Celtic players wait for O'Neill decision

Celtic's players are hoping to learn in the next few days whether Martin O'Neill will still be their manager next season.

Celtic's players are hoping to learn in the next few days whether Martin O'Neill will still be their manager next season.

O'Neill, whose current deal expires in the summer, has been absent from the Scottish champions mid-winter training camp in Florida while holding talks on a new contract in Barbados.

But he was expected to join up with the players later today and striker John Hartson said the squad expected an announcement imminently.

"My gut feeling is we will all get our answer very shortly because there is a lot of pressure from the fans and the press," the Welsh international told the Scottish Daily Record.

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Having dragged Celtic out of the doldrums with back-to-back Scottish Premier League titles, O'Neill is one of the hottest managerial properties around.

He was approached by Leeds before the appointment of Terry Venables last summer, has often been tipped as Alex Ferguson's successor at Manchester United and, in recent days, has been speculatively linked to a possible move to Liverpool, where Gerard Houllier is under pressure following the club's recent slump.

Hartson said the players were keen to know what O'Neill's intentions were, but said they would understand if he opted to leave Parkhead in pursuit of a fresh challenge elsewhere.