جونز، هوجو إيكتيكي، نيوني، نجوموها.

وكتبت شبكة “TNT Football’ العالمية عبر منصة “إكس”: “لعب محمد صلاح 53 مباراة على التوالي بشكل أساسي في البريميرليج مع ليفربول”.

اقرأ أيضاً.. سلوت يلمح لموقفه من مشاركة محمد صلاح أمام سندرلاند في الدوري الإنجليزي

وأضافت: “محمد صلاح يجلس على دكة البدلاء الآن للمباراة الثاني على التوالي، ماذا يحدث لـ صلاح!!”.

Mo Salah had a run of 53 consecutive Premier League starts…

He’s now been benched in back-to-back matches 😳 pic.twitter.com/5to8QKyuGn — Football on TNT Sports (@footballontnt) December 3, 2025

جدير بالذكر أن محمد صلاح قد جلس على دكة البدلاء خلال المباراة الماضية التي حقق فيها ليفربول الفوز بهدفين نظيفين أمام وست هام على ملعب لندن.

MatériaMais Notícias

Tite concedeu entrevista coletiva após o empate em 0 a 0 do Flamengo diante do Fluminense neste sábado (16), no Maracanã, pelo Carioca. O treinador rubro-negro analisou o desempenho da equipe na partida e disse que não irá escolher adversário para final. Vasco e Nova Iguaçu se enfrentam no domingo (17) pela outra vaga na decisão.

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➡️ Tudo sobre o Mengão agora no WhatsApp. Siga o nosso canal Lance! Flamengo

– Os dois fizeram por merecer. Eu vou sentar e não vou torcer para ninguém. O padrão de análise é independente do tamanho de adversário. Independente de quem for, a gente vai analisar o que acontece dentro de campo e tentar anular e aproveitar o que oferecerem para gente – comentou Tite, ao lado do auxiliar e filho Matheus.

– Uma equipe consistente, com Rossi batendo essas marcas e que fez gols em todos os jogos, hoje passou em branco, contra o Vasco também. É um trabalho em conjunto. Nós passamos uma semana com muita dificuldade. Aquele jogo que a gente fez exigiu muito. Tivemos uma série de subsituições que fizemos por conta do desgaste. Faltou um pouco de finesse para atacarmos os espaços, para ter um pouco mais de consistências nas ações ofensivas – comento o treinador do Flamengo.

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Tite também falou sobre a sequência sem jogos antes da final do Campeonato Carioca. O jogo de ida da decisão está marcado para 31 de março, daqui 15 dias. Até lá, o calendário sofre uma pausa por conta da Data Fifa. O técnico analisou o que o Flamengo tem a melhorar neste período.

– O primeiro aspcecto é manutenção e evolução. Se pegar parâmetros, o jogo anterior do Fluminense é a referência. Esse é o componente, tem um componente físico, uma pegada extraordinária. A gente sentiu muito ao longo da semana. O Nico ficou um dia sem treinar, o Erick voltou a treinar na quinta, o Ayrton também. A gente recuperou o Allan, ele ficou quinze dias para pegar uma condição física. Esses compnentes todos. Em termos táticos, a referência é o jogo anterior, em termos físicos é a recuperação. É ficar torcendo para ninguém machucar agora – afirmou.

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➡️ Rossi se torna goleiro com mais tempo sem levar gol na história do Flamengo

Confira outras respostas de Fernando Diniz durante a entrevista coletiva pós-jogo contra o Fluminense:

– Temos dois zagueiros que estão jogando muito, que são selecionáveis (para a Seleção Brasileira), para mim. E temos o David Luiz, que todas as vezes que entrou jogou demais. É difícil (Léo Ortiz chegar jogando).

– Eu falo da primeira parte do lado humano. Matheus é meu auxiliar desde os 8, 9 anos de idade. O pai dele gravava todos os jogos em fita cassete, aqueles que não conseguia ver, para analisar. Teve uma vez que eu saí, cheguei em casa e ele trouxe uma fita ‘aqui pai, gravei para você’. Não era um jogo entre equipes top. Assim como pais médicos que tem filhos que seguem o mesmo caminho e de outras profissões. Eu tive sorte de ter um filho que segue na mesma carreira.

– A gente não falava sem ter uma base. Quando falávamos que acreditavam nos três (laterais-direitos) é porque a gente acredita no dia a dia o que ele mostra para nós. É nosso trabalho fazer com que eles mostrem em campo o que fazem no dia a dia. Tenho certeza que aos poucos vão crescer. O Wesley tem 20 anos e vai evoluir muito.

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