Story byWilfried Nancy has left Columbus Crew for Celtic []Kheredine Idessane - BBC Sport ScotlandThu, December 4, 2025 at 8:36 AM UTC·6 min readWilfried Nancy has finally arrived at Celtic, with promises of "exciting, attacking, winning football". But before principles come priorities. Martin O'Neill leaves having closed the eight-point deficit to Heart of Midlothian, so the Frenchman can begin his Celtic Park tenure by taking his new side to the top of the Scottish Premiership with victory over the faltering early leaders on Sunday. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementWins are the only real currency that matter in Glasgow and the 48-year-old has a testing start, with Roma visiting in the Europa League next midweek and St Mirren in the Premier Sports Cup final next weekend. So what does the former Columbus Crew and Montreal head coach need to do in the early days of his tenure?Listen: O'Neill bows out, but is the timing right?O'Neill leaves with Celtic's thanks as well as a new tracksuitNancy takes Celtic job and promises 'exciting football'Hit the ground runningThe one thing in short supply for any new Celtic manager is arguably the element they crave above all others - time. So Nancy will have to get his head around navigating the first big block of fixtures - and doing it with minimal losses. The schedule is arduous, with a game every three or four days up to his first taste of the derby with Rangers on 3 January. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementNot just any old games either - a game at Hampden with silverware up for grabs and a Hearts visit that will decide who leads the domestic table. A difficult assignment against Roma, with Europa League qualification at stake, also has to be negotiated before the turn of the year. Whether it is a baptism of fire, a steep learning curve, or a dive into the deep end, it promises to be quite a rollercoaster for Nancy in his first European managerial job. Achieve culture change while winningWhat is clear from his time at Montreal and Columbus Crew is that 'Nancyball' is a high-risk, high-reward style of play that may come as a bit of a culture shock to some of the current Celtic squad. AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementHe favours a 3-4-3 formation, with a very high defensive line in front of a ball-playing goalkeeper, but the new boss will have minimal time on the training ground amid the flurry of fixtures. A bunch of matches, with recovery time, limits opportunities for him to impart any new ideas. The challenge for Nancy will be to blend improvisation and innovation with performance and results.