Keith Jackson has cast doubt over Celtic’s title chances despite Martin O’Neill winning 15 of his 18 games in charge this season.
The Hoops sit three points behind Hearts with a game in hand. That is not a gap that screams collapse. It is a margin that can swing in one weekend. Yet the focus has been on how Celtic are getting their wins rather than the fact they are getting them.
15th February 2026; Rugby Park, Kilmarnock, Scotland: Scottish Premiership Football, Kilmarnock versus Celtic; Julian Araujo of Celtic celebrates after he shoots and scores in the 97th minute to make it 3-2
Late goals against Livingston and Kilmarnock have fed a narrative that this side are hanging on. At Rugby Park they were poor in the first half, then sharper after the break. Julian Araujo’s winner came in the 90+7th minute. It was dramatic, but it still counts the same.
Results matter in a run-in. O’Neill’s record since returning speaks for itself. Fifteen wins from 18 is not the form of a team falling apart.
He said: (Daily Record), “Celtic remain clinging onto those maroon coattails even though the champions have rendered themselves seemingly unable to win matches within the space of 90 minutes.
“They are surviving from week to week and game to game by the skin of their teeth and on Sunday at Rugby Park they had to dig deep into their reserves of resilience all over again…
“To pinch all the points in the seventh minute of injury time, after falling two goals behind during a lamentably lacklustre opening 45 minutes.
“The powers of recovery Martin O’Neill’s players are relying upon are truly remarkable but the fact that they are being required so regularly points to the lack of quality which continues to undermine this creaking title defence.
“It was Julian Araujo who saved the day in the dying moments on Sunday and when the Mexican slammed home into the roof of Kilmarnock’s net it meant Celtic secured six points from back-to-back games against the bottom two teams in the division.
“With pretty much the last kick of the ball on both occasions. Of course, it is possible that they can go on like this, scrambling late wins all the way to the finishing line, but it’s highly improbable all the same.”
The argument ignores context. Celtic have faced an injury crisis for much of the season, with four first-team starters out. Rotation has been heavy. Yet Celtic are still creating chances late because they push bodies forward and keep the ball alive in the box.
15th February 2026; Rugby Park, Kilmarnock, Scotland: Scottish Premiership Football, Kilmarnock versus Celtic; Julian Araujo of Celtic shoots and scores in the 97th minute to make it 3-2
They are not coasting. They are chasing. That changes the feel of games.
Hearts still have to face the Hoops again. So do Rangers twice. With a game in hand and momentum from 15 wins in 18, Celtic are hardly clinging on. They are right in it.
