Martin O'Neill led Celtic to a Premiership and Scottish Cup double but is uncertain about his future. The big questions are whether Celtic can afford to let him leave and if he wants to stay.
Key points
Martin O'Neill led Celtic to a double victory.
He was initially an emergency measure for a few weeks.
O'Neill's future with the club is uncertain.
He expressed doubts about continuing if the season started soon.
Mentioned in this story
Martin O'NeillCeltic
Figure caption,
Martin O'Neill was only supposed to be in charge of Celtic for a few weeks in the autumn. An emergency measure. Yet he ended up doing a double stint across nearly two-thirds of a season.
Now the 74-year-old club legend walks away - if indeed he does walk away - with a Premiership and Scottish Cup double which will go down as one of their sweetest, given the circumstances.
Which all begs two very obvious questions: Can Celtic really afford to let O'Neill leave? And does the man himself want to stay?
"If the season was to start tomorrow, I couldn't do it," he told BBC Sport Scotland in the immediate aftermath of the 3-1 victory over Dunfermline Athletic at Hampden.
"But the season doesn't start tomorrow. It does start quickly, though, and I'm getting old. I've done the learning in the last three or four months. Some tactics I saw befuddled me, but it's good at my age.
"In the next week, I'll meet with the owner. He hasn't said anything to me - I don't know whether that's good news or bad news. I will have a wee look at it but I would think the club would probably be looking at somebody younger.
"It's nice today to think 'I'd love to do that again' but I really do not know whether I could be at it every day. I know I can pass it off as a joke but I genuinely don't know.
"I think I must be in consideration for the job, even though it might only be for a very short time. Even at that, I couldn't do a project. My daughters would be all for it but I'm not sure if my wife would."
Figure caption,
'Maybe next week I'll speak to the owner'
'I can see him coming back' - what the players said
O'Neill's discussions with Dermot Desmond should be absolutely fascinating.
One thing the majority shareholder could do before those talks is take a poll of the Celtic players. They were all of a similar mind after the cup final victory.
"Everyone here knows how much we appreciate him. He has earned the right to take a couple of weeks to think about it," right-back Alistair Johnston said. "He's got the energy for it, I can see him coming back for sure."
Goalkeeper Viljami Sinisalo added: "He's not bad is he? What he's done to the group in terms of instilling that confidence and belief is a job like no other. We all love him. We've been really glad to have him."
Captain Callum McGregor chimed in too: "Martin O'Neill has been fantastic and he's been backed up by amazing staff members. I'm sure he will be involved in some capacity. He drove this team on and he can enjoy his summer."
So much has happened in this craziest of Scottish football seasons that it is worth recalling the circumstances of O'Neill's unlikely - indeed sensational - return to the manager's office.
Q&A
What titles did Martin O'Neill win with Celtic?
Martin O'Neill won the Premiership and Scottish Cup double with Celtic.
Why is Martin O'Neill's future with Celtic in question?
His future is uncertain because he expressed doubts about continuing if the season were to start immediately.
How long was Martin O'Neill in charge of Celtic?
Martin O'Neill was in charge of Celtic for nearly two-thirds of a season after initially being an emergency measure.
What did Martin O'Neill say about staying with Celtic?
He stated, 'If the season was to start tomorrow, I couldn't do it,' indicating his uncertainty about continuing.
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He was sitting in a coffee shop in London's King's Road on an October day when the phone rang. It was Desmond. Brendan Rodgers had just resigned.
Would O'Neill, Desmond wondered, hold the fort for a few weeks while Celtic got their ducks in a row with a permanent successor. Oh, and he had about 10 minutes to think about it.
Needless to say, O'Neill couldn't resist. Aged 73 at the time, he was a hero to the Celtic fanbase after his first spell in charge of a star-studded team that included the likes of Henrik Larsson and Chris Sutton.
Figure caption,
'O'Neill has earned right to do what he wants'
The problem this time around was that he didn't have anywhere near the same standard of player, nor was there harmony at the club. Open fan revolt. Poor recruitment. A stiff challenge from a new-look Hearts.
And yet O'Neill couldn't say no to Celtic. After back-to-back domestic defeats at the end of Rodgers' reign, his fellow Northern Irishman embarked on a run of five league wins and a League Cup semi-final victory over Rangers.
Calamitously, the club thanked O'Neill for his renewed service and pressed ahead with the appointment of Wilfried Nancy in December.
O'Neill was back by January, trying to preside over a chaotic transfer window while picking up the pieces of a badly damaged league campaign. Celtic were level with Rangers but six points behind Hearts.
They very nearly went out of the Scottish Cup at home against Dundee but O'Neill's Celtic are made of strong stuff. Junior Adamu's late, late equaliser effectively paved the way for the sun-lit Hampden triumph the club has just enjoyed.
The cup, however, is mere icing on the cake. The bigger feat was defending their league title. O'Neill achieved it with a win rate of well over 80 per cent. Here are his Premiership numbers: played 23, won 19, drawn two, lost two.
Impressive by any standards. But, amid a season of flux and chaos in Glasgow's east end, they are utterly remarkable.
By common consent, this is a Celtic squad well past its sell-by date. But O'Neill's man-management skills have won them two big trophies when neither looked particularly likely.
Figure caption,
Celtic lift the Scottish Cup after sealing a domestic double
But does O'Neill have the energy?
All of this leaves the club in a somewhat awkward situation: could they really let O'Neill leave if he feels he still has the energy and the desire to continue?
Not according to a raft of ex-players and managers, who are all mightily impressed by the veteran's achievements this season.
Former Ireland manager Stephen Kenny is clear on whether O'Neill should get the chance to stay on.
"The answer is yes," he said. "You can't do any more than he's done. It's an exceptional achievement. If he wants to do it, he should stay, and I don't see why they wouldn't keep him.
No-one knows the demands of Celtic more than former club captain Scott Brown, who was more than happy to share his views on O'Neill.
"It all depends if he's got the energy," he said. "He's talked about that in the past, it is burning a lot of energy. He's getting a bit older. It's up to Martin what he does."
It may not be solely up to him, though. The Celtic hierarchy need first to decide in what direction they want to proceed and with whom.
Should they decide to give O'Neill the option, let's ponder one final question.
With a crack at the Champions League just one play-off tie away - and having answered Celtic's call three times in his career - could O'Neill really resist a fourth and final spell?
