That\u2019s fine, but if Celtic had lost a domestic game under O\u2019Neill, those very same critics would have been questioning why it\u2019s taking so long to appoint Nancy<\/a>. <\/p>\n And now that Nancy is in the building<\/a>, following Celtic\u2019s defeat to Hearts<\/a> on Sunday, the noise hasn\u2019t just been around the timing of his arrival, but also his call to change the system to a 3-4-3<\/a>.<\/p>\n READ MORE: Gordon Duncan tells Roger Hannah \u2018we\u2019ve got to be careful\u2019 after hearing criticism of Celtic boss Wilfried Nancy<\/a><\/p>\n Where did it go wrong for Wilfired Nancy against Hearts? <\/p>\n \ud83d\udc47 Join the debate; share your insight. Use the comment button on the bottom left to have your say <\/p>\n Martin Keown sends Arsene Wenger example to Wilfried Nancy<\/p>\n Martin Keown<\/a> feels Nancy was wrong to change the system<\/a> straight away, and he should have kept O\u2019Neill\u2019s ball rolling.<\/p>\n The former defender compared Nancy\u2019s situation to when Arsene Wenger first joined Arsenal in 1996, and he was a senior player in the dressing room.<\/p>\n Speaking on talkSPORT, Keown shared that Arsenal were \u2018playing a back five\u2019, but rather than change it up, Wenger \u2018waited a whole 12 months to change it\u2019, and he feels Nancy should have done the same. <\/p>\n \u201cI think the clever thing to do, and I have seen it first hand when Arsene Wenger first came into Arsenal,\u201d said Keown. <\/p>\n \u201cWe were playing a back five. He didn\u2019t want to play a five. He wanted to play a four. He waited a whole 12 months to change it. Because he said, \u2018Okay, I have inherited this. You guys are on trial. Not me.\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cBut as soon as you make the change, the focus is on you, and I think that\u2019s the problem here. He should have left it. They were familiar with that system. They had won well under Martin, and to make those changes makes it about him. <\/p>\n \u201cYou lose the players a little bit, so he has some work to do there.\u201d<\/p>\n Keown surprised by Celtic\u2019s call on Martin O\u2019Neill<\/p>\n The argument of O\u2019Neill staying on board is understandable<\/a>, and he perhaps should have overseen Celtic\u2019s League Cup Final against St Mirren<\/a>.<\/p>\n But the criticism of Nancy changing the system needs to be watered down, because he has been employed to do what he knows best. <\/p>\n![\"Celtic](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/GettyImages-2250519976-1024x683.jpg\")
Photo by Ian MacNicol\/Getty Images <\/p>\n