GLASGOW, Scotland (AP) — Wilfried Nancy's job as Celtic manager came under even more intense scrutiny after a 3-1 home loss to fierce Glasgow rival Rangers on Saturday in the Old Firm derby, the biggest match in Scottish soccer.
It was a sixth loss in eight games under Nancy since his arrival at Celtic on Dec. 3 and the Frenchman cut a lonely figure after the post-match handshakes as he walked down the tunnel to a backdrop of jeers that greeted the fulltime whistle.
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Celtic's Yang Hyun-Jun scores his side's first goal of the game, during the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
Rangers' Thelo Aasgaard, left, pulls back on Celtic's Luke McCowan during the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
Rangers players celebrate after the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
Rangers' Youssef Chermiti scores their side's second goal of the game during the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
Rangers' Youssef Chermiti celebrates scoring their side's first goal of the game during the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
The result left Celtic on the same points as Rangers — though ahead on goal difference — and six behind surprise leader Hearts, which beat Livingston 1-0 on Saturday, in a turbulent campaign in the Scottish Premiership.
Nancy left Columbus Crew in Major League Soccer for Celtic but lost his first four matches in charge — including a stunning defeat in the Scottish League Cup final. There were then back-to-back wins only for Celtic to lose at Motherwell on Tuesday and then against its biggest foe to home.
“For me, nothing changes," a defiant Nancy said after the game against Rangers. "My focus is to help my players to be better, help my team start to be better, and to find a way to turn things around. We are really close to doing good things but (when) we concede goals sometimes it’s difficult.”
Trailing 1-0 at halftime, Rangers scored three goals in a 21-minute span from the 50th — leading to audible discontent among Celtic fans throughout the second half.
The BBC reported that Celtic supporters gathered outside their stadium after the game in protest at the club's board. Last month, chairman Peter Lawwell resigned and chief executive Michael Nicholson claimed three of his “colleagues” on the board were “assaulted” after the League Cup final without disclosing further details.
Nancy cited “details at certain moments” as the reason for Celtic's problems.
“I see many, many good things — that’s why the frustration is there because we deserve better," he said. "We have to stay together, and everything is going to move forward.”
Celtic has been the Scottish champion for 13 of the last 14 years.
Under Nancy, Celtic has conceded two or more goals in seven of his eight games in charge.
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Celtic's Yang Hyun-Jun scores his side's first goal of the game, during the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
Rangers' Thelo Aasgaard, left, pulls back on Celtic's Luke McCowan during the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
Rangers players celebrate after the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
Rangers' Youssef Chermiti scores their side's second goal of the game during the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
Rangers' Youssef Chermiti celebrates scoring their side's first goal of the game during the Scottish Premiership soccer match between Celtic and Rangers in Glasgow, Scotland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026. (Andrew Milligan/PA via AP)
HELSINGBORG, Sweden (AP) — NATO allies and defense officials expressed bewilderment Friday at U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement that he would send 5,000 U.S. troops to Poland just weeks after ordering the same number of forces pulled out of Europe.
The apparent change of mind came after weeks of statements from Trump and his administration about reducing — not increasing — the U.S. military footprint in Europe. Trump's initial order set off a flurry of action among military commanders and left allies already doubtful about America's commitment to Europe's security to ponder what forces they might have to backfill on NATO's eastern flank with Russia and Ukraine.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration said it was reducing levels in Europe by about 5,000 troops, and U.S. officials confirmed about 4,000 service members were no longer rotating into Poland from Germany. The dispatch to Germany of U.S. personnel trained to fire long-range missiles was also halted.
But in a post on Truth Social on Thursday, Trump said he would now send "an additional 5,000 Troops to Poland,” citing his strong ties with Polish President Karol Nawrocki, whom Trump endorsed in elections last year.
“It is confusing indeed, and not always easy to navigate,” Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard told reporters Friday at a meeting she was hosting of her NATO counterparts, including U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Ministers from the Netherlands and Norway were sanguine about Trump’s latest move, as was Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže, who said allies knew the U.S. troop “posture was being reconsidered, and now there is no change of posture. For now.”
U.S. defense officials also expressed confusion. “We just spent the better part of two weeks reacting to the first announcement. We don’t know what this means either,” said one of two officials who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters.
But Rubio said Washington’s allies understand that changes in the U.S. troop presence in Europe will come as the Trump administration reevaluates its force needs. “I think there’s a broad recognition that there are going to be eventually less U.S. troops in Europe than there has historically been for a variety of reasons,” he said.
The latest surprise came despite a U.S. pledge to coordinate troop deployments, including one from NATO’s top military officer, U.S. Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, on Wednesday.
Trump's initial announcement that he would withdraw troops came as he fumed over remarks by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who said that the U.S. was being “humiliated” by the Iranian leadership and criticized what he called a lack of strategy in that war.
Trump told reporters that the U.S. would be cutting even more than 5,000 and also announced new tariffs on European cars. Germany is the continent’s biggest auto producer.
Rubio insisted that Trump’s decision “is not a punitive thing. It’s just something that’s ongoing.”
About 80,000 U.S. troops are stationed in Europe. The Pentagon is required to keep at least 76,000 troops and major equipment on the continent unless NATO allies are consulted and there is a determination that such a withdrawal is in U.S. interests.
The withdrawal of 5,000 troops might drop numbers below that limit.
But Trump's latest post suggests that troop numbers in Europe would not change. Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski welcomed the decision to send more forces to his country, saying it ensures that “the presence of American troops in Poland will be maintained more or less at previous levels.”
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte also welcomed the move. On Thursday, before Trump took to Truth Social again, Rutte had underlined that it was important for Europe to take care of its own security. “We have a process in place. This is normal business,” he told reporters.
At NATO headquarters in Brussels, meanwhile, U.S. officials briefed the allies on the Pentagon's aims for its commitments to the NATO Force Model, which involves contingency planning for Europe’s defense in the event of serious security concerns. It was widely expected that a further reduction of U.S. forces would be coming.
Asked whether any cuts were announced, Rutte said: “I’m afraid it’s much more complicated than that.” He said the procedure “is highly classified” and declined to give details.
Rubio played down concerns about a shift in U.S. force levels in Europe, saying: "Every country has to constantly reevaluate what their needs are, what their commitments are around the world, and how to properly structure that.”
Cook reported from Brussels. Associated Press writer Emma Burrows in London contributed.
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks with journalists during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, front second left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, front left, speak with each other during a group photo at a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte look at each other as they deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braže speaks at the doorstep of the NATO foreign ministers' meeting at Sea U in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio, left, and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte deliver a statement during a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrives with his wife Jeanette at Malmo Airport, Friday, May 22, 2026, in Malmo-Sturup, Sweden, ahead of a NATO foreign ministers meeting. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson, Pool)
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, second from left, shakes hands with Prime Minister of Sweden Ulf Kristersson, as he is greeted by King Carl Gustaf of Sweden, Queen Silvia of Sweden and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden Maria Malmer Stenergard, right, before a dinner at Sofiero Castle in Helsingborg, Sweden, Thursday May 21 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard speaks to media at the NATO Foreign Ministers' meeting in Helsingborg, Sweden, Friday, May 22, 2026. (Johan Nilsson/TT News Agency via AP)
