Martin O’Neill insisted that he will not become Celtic manager on a permanent basis after taking on the interim role following Brendan Rodgers’ resignation.

Rodgers’ departure from the Scottish Premiership club was announced on Monday, with Shaun Maloney appointed as O’Neill’s assistant in the short term.

Celtic are currently second in the league, eight points behind leaders Hearts after losing 3-1 to the early pacesetters on Sunday.

Rodgers took charge of 85 Scottish top-flight matches during his second stint at the club, winning 63 games (74.1%) and averaging 2.4 points per game.

O’Neill was at the helm at Celtic between 2000 and 2005, leading the Scottish giants to three league titles and a UEFA Cup final.

He admitted the call from the club caught him by surprise and is adamant that he is only a short-term solution.

“It's obviously a kind of shock, as much as anything else. It shocked me as well, too,” O’Neill told TalkSPORT.

“It's difficult really to turn down somebody who gave you the job in the first place when he [Dermot Desmond] had really some great options, way back 25 years ago.

“I think they were probably stunned by the news that Brendan left and as a consequence, they are obviously seeking a permanent manager.

“So this is like a short-term, I'm not going to say a fix, but it's certainly a short-term fit. Whether it's a fix or not, it's another thing.

“Interim does mean that to me. Absolutely. It's really as simple as that.

“Celtic are looking for, I would have assumed, a young coach coming in now who has a proven ability and would want to pull the club forward, from their position as it stands.”

Celtic host Falkirk on Wednesday in the Scottish Premiership before they face Rangers at Celtic Park in the Scottish League Cup semi-finals on Sunday.