LASK manager's pre-Celtic comments expose blatant Martin O'Neill mistake

Celtic crashed out of the Champions League in spectacular fashion on Tuesday night, blowing a four-goal lead against LASK, even after extending their lead from three to four on the night.

An extra-time goal proved to be the final difference, although Viljami Sinisalo had to provide a penalty stop late on, and had he not made a string of other top saves, it could have been much worse.

We have already written extensively about the blame the board must take for this result. Poor planning put the Bhoys in this situation, but blame must also be dished out elsewhere, and Martin O'Neill must answer for the mentality of his side.

The Celtic boss set the tone for this game with fearful comments prior to even the first leg starting. He had said that the tie would be "very, very difficult.” And even after his side won 3-0 in the first leg, he spoke of how they 'might need to score'.

The veteran had also previously expressed doubts over the quality of his side ahead of the qualifiers, and they were certainly valid, but it would have been wise to back his side publicly ahead of this game, even if he had the doubts behind the scenes.

Belief can do wonders, and we only have to look at the LASK manager, Dietmar Kühbauer, to see the difference in mindset, and we already know the results it yielded. Here's what he had to say before the second leg:

“We'll have to throw everything at them — the kitchen sink. That's how it is if you need goals. If it's late in the game, you have to take away defensive players and throw on attacking players.

“If I didn't believe, then it would be terrible. As a coach, you're on the sideline, but you have to give your players belief.

“The most important thing is that we hit the right gear as soon as we can. We have to take risks in this game. It doesn't mean we leave ourselves exposed, but we shouldn't play with caution. We can't let Celtic come and take the game to us, we have to be the team that takes the game to them.”

That quote "you have to give your players belief" stands out. One would think O'Neill, with all of his experience, would know that. O'Neill, to his credit, has taken responsibility for the defeat, and that is a noble thing to do.

It's not completely true. Many people are to blame for this collapse, but you have to wonder whether the veteran boss will look back on his comments and wonder whether he set the wrong tone.

The players took a three goal lead into the second leg and approached it as though they had to be careful. They should have been full of belief, and even if the game did become more open than they wanted, they should have been able to go toe-to-toe with their opponents and come through.

This Celtic team is worth more than three times what the LASK squad is worth, so even with the personnel issues, this was about more than talent. It was about mindset.