Kelvin Wilson is looking for the Frenchman to keep delivering silverware in Glasgow if he is appointed
Columbus head coach Wilfried Nancy(Image: Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The Celtic board will be hoping that Wilfried Nancy can become their new Ange Postecoglou.
That is the view of former Hoops defender Kelvin Wilson.
Postecoglou was, like Nancy, a left-field appointment when Celtic appointed him back in 2021.
The Australian went on to lift five trophies in his two success-filled seasons at Parkhead.
Celtic are now in the final throes of naming Nancy as their new manager and finalising his move from Columbus Crew.
Wilson admitted: “Again it is a risk, like Ange was. Ange proved to be highly successful and the Celtic board will be hoping he can do something similar.
“They will have done their homework and that is why he has emerged as the major contender.
“I don’t know too much about him outside the fact he has done well in Major League Soccer. It will be really interesting.”
The Frenchman has made a name for himself in Major League Soccer. He won the Canadian Championship with CF Montreal before he moved to Crew two years ago. In his time there, he has led them to MLS Cup and League Cup glory. Nancy was also named as their top coach in the MLS.
Head coach Wilfried Nancy of the Columbus Crew(Image: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
Nancy has built his reputation on good front-foot play and scoring goals. That is something that the Celtic supporters expect and take as a given.
Wilson admitted: “He is known to play a good brand of attacking football.
“That is what the club is looking for because that is a style and tradition for the football club.
“For me, he just has to win games. That is the main thing at Celtic.
“Winning games and success will be what he is judged on at the end of the day.”
Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney have held the Celtic managerial fort since Brendan Rodgers’ hasty departure. The pair are preparing the team for this weekend’s Premiership clash with St Mirren – which is also a dress rehearsal for the Premier Sports Cup final.
They are no strangers to Celtic and Wilson reckons that appointment has helped steady the ship.
The former defender stated: “Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney went in and they have given the club a bit of stability in the short-term.
“They know the club, inside and out. It gave the fans a bit of a lift with a legend and a couple of familiar faces coming in.
“It was a good move by the board to fill that void after Brendan Rodgers left. You do need some stability and a bit of normality.
“Fans and people have been speculating over the manager’s job and who is going to get it.
“Martin has said he doesn’t want it long-term so it was always going to open things up to that speculation.”
The new manager is set to come in with Celtic in an unusual position. Hearts are currently setting the pace in the Premiership. The Jambos are seven points clear although the Hoops have a game in hand.
Wilson has been impressed with the start that Derek McInnes’s side has made but expects normal service to resume and the Premiership trophy to end decorated with its usual green and white ribbons.
He acknowledged: “It is unusual. You have to take your hat off to Hearts.
“They are there for a reason but I am in no doubt that Celtic will win the league. They are too strong for everyone else in the league.”
Kelvin Wilson in action for Celtic in 2012(Image: SNS Group 0141 221 3602)
Celtic have got quality but Wilson reckons Nancy will also need to do some transfer business at both ends of the park in January.
He warned: “I think they will need to strengthen. They have enough but they could do with bringing in a bit more quality. Maybe another striker and a centre half as well.
“Other than that they have more than enough. I believe striker is the main one.
“We need an out and out goalscorer. In my team, we had Gary Hooper. He scored goals for fun.
“Every successful Celtic team has had a 20 goal-a-season striker. I think the team is more desperate for that rather than a centre half.
“They tried it last season with Adam Idah and it didn’t work out for him. So they need to bring a replacement in.
“The issue is that in January it is near impossible to get a top striker in because every team is playing for something, whether it is going for a league, Europe, promotion or trying to stay up.
“A striker is a priority.”
A striker should be a priority but that could become two if star man Daizen Maeda is sold. The Japanese international saw a move blocked in the last window and he is still keen to move on, with strong interest from Europe and England.
“I have watched a few games this season,” Wilson revealed. “If you take Daizen out then there is not much going forward, which is a bit worrying.
“If they were to lose him then that would be massive and they already need a striker so that would be a couple of quality players they would need to try and add in that area as well.”