Some had made it clear behind the scenes that they did not enjoy working with him and that the atmosphere had deteriorated to the point they held little hope of it being a successful season. Signed copies of each one (other than the sold-out Walfrid & The Bould Bhoys) available now at https://t.co/jXLgPJMlRm. Tellingly, a number of those had also complained to the club’s hierarchy about his predecessor, Aitor Karanka, and this has been a recurring theme for Forest during 20 years of drift outside the top division: players turning against the manager and, in O’Neill’s case, the people in charge reluctantly concluding that the damage was irreparable. O’Neill’s sympathisers might legitimately question whether Forest’s squad exist in a culture of excuses, pointing out that Karanka’s methods were also questioned by some of the team and that the same happened to another old favourite, Stuart Pearce, and various others during the churn of managers, post-Clough. Yet it is also true that part of O’Neill’s job was to bring the players together and improve the team, albeit with only an 18-month contract. In that regard, Forest have decided it has not worked out. O’Neill made it clear before taking the job that he regarded it as unfair to be branded a “dinosaur” and, to give him his due, he experimented with various formations since inheriting the team. Again, though, the style of play has not always been pleasing on the eye.

Martin O’Neill joins Twitter on eve of ‘On Days Like These,’ Martin O’Neill joins Twitter on eve of

Martin O’Neill was a legend as a player for Forest but fans were not enamoured of his style of play as a manager. Photograph: Tony Marshall/Getty Images As for his critics in the dressing room, they grew to dislike his ideas. There have been complaints that his training methods were uninspiring and that, tactically, the squad were unsure about how he wanted them to play. Over the last week, as he led them on a series of punishing runs, attitudes have hardened. Yet the truth is a nucleus of senior players were unconvinced from the start. As a manager, O’Neill took Wycombe Wanderers to the football league for the first time, led Leicester City to two League Cups, and his tenure at Celtic saw them win seven trophies and their glorious run to the UEFA Cup Final in 2003. Martin led Aston Villa to an unprecedented three consecutive top six Premier League finishes and he oversaw the Republic of Ireland reaching the Euros in 2016, when they made it to the second round for the first time in their history. Unfortunately for the decision-makers at Forest, it is nearly 25 years since O’Neill had that golden period at Leicester City where he transformed a second-tier side into one that secured four top-10 finishes in the Premier League and reached three League Cup finals, winning two. O’Neill subsequently won seven trophies with Celtic, as well as reaching a Uefa Cup final, and was talked about for a long time as the best qualified man to succeed Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.Instead he went to Aston Villa, with sixth-placed finishes in each of his last three seasons, but he then had a poor spell in the managerial wastelands of Sunderland and five years with the Republic of Ireland that divided opinion. The flaw in that argument was that Guedioura had been left out of Algeria’s squad for their games against the Gambia and Tunisia. O’Neill was livid. There was a dressing-room confrontation and, perhaps unsurprisingly, Guedioura did not start another game for the two-times European Cup winner.

Martin O’Neill | Illustrator Artist (Cut it Out Studio) Martin O’Neill | Illustrator Artist (Cut it Out Studio)

Martin recognises that his days at Leicester City, where he won the League Cup, happened around a half a mile away from the club’c current home at Filbert Street. Martin might choose to post his next video from The City Ground in Nottingham, or even Villa Park where he did much better than their recent boss to say the least. He might even make the short hop across the Irish Sea to Dublin where he managed the Republic or up to Belfast where he played for the six counties. But most of all he should head to Paradise, home of the Scottish Champions and where his work as a football manager is most appreciated. Martin O’Neill is one of the most fascinating and respected figures in football. On Days Like These tells the story of his remarkable career.