In the case of Wilfried Nancy, the question was never if he would ever leave Columbus Crew, it was how long could the Crew hold on to him before he got poached.
The answer appears to be rapidly approaching — with Nancy heavy favourite to take up the hotseat at Celtic Park.
In a Scottish Premiership season that has defied the traditional oligarchy of Celtic and Rangers, the big two have scrambled to find answers in an attempt to keep their dominance alive.
For Celtic, taking a chance on Nancy means betting on one of the most intriguing up-and-coming coaching talents in the world of football. He also will be entering a true lion’s den considering the animosity and contention that chokes the air around Parkhead — as evidenced during yesterday’s stormy AGM at Celtic Park.
But Nancy’s promise is worth the attempt. He has worked in tense environments before. He’s a tactical mastermind who plays an intriguing and exciting style of football. He’s also a culture builder — on the pitch, in the boardroom and in the community.
In short, he might be the kind of coach Celtic need right now. The only question is if there will be any pushback from the hierarchy as he attempts to achieve his vision.
Wilfried Nancy has emerged as the frontrunner to take over the manager’s position at Celtic
The Frenchman has enjoyed success in charge of Columbus Crew in the United States
Celtic’s AGM descended in chaos on Friday as supporters vented their fury at the board
Nancy played in amateur sides around France before making the move to Canada. In Quebec, he played football at UQAM in Montreal — taking a coaching job at another college at the same time.
After retiring from playing, he dove head-first into amateur football — coaching youth teams throughout La Belle Provence before joining the academy of MLS side Montreal Impact (now CF Montreal).
He stayed with the club for years as an assistant under four managers — including Thierry Henry. Once Henry was sacked, Nancy took over. To this day, he still has the best win percentage of any manager in the club’s history.
However, tensions between Nancy and team owner Joey Saputo led to him departing in 2022 for the Columbus Crew.
In his first season with the Crew, his attractive football led to him winning the league title. The following year, 2024, he won the Leagues Cup and reached the final of the CONCACAF Champions Cup.
Those results led to him being crowned Coach of the Year. In 2025, key player departures forced him to settle for a seventh-placed finish.
Stylistically, there’s plenty to love about Nancy’s game. For Celtic fans who were left frustrated over Brendan Rodgers’ horizontal passing, and have become excited by the direct play under Martin O’Neill, get ready for even more of that with the Frenchman.
In MLS this season, the Crew were second in completed passes and pass attempts. They also led the league in pass completion percentage, progressive passes, and passes into the final third.
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The fans have are unhappy with the way the club is being run and have staged several protests
Concerned about how his team will cope pressure? A statistical analysis from the CIES (International Centre for Sports Studies) in the 2023-24 season found the Crew were the sixth best team in the entire world when it came to ball retention under pressure.
Nancy’s side were sandwiched between Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen and Russell Martin’s Southampton — and far better than the likes of Bayern Munich, Barcelona, Tottenham, and Chelsea.
Offensively, his 3-4-3 formation leans into lightning-paced counter attacks. Throughout his time at Columbus, his teams were notorious for creating offensive overloads — with third-runners abounding.
But his system is equally adaptable to opponents. Not only is ball possession paramount, the ability to manipulate space is a highlight. For that, he has drawn comparisons with Luis Enrique at Paris Saint Germain.
Beyond that, Nancy is seen as a player’s coach almost as much as he’s viewed as a master tactician. Those who played under him in Montreal and Columbus have sung his praises.
Many have been rewarded with high-profile moves to Europe, including midfielder Aidan Morris, now at Middlesbrough, and winger Cucho Hernandez, who moved to Spanish side Real Betis.
Now, the man himself seems set to follow his former players in a jump to the other side of the Atlantic.
Still, the criticisms can be heard far and wide. A connection — albeit, a loose one — exists between Nancy and Celtic’s director of football operations Paul Tisdale. Kwame Ampadu, who was one of Nancy’s assistants at Columbus, worked under Tisdale at Exeter City.
Nancy has received widespread praise regarding his style of football he likes to play
Additionally, the ‘stink’ of MLS could lead people to point fingers at other failed examples in Europe. Sure, Bob Bradley’s time at Swansea City was a failure. Yes, Jesse Marsch had promise at Red Bull Salzburg, only to crash out at RB Leipzig and later Leeds United.
But for a club like Celtic — one in need of a complete culture change on the pitch and off it — there are few coaches who could deliver the same impact as Nancy.
A move for him would not be a short-term solution. If given the time and resources, he can build Celtic into the kind of team that impresses on a continental level.
Of course, that’s all well and good to print on pulp. It will be up to the Celtic board itself to actually turn that into a reality.
