It's all unravelled so quickly at Celtic, with Callum McGregor right to have heeded caution following the thumping 5-1 win over Kilmarnock last month.

The champions were buoyant at that stage, having gone one better by seeing off LASK at Parkhead, the new signings clicking into gear so swiftly.

Fast forward mere weeks, however, and the men in green and white are out of the Champions League and League Cup, having also started the new Europa League campaign with defeat at Ferencváros.

The latest loss to Rangers in the Premiership has seen the mood plummet even further, with recruitment again under the microscope. It's a poorly assembled squad, epitomised by the woes of Sebastian Tounekti.

Why Tounekti epitomises Celtic's recent woes

It's perhaps no coincidence that Celtic's recent woes have come amid the absence of Yang Hyun-jun, the South Korean sensation signing off with a match-winning goal away at St Mirren.

The Glasgow outfit subsequently toiled against St Johnstone, with there having been a stark drop in quality following Tounekti's inclusion in the starting lineup.

The Tunisian was then hooked at the break in the League Cup clash with the Gers, with even an ageing James Forrest looking like a class above in the loss in Europe last week.

It says it all of Tounekti's lack of confidence and form that O'Neill opted to deploy Kieran Tierney in an advanced role down the left flank instead last time out, the 74-year-old's faith in Celtic's number 17 having perhaps run dry.

Perhaps the Bhoys should have expected such struggles from a man who, checks notes, scored just three and assisted only five goals in 27 games for former club Hammarby.

Indeed, since signing last summer for a fee of around £5.2m, the 24-year-old has scored and assisted just ten goals in 57 games in all competitions, his only goal involvements this season coming in the League Cup against Dundee United.

The decision to fork out such a hefty sum for the winger doesn't reflect well on the likes of Michael Nicholson, with so many decisions made over the past 12 months, in particular, having come back to bite.

Celtic's 2026 deal looks like the worst decision of the lot

In terms of incomings, there have been far more misses than hits on the transfer front in 2026, with Celtic's spate of loan signings in January failing to do enough to secure a permanent stay.

As for this summer, there are again so many reasons for concern, with Landon Emenalo and Joel van den Berg yet to be seen in action, while there's been a stark lack of end product from Kasper Hogh and Haissem Hassan.

Football FanCast even exclusively reported that a dispute over the use of Oliver Sorensen could force O'Neill to walk away, the Dane left out of the matchday squad last time out, despite being viewed as an Arne Engels replacement by Nicholson and co.

It's not just in terms of signings where the board deserves criticism, however, with the decision to hand Luke McCowan a new deal perhaps one of the most egregious moves of them all.

Indeed, having failed to earn a regular role for himself across his first two seasons at Parkhead, the decision was still taken to hand the ex-Dundee man an extension back in April.

It's fair to say the 28-year-old hasn't merited that extension until 2028, with the early weeks of the season showcasing his shortcomings in brutal fashion.

Of course, the diminutive Scot has shown flashes in a Celtic shirt, notably netting the winner away at Stuttgart last term, yet this is no mere prospect, this is someone who the club should be expecting to deliver now.

On the evidence of recent weeks, the playmaker sadly just isn't up to the task, producing a desperately poor substitute performance in the collapse against LASK.

In just 49 minutes on the field that night, he lost the ball 21 times from only 44 touches, remarkably losing nine of his 13 duels as Celtic simply wilted after the break.

For some, that felt like the final straw for a player who's been on the periphery ever since his arrival in 2024, and yet O'Neill still opted to unleash the midfielder from the start in the derby.

Unsurprisingly, that experiment ended with the half-time withdrawal of the left-footer, McCowan recording only 18 touches in all from his right-sided berth.

Considering he only signed for roughly £1m in the first place, Celtic had little need to try and protect his value by offering an extension, yet now run the risk of being stuck with a player who has underwhelmed for far too long.

Indeed, for as poor or anonymous as some of the new signings have been, Nicholson and co haven't helped matters by not doing more to shift some of the longer-serving members of the first-team squad.