Tisdale was axed alongside Wilfried Nancy and Andy Townsend can’t fathom how he landed a key role at Celtic in the first place

18:15, 08 Jan 2026Updated 19:49, 08 Jan 2026

Paul Tisdale (right with hat)

Paul Tisdale has been slammed for his ‘disastrous’ reign behind the scenes at Celtic – with pundit Andy Townsend questioning how he even got the job in the first place.

The self-proclaimed ‘football doctor’ was appointed as the club’s head of football operations in October 2024 and played a central role in bringing Wilfried Nancy to the club. He fell on his sword earlier this week when he was axed alongside the Frenchman, who lost six of his eight games and lasted just 33 days in charge.

The club’s transfer business under the Englishman also came into question, with a catastrophic summer window in large part to blame for their crumbling season. It’s something Martin O’Neill has been asked, for the second time this season, to come in and fix.

Tisdale’s reign won’t be fondly remembered by fans and former Chelsea and Aston Villa striker Townsend admits he can’t believe he was given the role in the first place.

He was speaking on talkSPORT about the growing trend of head coaches yielding responsibility to sporting directors – a topic which reportedly played its part in Ruben Amorim’s dismissal from Manchester United.

They are about to bring in Jason Wilcox to work alongside their next manager and Wilcox believes Tisdale’s short-lived tenure at Celtic serves as a cautionary tale.

Townsend said: “One of the things football managers have been a bit annoyed about is there hasn’t been enough accountability in that role of sporting director. How many goes at it do you get at your club? How many are you entitled to?

“Seemingly you can have five, six or seven managers under the same sporting director and still be there.

“That can’t be right. Some of them are being paid incredibly well for what they do. There has to be genuine accountability.

“Someone like Jason Wilcox at Manchester United, he’s going to be a fundamental part of who comes through the door in the summer, should it not be Darren Fletcher long term. How many goes does he get? I would think it will be less and less over the next few years – maybe one or two goes.

“Paul Tisdale at Celtic, I mean, how he even got the job… words fail me.

“I don’t understand how he got the job of director of football at Celtic. He’s had one go with Wilfried Nancy, such a disaster, he’s gone as well.”