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According to caretaker manager Martin O'Neill, the Columbus Crew head coach is slated to be in the Celtic dugout for this weekend's Premiership fixture against Heart of Midlothian.

Columbus Crew's manager has been part of serious talks with the Glasgow club for nearly a week and currently appears ready to complete a contract.

O'Neill has served as caretaker manager for over four weeks since the previous manager stepped down, achieving six wins out of seven games, cutting into the lead at the top of the league table and guiding the Parkhead outfit to Premier Sports Cup place in the final.

The 73-year-old, who previously managed Celtic from 2000 and 2005, had already said he thought the visit to Easter Road – a 2-1 victory – was likely to be the last game of his second spell at the helm.

However, O'Neill stated he is to lead Celtic for the midweek Premiership match against Dundee before Wilfried Nancy assumes control.

"He is the individual set to be coming in," stated O'Neill to the radio station. "I believed my time was up on Sunday, but there's some paperwork still to be sorted. Wednesday will definitely be my last match."

A Surreal Spell

"This has been surreal," he added. "It's like a part of your life that makes you wonder 'did that really happen?' Am I delighted that I've done it? Most certainly."

Should Celtic defeat Dundee and Hearts overcome Killie in midweek, Nancy could potentially take Celtic to summit of the Premiership with a victory in his debut game as manager.

"That's a nice one for Nancy versus Hearts," remarked O'Neill. "A good way to start. It will be a tough match of course but good luck to him. At the very least he inherits a team with a bit of self-belief."

The team's morale stems from the positive run in matches in the last month or so, a period where he suffered just one defeat – a 3-1 defeat at the Danish side during Europa League.

However, the former Republic of Ireland manager and his players were then able to achieve a first victory on the road on the continent since way back in 2021 as they beat Feyenoord 3-1 recently.

Rebuilding Belief

"We lost by Midtjylland," O'Neill said. "That proved to be a difficult match – a few weeks before they mauled Nottingham Forest, making it difficult. To go to Feyenoord and secure a victory on their patch was fantastic. We've given ourselves a chance, there are three matches remaining to attempt qualification, but that victory in Rotterdam was a restoration of belief."

Future Ambitions

Upon being asked for his thoughts on his spell as caretaker, O'Neill says it has led to thoughts on if he desires to continue managing going forward.

"I genuinely don't know," he said. "I will have a little think about things following Wednesday evening."

"It was not simple," he continued. "There was a fear of failure – which is always a big concern. I once joked I could do this job just as poorly as many other managers."

"I have learned much. I have had some excellent coaching staff alongside me and it has served as a reinvigoration for me in many ways, working with young players every day."

Consultancy Role?

On the subject of if he might remain at Celtic in a consultancy role, the ex- Leicester City, Aston Villa and Republic of Ireland boss stated this is completely up to Nancy.

"That is solely for the incoming manager to make," O'Neill said. "He should be allowed his own space. If he wants my advice on matters, that's fine. If he doesn't, that is okay at all. It becomes his squad the moment he enters the role."

TalkSport host the interviewer ended the interview by asking O'Neill if he would be emotional when the full-time whistle blew on Wednesday.

"Do you mean am I going to cry?" O'Neill replied. "Don't be stupid."