Martin O’Neill seeks seminal win over Rangers – 25 years after Old Firm debut

Interim Celtic manager Martin O’Neill aims to mastermind another seminal victory over Rangers – 25 years after his Old Firm debut paved the way for seismic change within Scottish football.

O’Neill introduced himself to Scotland’s biggest club fixture with a 6-2 win as doubles for Chris Sutton and Henrik Larsson stunned Dick Advocaat’s side.

Celtic went on to win the treble – despite losing 5-1 at Ibrox in the subsequent league meeting with Rangers – and have rarely looked back.

Having collected only three major trophies in the 1990s, Celtic have won 19 out of 25 titles and 23 cup competitions since O’Neill first arrived.

The 73-year-old now finds himself tasked with bringing stability to the club after briefer troubles which saw them lose two consecutive William Hill Premiership games before Brendan Rodgers left, amid a breakdown of relations with the club hierarchy.

A 4-0 win over Falkirk saw Celtic cut the gap on leaders Hearts to six points on Wednesday but a bigger test awaits in Sunday’s Premier Sports Cup semi-final against Rangers.

Looking back on a game dubbed ‘Demolition Derby’ by Celtic fans, O’Neill said: “Well, replicating that might be extremely difficult, scoring six goals against that side. I’d settle for a really lousy 1-0 victory if we could get it.

“Obviously fond memories, it was great. And it did give us a real springboard really, for that season. Because in November time, Rangers took us apart at Ibrox, but I think we had enough self-belief about us that we could withstand that and that’s what happened.

“Some lads come up and say to me, ‘that was a great game’, and they weren’t even born. They tell me their grandfathers and fathers were talking about it.

“It became a really pivotal match for us, not just that season, but probably for continuing on.”

Celtic fans have only endured three barren seasons since then and one coincided with a UEFA Cup final appearance under O’Neill.

Their current complaints centre around the board more than on-field issues but the former Republic of Ireland manager knows that victory at Hampden could have long-lasting impact.

“This is a big game for us,” he said. “Really, don’t disguise that at all. It’s a semi-final, it’s a big match for us. Any Celtic-Rangers game is a big game, but particularly given the circumstances of the recent days, if not weeks, absolutely.”

O’Neill feels no less invested in the fixture after reprising a managerial career which appeared to have ended when he left Nottingham Forest in 2019.

Explaining his feelings around derby games first time round, he said: “Just a nervousness for about 72 hours before, and then if you got the result, a great relief.

“And I think that’s what the great Walter Smith used to say about it as well, that it was relief more than anything else. But they were fantastic fixtures really. It’s still a fantastic fixture.”

When asked if he felt different this time around, he said: “Absolutely not. No, no, worse.

“By the time we had played Rangers, I think we had played five or six games, so I knew my players pretty well inside out at that stage.

“This is something I wouldn’t know about our boys. I learned a great deal at the Falkirk game, which was great for us. A restoration of confidence. So we’ll go into this game with that confidence and that’s the most important thing.

“It’s been intense for me to look at young faces and try to put them into context, into just about everything.

“Even if I was here a month or something, it would be really hard to gauge exactly what the players can do.”