Celtic's recent 3-1 defeat to Midtjylland in the Europa League has not deterred Martin O'Neill's optimism about their qualification chances. Despite the setback, O'Neill remains confident that his team can still progress to the knockout stages. "I suppose that we probably always thought this year that 10 points would probably be enough [to qualify]," he stated. "We're not out of it. "
Celtic's struggles in European away games continue, with no victories in their last 15 matches (D5 L10). Their last win came against Ferencvaros in November 2021. The team's defensive issues were evident as they conceded 15 shots in the first half against Midtjylland, a record since November 2012.
O'Neill acknowledged the impact of their recent Scottish League Cup
semi-final win over Rangers on their performance. "I do genuinely think that on Sunday, the emotion of the game, everything went well," he explained. The extra time and intensity seemed to have left the players fatigued.
The match saw Celtic concede three goals within eight minutes late in the first half, nullifying Reo Hatate's penalty. This collapse marked O'Neill's first loss since stepping in as Brendan Rodgers' interim replacement. Despite dropping to 28th place in a 36-team table with just one win from four games, O'Neill believes they learned valuable lessons.
"Half an hour gone in the match, no score in the game, and then we conceded two goals within a minute, I think, and then a third one within seven minutes," O'Neill noted. He praised his team's resilience in the second half for maintaining effort despite being under pressure.
Full time in Herning#MidtjyllandCeltic | #UEL | #CelticFC pic.twitter.com/U3hiFLslpv Celtic Football Club (@CelticFC) November 6, 2025
Midtjylland demonstrated their experience and physicality throughout the match. O'Neill acknowledged these qualities as crucial for success at this level. "Midtjylland have shown that and they have good experience in the side," he said.
Despite Celtic's current position and challenges faced during this campaign, O'Neill remains hopeful about their prospects. His focus is on learning from these experiences to build a stronger team capable of competing effectively on the European stage.
