Lambert: O'Neill should leave voluntarily, not be sacked

Former Celtic captain Paul Lambert has told the club to let manager Martin O'Neill walk away voluntarily rather than force a dismissal, following a difficult run of results.

The 57-year-old said he would not be surprised if O'Neill, 74, decides to step down, but he would be "shocked and disappointed if Celtic sacked him." Lambert argued the manager has earned enough respect to control his own exit, noting that public sentiment can swing too quickly from praise to criticism.

O'Neill plans to use the upcoming international break to review recent losses to Rangers and a home defeat to Ferencvaros in the Europa League. The club also suffered a Champions League collapse against LASK in August, surrendering a 4-0 aggregate advantage.

Lambert praised O'Neill's track record at the club, calling him the best manager since Jock Stein. He pointed to O'Neill's seven trophies won between 2000 and 2005, when Lambert was a player, and highlighted how the manager stabilized the squad last season after two interim stints delivered a league and Scottish Cup double.

Despite the praise for O'Neill, Lambert directed sharp criticism at the current squad. He pointed to poor individual performances in the Rangers defeats and specifically called out defender Cameron Carter-Vickers for his recent media remarks about the team playing randomly and following a script.

"I thought that was bang out of order, coming from someone who's been a decent player for Celtic," Lambert told BBC Radio Scotland. He stressed that professionals must fix their own issues on the pitch instead of relying on external instructions from the dugout.