Wilfried Nancy Seeks to Rebuild Trust in Celtic Through Victory in Scottish League Cup Final

Wilfried Nancy approaches Sundays Scottish League Cup final versus St Mirren eager for a success that could alleviate the strain after a challenging beginning to his time leading the Glasgow powerhouse.

The French coach reaches Hampden Park after a tough opening week that included him becoming the initial Celtic manager to drop his opening two matches, as the Italian outfit Roma triumphed 3-0 at Parkhead in the Europa League on Thursday.

Nancys leadership began with a 2-1 defeat at home to Hearts, leaving the Scottish title holders three points adrift of the Premiership frontrunners, though they hold a match to spare.

These pair of losses intensify an already intense scrutiny on the ex Columbus Crew head, yet he emphasised on Friday that his priority remains securing another piece of silverware for Celtic over persuading backers of his suitability for the role.

"For me, no. For my players, yes, and for the fans, yes, because like I said, you start to know me now," Nancy shared with journalists. "Yes, I would like to win the trophy.

"I'm pretty sure that if we don't win it, it's going to be difficult because when we lose, it is painful.

"But I am optimistic as a person, so hopefully we're going to do it, and also it's going to validate what we are doing."

Nancy continued: "Again, I'm going have many other times to do my stuff and to convince the fans that I am the right guy.

"To be honest, it is not difficult to prepare for the game. It's a final, so in terms of motivation and stimulation it's going to be there, no doubt. Obviously, the fact that we didn't win the last two games, mentally, it could be that we have a bit of a uncertainty, I would say.

"But to be honest, having had a good discussion with the players, we know what we did well, we know what we need to improve and everything is clear, and they are really focused on this game."