THE pleasure of following Celtic everywhere they go was truly at its peak last Thursday when an away end filled with green and white was sent into pandemonium as Martin O'Neill waved his magic wand to claim an impressive 1-3 victory over Feyenoord in Rotterdam.
1,484 days have passed since Celtic last managed to overcome a European foe outside of the confines of Celtic Park – and Celtic fans have felt the pain of every one of them. November 27 – mark it in the diary – saw the end of that ghastly away record, and I had the pleasure of experiencing the ultimate Celtic away day: pints, pyro, laughs and – most importantly – three European points.
I've already written about the hefty price for any fan to travel abroad to catch the Hoops in action. Most of these trips end in drowning their sorrows in a local Irish bar with a wry smile, knowing Celtic had again – for lack of a better expression – been 'pumped' in Europe.
Celtic broke a four year wait for an away victory in Europe
But Thursday evening had the feel of something completely different. Feyenoord played Celtic in 2023 and Celtic fans left the De Kuip Stadium that night with their tails tucked firmly between their legs after a 3-0 drubbing by the then Dutch Champions. But on this night a real sense of possibility hung in the air.
The last time Celtic won in the land of windmills and tulips was 2001 when Celtic beat a very good Ajax team 1-3 in Amsterdam and the man in the dug-out that day was – you guessed it – Martin O'Neill.
The away end at the De Kuip, as it is on every European trip, was in fine voice, songs hailing the likely Celtic boss-to-be Wilfried Nancy accompanying the tunes of old and the atmosphere was building.
But after 11 minutes of play Celtic had their inevitable 'Celtic in Europe' moment when, despite a confident opening from the away team in which they had dominated proceedings, Kasper Schmeichel was the one picking the ball out of the net. Ayase Ueda finished smartly into the far corner after a slick passing move exposed the Celts defence.
But somehow it didn't feel like more of the European same was in store, and, sure enough, Celtic again took a grip of the game. 20 minutes later the Celtic equaliser came from the outcast Hyun-Jun Yang, the rejuvenated winger poking into the net from a delicious ball clipped to the back stick by Reo Hatate.
Before long Celtic found the net again, this time Daizen Maeda's Duracell Bunny pressing causing the ball into break into the path of Hatate. The Japanese playmaker kept his cool and calmly guided the ball into the net as the away end celebrated wildly.
"This is the day that we win away," was the chant which echoed around the De Kuip as Celtic headed to the changing room at half-time a goal to the good.
The second-half was as professional a performance as you could wish for, with Celtic restricting the opposition to mostly half chances, Schmeichel commanding his defence and the players playing in a cohesive manner which suggested hugely increased belief and intent.
Benjamin Nygren's thumping finish ten minutes from time sent the away end into pandemonium. I still have a crick in my neck from the celebrations, something which will stay with me longer than my beer-soaked matchday programme did.
Martin O'Neill's name rang out joyfully as the Celtic faithful chanted until they could chant no more as the Derry man gave Celtic back their European respect.
Fast forward three days and the Hoops faced a tough trip to the Scottish capital. Not only did they have to travel to face a confident Hibs team at Easter Road, which in the past decade has been Celtic's most difficult away venue, but they had to do so just three days after that magnificent but gruelling night in Europe. And if I say that Sunday games post-Europe have not been a pretty picture for Celtic in the recent past, I'm being kind to the Glasgow team.
Hearts dropping two more points on the Saturday gave Celtic the chance to close that gap to just two points with a game in hand. But if there was any suspicion that Hibs would ease up to do their high-flying Edinburgh rivals dirty, it quickly became clear that the home side was in no mood to be turned over and tickled.
The opening 20 minutes looked depressingly familiar. Hibs controlled the tempo as the Hoops huffed and puffed and another Euro hangover looked likely. But the winter sunshine on Leith saw the men in black and green gradually warm to their task.
Again, Celtic capitalised on the high-press, and this time Hatate was the torturer-in-chief, winning the ball high up and slipping it deftly into Maeda's path for a tap-in as the Hoops took an undeserved lead at Easter Road. Less than thirty seconds later the Bhoys found their second goal, Belgium international Arne Engels continuing his resurgence under O'Neill and powering home a brave header with boots flying around him to double the Celts lead.
Celtic were suddenly in complete control and purring. Marcelo Saracchi's low shot rattled the woodwork after a move of supreme quality and a third looked certain – but the half-time whistle came as blessed relief to the home side.
Hibs came out for the second half all-guns-blazing and Martin Boyle dragged them back into the game on 56 minutes with a VAR-mandated handball penalty that divided the stadium and the pundits.
But the Hoops refused to be rattled and they saw out the game with a resilient and determined display that brought the three points back to Glasgow.
This time of year is always a tough one and Nancy – if and when he comes – will have his work cut out for him with eight games in December alone, including a cup final and a home tie with Roma before beginning January with a derby clash against Rangers.
Only time will tell if Saint Martin's imminent and glorious exit will be one that the board rues, but the man has now cemented forever more his Celtic legacy. An icon in man and spirit, a manager who has now given another generation of fans to the chance to say with pride: "I witnessed Martin O'Neill's Celtic play football."
