Full Name: Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill
Nicknames: "MoN", "Martin the Magnificent", "the Blessed Martin"
Date of Birth: 1 March 1952
Birthplace: Kilrea, Northern Ireland
Playing position (as a player): Midfielder
Nationality: Northern Ireland 64 caps (8 goals)
Manager for Celtic: 1 June 2000- 28 May 2005

Manager 2000 - 2005

Extraordinary salvage job transformed Celtic from isolated runners-up to instant treble winners. Continued success, including a Uefa Cup final, has made him Celtic's most influential figure since Jock Stein. Intense, intelligent and highly-coveted, O'Neill left Celtic in 2005 to look after his sick wife, Geraldine.

When Martin O'Neil arrived at Celtic, there was not a huge crowd to greet him, nor was there the usual fanfare you would normally get with any new incumbent at the helm of a club of Celtic's size. There was a fair number of people welcoming him, but truth be told no one was expecting much. The past season or two can be best described as amongst the worst the club had ever endured, with the John Barnes/Kenny Dagliesh managerial reign falling as low as can be. The Huns were on the rise and were arrogantly believing that this was a season where they were going to push up in Europe and have us by the jugular under their spikey shoes.

How things turned out differently! Nobody could ever be said to believe what was to happen over the next few years, and the following only covers the true emotion of Martin's reign in brief for the whole Celtic support.

(write-up to be completed).

2000-01

2001-02

2002-03

A season never to be forgotten by all [...]

2003-04

2004-05

His last season was the most difficult, and in many ways he was never present and should not be seen in any way as being representative of his reign. Rumours were abound about his personal family cirucumstances, and at the year it was made publicly know that his wife was sufferring from lymphom. In effect, he was hardly around and it showed. Didn't help that this was our first season without Larsson (as he'd left for Barca), but we really should have won the league and disturbingly lost with only a few mins left of the last game of the season, allowing a poor Rangers side to gloat forever more.

The Champions League run was a big disappointment as we finished bottom of the group for the first time. If results had gone a bit differently in the last round we could have gone 3rd and into the UEFA cup, but there's a point where we should be thinking beyond that. Didn't help that we had to face Larsson's Barcelona in the group stages, and as expected he scored against us at Parkhead (but didn't celebrate his goal). In any case, the best moment was seeing us go away to Barcelona for the second time in two years and again come away unbeaten, this time with a one each draw. Fabulous, but more of a what if situation.

The football was generally poor/awful and Hartson was way overweight, overpaid and over here. Scored some goals but really poor state for professional footballer. If it weren't for his family's situation, he likely would have noticed what the rest of us could see. We required one or two new players, Petrov was better in the centre than on the wing, our goalkeeper was not coping with being first choice and our Centre of defence was as slow as you could get etc etc etc.

Anyhow, MoN's Celtic career ended on a high as we won the Scottish Cup, but it could have been a double, and he left the club with all the Celtic support hoping him the very best for the future.

Team _____________	From ____________	To _____________	Record	______	______	______	______
			Games	W	D	L	Win %
Celtic	June 1, 2000	May 31, 2005	282	213	29	40	75.53

MoN and Legal Stuff

One big tale that has gone around about Martin O'Neill is that he was such a good manager as he was an avid legal eagle, having done a law degree and that it was in the family etc etc. There is some truth in this, but it has been way way over-blown.

Martin O'Neill began a law degree at Queen's University in Belfast but left after around a year in order to pursue a career as a footballer (so hardly qualifies him as a lawyer in any shape of form, or anything legal really). Nevertheless, he has been known to have a keen fascination for legal stories, and has remained an avid follower of criminology and has attended some of Britain's most infamous trials, including thate of the Yorkshire Ripper. His fascination apparently began with the James Hanratty case of 1961, and he has been said to take his family on legal trail hunts for his personal interest. You can take from this what you like on its influence on his managerial ability.

Trophies/Record

Celtic
2004-05 Scottish Cup Winners
2003-04 SPL Winners, Scottish Cup Winners
2002-03 Scottish League Cup runners-up, UEFA Cup runners-up
2001-02 SPL Winners, Scottish Cup Runners Up
2000-01 SPL Winners, Scottish Cup Winners, Scottish League Cup winners (Treble winners)

Leicester City
2000-01 Division One play-off champions
1999-00 League Cup Winners
1998-99 League Cup runners-up
1996-97 League Cup Winners

Wycombe Wanderers
1993-94 Division Three play-off champions
1992-93 Conference Champions, FA Trophy Winners
1991-92 Bob Lord Trophy Winners
1990-91 FA Trophy Winners

Awards (in Scotland)

SPL Manager of the Month (9): August 2000, December 2000, February 2001, August 2001, April 2002, November 2002, October 2003, November 2003, January 2005

SFWA Manager of the Year (3): 2000-01, 2001-02, 2003-04

Biography

• 4theGame biography of Martin O'Neill

Pictures

• Picture Gallery

Videos

• Martin O'Neill - Man and Bhoy

Quotes

"It's an absolute honour for me to be the manager here, an absolute honour."

Martin O'Neill, July 2000

"I'll do everything I can to bring success to this football club."
Martin O'Neill, July 2000

'The UEFA Cup is not just one notch up from what we're used to, we are talking about four or five notches.'
MON, 2003

'When the final whistle blows and you're in front; thats the only moment you really enjoy it.'
MON on Old Firm games

"If you tell me we will win the league and not beat Rangers all season, then I would take it. "
Celtic boss Martin O'Neill

'One of my jobs at the start - and you can write this as a headline - was trying to find out why exactly we had spent some of our money on Rafael Sheidt'
Martin O'Neill speaking in 2004

'What sort of state do I leave Celtic in? Certainly a better state than I found them, and certainly a better state than you're in.'
Martin O'Neill on Clyde commentator Peter Martin

Quotes by others on MoN

'Martin did have one thing going for him when he arrived up there in Glasgow - he didnt need to work too hard to get fans to come to the ground. All he had to do was tell them it was a Saturday! What a luxury, massive home crowds virtually guaranteed.'
Brian Clough on MON, 2002

"If he'd been English or Swedish, he'd have walked the England job."
Brian Clough on Martin O'Neill.

"Anybody who can do anything in Leicester but make a jumper has got to be a genius."
Brian Clough on Martin O'Neill.

"I’ve never met O’Neill, but was once told an illuminating story about him. He was sitting before some assembled press, one of whom raised the point that O’Neill never worked with his players in training during the week. Don’t you think, the journalist continued, that you could go one step further and improve the players’ technical skills if you were to work with them more?
“Do you know what, that has never occurred to me,” O’Neill replied. “It’s such a great idea I am going to start that next week. The only problem is I’ve been so busy winning matches I haven’t had time to do it!” O’Neill was making the point that managers are judged by the matches they win and not necessarily for the team’s style. He is a clever man but even he could not have anticipated the success achieved during his short time in charge. "
(Tony Cascarino, 2007)