External murmurings have claimed the Irishman's No.2 holds as much sway internally and on the training pitch as O’Neill. But Maloney has strongly rejected that theory, insisting those making such claims clearly do not know how the veteran boss operates.

Maloney said: “I think anyone that's written or said that, I don't think they've ever worked with Martin. I have no idea why somebody would say that.

“If they came and watched us each day, Martin leads everything. Recruitment, team selection, tactical. I think Martin's actually said this. I don't know why anyone would even think that without working with him. So, yeah, that would be incorrect.”

The former Celtic winger explained that O’Neill’s coaching methods have changed little from his first spell in charge during the early 2000s. While modern training sessions involve multiple coaches working with different groups across several pitches, Maloney stressed the manager remains at the centre of the operation.

He said: “Martin very much would observe training. There were certain things he would step in and it's exactly the same here.

“He observes the majority of training, but when there's something that he wants to put across to the players, he steps in.”

Maloney added that O’Neill is present for virtually every training session and decides where his attention is needed most, whether working with individuals, units or the full squad.