Much has been said about Wilfried Nancy during his traumatic introduction to life at Celtic. And the prevailing theory goes that Glasgow and Scottish football is about to chew him up and spit him out before he has as much as unpacked his belongings.
If he is feeling the pressure though as he prepares to take his team to Tannadice tonight in search of his first win as Celtic manager after three defeats from three, he was hiding it well at Lennoxtown yesterday. The Frenchman retains a steadfast confidence in his ability to right the ship quickly before Celtic’s hopes of retaining their title sink without trace, and before his credibility is irreparably holed beneath the waterline.
Nancy, after all, has faced more trying situations throughout his life, if not in the comparatively mollycoddled football coaching environments in which he has so far operated. His dad, for example, was in the French Navy, meaning he rarely had settled roots growing up. Cynics may say that experience may stand him in good stead for what is in the post if results don’t pick up in short order.
He has though also seen friends take wrong turns, with some going truly off the rails, allowing him to keep a sense of perspective on his current station in life, and an immense amount of gratitude for where he finds himself, regardless of the pressure and scrutiny he is facing.
He is sure then that not only does he have the coaching chops to succeed at Celtic, but the resilience to weather the storm closing in all around him.
“It comes from the way I grew up,” Nancy said.
“I also travelled a lot in my life. Until I was 14 years old, I was changing country every two years. I have friends who are the president of a country and I have friends who are in jail.
“Perspective is everything. That is what I take into my career from my background. I have learned that life is not always a straight line. It goes up and down. Otherwise, you are not true to yourself.
“I was grateful to be an assistant coach for six or seven years, working with different coaches with different personalities. They all wanted to win but they were all different.
“It was so powerful to see the way they reacted, which depended on their personality.
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“Look at coaches like Carlo Ancelotti too. Look at Pep Guardiola. Carlo Ancelotti has been fired by many clubs, but he is one of the most successful coaches in the world.
“I come from France and Luis Enrique was being killed by the French press - and then after that he did something PSG had never done before.
“So, I try to understand things in context and the roles of different people. You are journalists and your job is to say certain things. There are fans who support the club, and this is a relationship like the one with our wives!
“I just try to step back. It’s not easy, understand me well. But my experience comes from being that way and that’s the way I try and educate my kids.
“This is not the strongest we’ll be. Right now, it’s about the people who can adapt to change.
“I am not a weak guy. I am able to understand people who are in jail, for example. Maybe it’s because of their background, what happened in their life wasn’t good enough or something happened and that’s why they reacted to that. But I don’t accept it.
“So that’s why I am able to understand the criticism and understand many things. I just try and be the best I can be every day.
"I’m grateful to be here because Celtic is Celtic. It’s as simple as that. But again, it comes back to results. I am craving to win games - not to shut the mouth of everybody. I don’t do this battle. But just for my players, just for the board, just for the club.
“For me life is like that. People might think I’m an idealist as a person but not at all. I know exactly who I am and exactly where I want to go. And I know at this moment, yeah my ass is burning!
“But stay strong and do what you need to do to be better.”
Nancy is aware then of the precariousness of his current position, even if he is just in the door. He feels the losses deeply, but has his eye on what may lie beyond for both himself and his team should things click in the way he wants them to.
“Understand me well, I am a human being, and this is new for me,” he said.
“I have more wins than losses in my career and have won many titles. But this doesn’t change my life. What changes my life is what we learn and when we lose.
“I know where I am and it’s a good challenge and I’m excited by this challenge. Trust me, it’s not easy to sleep, because I want to win.
“It’s difficult but we are close to doing something.
“It has been really rough, and I just have received maybe 100 messages from people, friends asking me, ‘Are you Ok? You have to stay strong, you have done it before,’.
“I’m grateful for that but, like I said, it’s going to come naturally. Again, understand me well, I am not invincible. But I know what I want to do and I know every day I can see improvements.
“After that, hopefully you will see what I am - and what we are - capable of.”
If Nancy does indeed find a way to show that, the unprecedented calls for a sacking so early in a Celtic manager’s tenure will quieten. And if - as incredible as it may be that it is in doubt - he makes it to January, he believes the transfer window could be a key juncture in building this team in his own image.
“Me, the way I am as a coach, every window is important, because the idea is to bring competition,” he said.
“We don’t have to bring players just for the sake of bringing players, so the window for me is a tool for me to add more players to bring more competition, because I believe we need more competition.
“If we have good competition between players, then the level is going to be up. So, the idea is to see what type of player we need, and after that, if we find this player who we are interested in to bring the competition up, then we will do it.
“If you ask me the same question in four months it is going to be the same answer. So, the window is really important, but January could be tricky also because I know what I am talking about, I’ve come in in the middle of the season too and it’s not easy.
“We have to find the balance. Summertime is not the same because we have time to prepare the team.
“So, each window is important, and we will see what we need to do.”
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