Why Martin O'Neill wants Hibs fans to stop supporting Celtic

He believes they may be unintentionally encouraging their team to do the opposite.

With Hibs set to play Celtic this weekend, a win for Hibernian would actually benefit rivals Hearts in their bid to win the Premiership, leading to a dilemma for Easter Road followers.

Many fans have openly admitted to wanting their team to lose to Celtic on Sunday.

However, O'Neill maintains that this will not impact the mindset of those at the club and insists that they will remain professional in their pursuit of victory.

He even thinks this narrative might provide extra motivation for the players.

O'Neill said: "Well, actually, I can maybe understand that, that maybe some Hibs fans wouldn't want Hearts to win the league.

"But that won't cross over to their team selection, to the coaching staff, absolutely not, and to the players.

"In fact, I think they would be more invigorated by the news of that there, so if I could call upon some Hibs fans to refrain from that, that would help!"

He acknowledges that some Celtic fans may feel similarly about not wanting their closest rivals to win.

Looking at the current situation, he said that Celtic have no new injury worries and expressed optimism about Alistair Johnston's training progress.

The 74-year-old said: "No, we're pretty good.

"Alistair Johnston has done a week's work as well too, so that's encouraging.

"We're okay, nothing new."

"I know that some managers say, 'oh well don't bother, they'll go for a walk or do something.

"No, I'm glued to it," he added.

"Don't you worry, I'll be there. If you're asking who I'm cheering on, I have no idea. Don't even ask, I have no idea."

"Depending on how we do, I might, if we don't win the game or lose the match, that becomes a different thought process, but at the end of it all, yeah, of course I'll be watching because we have to play those teams."