WANTED MAN
Celtic target Moyes eyed by England’s crisis clubs
CELTIC face a challenge from Newcastle United for the services of managerial target David Moyes.
The former Manchester United boss is close to the top of a list of potential replacements for under-fire Ronny Deila. He retains an affiliation and affection for the Parkhead club since a three-year spell as a young central defender at the outset of his playing career.
Moyes has yet to definitively rule out a return to Glasgow after being alerted to interest in him but, following a year in Spain as manager of Real Sociedad, his preference is for a job in England’s top flight.
And Sportsmail understands he will be a frontrunner for the St James’ Park hotseat if Newcastle boss Steve McClaren is dismissed in the event of a defeat to Bournemouth today.
Moyes is currently second favourite with
From Back Page bookmakers for the Parkhead hotseat behind Northern Ireland boss Michael O’Neill after Deila admitted his situation is now ‘critical’. And the Celtic boss faces a tricky Scottish Cup quarter-final tomorrow against Morton on the back of another bad week. The Norwegian’s tenure reached crisis point after a goalless draw against Dundee let Aberdeen close the gap at the top of the Premiership table to four points. With large sections of the Celtic support turning on their team at full-time, defeat to Jim Duffy’s side is unthinkable. The Championship club caused a monumental shock two seasons ago when they won at Celtic Park in the League Cup. But the under-fire Celtic boss insists that won’t happen tomorrow if his players play to anything like their full potential. ‘I know the history but, again for me, it’s about our performance,’ said Deila. ‘When we perform well, we are better than Morton and that’s what I’m focused on. ‘I can’t do anything about opponents — we have to do things ourselves.’ Wednesday’s stalemate seemed to be the tipping point for Deila’s reign, with many fans who remained until the end of another insipid display making their feelings abundantly clear. With tomorrow’s match a noon kick-off and live on TV, Deila is unlikely to have the benefit of a big crowd as he seeks a return to winning ways. ‘I don’t think there will be a problem with attitude,’ he added. ‘We want to bounce back from Dundee. We were disappointed in how we played and must show better things on Sunday.’ With Celtic’s hopes of winning a fifth successive title now very much on the line, Deila admits concerns over contracts that are soon to elapse is no longer such a pressing concern. Charlie Mulgrew, whose deal is up in the summer, has returned to the side after a lengthy injury absence but Deila has bigger fish to fry. ‘Every week, it’s the same questions — let’s go a month or two and Charlie is not my biggest worry right now,’ he said. ‘We need to perform better and get the group going again to win the league. That’s the only target. Everything else will be sorted after that.’