Owen Coyle was close to joining Celtic as their manager a few years ago.
Now he has picked Martin O'Neill as the man he wants to stick around for another year to build on his successes in Glasgow this season.
O'Neill produced a minor miracle at Parkhead as he secured an historic league and cup Double despite the club looking dead and buried more than once as Hearts shone.
Wilfried Nancy lost a number of games to keep the Hoops on the back foot but O'Neill steadied the ship and upset the odds with a final day win over the Jambos and then a 3-1 Scottish Cup Final victory over Dunfermline at Hampden.
Coyle is sure O'Neill deserves the chance to stay for another season if he chooses to do so. He told the Sunday Mail: “I thought when O’Neill came in to Celtic last October to replace Brendan Rodgers on an interim basis the club would have left him in place until the summer.
“If they had done that it would have been a Treble – not just the Double – that Celtic would have won.
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“They were dismissed as possible champions at one stage but Martin always finds a way to win.
“He is the original safe pair of hands and has provided a bridge between the fans and the boardroom at a time when the supporters have had their fair share of grievances.”
Should O'Neill be given that opportunity by Dermot Desmond, Coyle believes recruitment is key to further success. And Shaun Maloney - O'Neill's assistant this term - could be in a role upstairs as head of operations.
A summer rebuild is expected but 59-year-old Coyle is adamant the Northern Irishman and his staff can sort it. "That’s a subject Martin can address over the course of the next year and it won’t faze him in the slightest," he added.
“Recruitment is the key element at any club and Martin has Shaun Maloney to assist him in that regard.
“I remember Sir Alex Ferguson once saying to me, ‘You’ll never get every signing right but if you get seven out of 10 to work then you’ll be doing well.’”
