Celtic suffered a humiliating 3-1 defeat against St Mirren in the Scottish League Cup final on Sunday to extend Wilfried Nancy’s nightmare start as Hoops boss.
Nancy’s side were stunned by St Mirren’s Jonah Ayunga, who struck twice in the second half at Hampden Park to take the trophy back to Paisley for the first time since 2013.
St Mirren opened the scoring through Marcus Fraser after just 90 seconds before Reo Hatate grabbed Celtic’s equaliser later in the first half.
But Celtic never found their rhythm and Ayunga netted with a pair of clinical finishes in the second half to cement his cult hero status with St Mirren fans.
“It’s totally normal the fans are questioning me but I think I showed them that we can do better. I showed them the direction I want to go,” Nancy said.
“It’s not the fans’ job to be patient but I tell them I am still working and I know what we want to do.
“I know why I’m here, I’m happy to be here and I’m happy to be here at this moment. This is not a problem for me.”
Nancy is the first Celtic manager to lose his opening three games after the Hampden horror show followed defeats by title rivals Hearts in the Scottish Premiership and Roma in the Europa League.
The former Columbus Crew manager’s ignominious start to life in Glasgow will pile further pressure on the Celtic board after their controversial decision to part ways with Brendan Rodgers earlier this season.
Nancy was a surprise appointment given his lack of pedigree at the highest level and the French coach will soon be fighting for his job if results don’t improve.
“I am strong. We are judged on results, I know my job regarding that. I try to go beyond the results and beyond winning. We have to win to give confidence, to buy time, I know that but I am going beyond that,” Nancy said.
“I think we are a bit fragile at this moment but my job is to give them confidence and move forward.”
– ‘Icing on the cake’ –
Nancy, 48, only has to look across Glasgow to see the way underachieving Old Firm managers are treated.
Russell Martin was sacked after the shortest reign in Rangers history in October.
In contrast, St Mirren manager Stephen Robinson was able to bask in the glow of the club’s fifth major trophy after masterminding only their second triumph in the Scottish League Cup.
“I’m delighted for the players. Sometimes you get it right and we got it right today,” Robinson said.
“When you’re working in Scotland people don’t realise the disparity between the clubs.
“To have some sort of silverware, to beat a team of Celtic’s calibre, that’s a team of top players and my team stood up to that.”
Five years ago, Ayunga was playing in the English non-league for Havant & Waterlooville.
Now he is the toast of St Mirren, with a place in the club’s history secured forever.
“To get the chance to play in this, let alone win it and score, I couldn’t imagine it any better. Not a bad day’s work, eh?” Ayunga said.
“This is once in a lifetime. I’ve been playing since I was 17, I’m nearly 30, this was the first time I had a chance to win anything. This is the icing on the cake.”
