Celtic have had excellent success against Rangers this century.
O’Neill brought in Chris Sutton, John Hartson, and Neil Lennon while also developing Henrik Larsson into a world-class Celtic striker.
Celtic legend O’Neill won three league titles, three Scottish Cups, and two League Cups during his time at Parkhead.
During his five years at Celtic, the Northern Irishman was also a constant source of frustration for Rangers. And one former Ibrox player has admitted that O’Neill’s time in Glasgow’s east end was the reason for his failure at the club.
Egil Ostenstad failed at Rangers because of Martin O’Neill’s Celtic
Egil Ostenstad joined Rangers in 2003 and stayed for one season. Rangers won nothing that season, while Celtic won the league and Scottish Cup, and Livingston won the League Cup.
Ostenstad’s contract was terminated at the end of the season, and the Norwegian blames Celtic’s success for his failure at Rangers.
Ostenstad told Four Four Two, “It happened late in the transfer window. I had ten months left on my contract at Blackburn, and Rangers is a huge club.
“I had the opportunity to play in the Champions League with them, so I took it, but they signed me more as a squad player. I didn’t do well.
“I was struggling with an Achilles problem and couldn’t train properly. I’m grateful that I got to experience being at such a huge club. I would’ve loved to do better.
“I did my best, but it wasn’t enough at the time. It’s hard as a Rangers player when Celtic are performing better.”
Celtic’s trophy success since 2000
Celtic have dominated all domestic competitions since Martin O’Neill transformed the club in 2000.
After winning Celtic’s first treble since Jock Stein’s Hoops in 1969, O’Neill established the standard, and practically every Parkhead manager since has produced silverware.
So with that in mind, here is a comprehensive list of Celtic’s trophy history since 2000:
- 19 x Scottish League titles: 2000–01, 2001–02, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24, 2024–25
- 12 x Scottish Cup wins: 2000–01, 2003–04, 2004–05, 2006–07, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2022–23, 2023–24
- 11 x League Cup wins: 2000–01, 2005–06, 2008–09, 2014–15, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2024–25
Celtic have won 42 domestic trophies in 25 years, accounting for more than half of the 75 available since 2000.
It’s a truly incredible record, and Ostenstad is unlikely to be the only Rangers player to be disappointed by Celtic’s success over the following 25 years.
