Telling us what Walter Smith would do to Hamza Igamane is pointless because the club Smith managed no longer exists

So, as the crisis deepens with each passing day at Ibrox, the latest chapter involving Hamza Igamane is just a reflection of the disastrous direction the club is headed in.

Russell Martin may believe that he is the man to pioneer change at Ibrox, and if he believes that, then that is admirable.

But it is also futile.

He may have been told that he would be supported all the way by the new owners, but the caveat in that particular agreement would have entailed winning football matches.

Something he has failed to do thus far in the Scottish Premiership.

Unfortunately for most football managers, not winning games will eventually catch up on you.

But when you’ve decided to take a job in a league where you’re expected to win the majority of the games you play just makes it all the more difficult.

Especially when you’re up against a behemoth of a club that has dominated the majority of the 21st century.

One that has far better resources than you, but seems to content to just keep you at arm’s length.

I have decried for long enough our board’s attitude in staying just one step ahead of the Ibrox club.

To all intents and purposes, Celtic’s attitude towards the Ibrox side reminds me of a big kid in the playground.

You know? The kind of a kid who’s not a bully?

But when a smaller kid offers to take him on in a fight, he uses his superior size to keep the smaller kid at arm’s length.

He just puts his hand on the other kid’s head, keeping him at bay while he swings away, landing nothing.

Eventually the small kid tires himself out, and realises his bravado in taking on the bigger kid is futile.

So he gives up.

That’s how I picture the Ibrox side, and our board’s attitude towards them.

The big kid knows he could pulverise the smaller kid if he really wanted to, but he chooses not to.

Instead he entertains his pitiful assaults, which ultimately wind up achieving nothing.

But some day that small kid might grow to be a big strong kid.

And the big kid might regret not putting him in his place while he had the chance.

For now, the Ibrox side still acts like the small kid.

But it can’t last forever.

Some day, it will change.

Russell Martin and the new Ibrox board probably felt they could get the Ibrox club to grow up.

But they’ve found out very quickly to their detriment, you can’t get a 13 year old to grow up over night.

Especially a 13 year old that is stupid enough to think he’s someone else.

And that it’s his God given right to beat the big kid.

Which brings me nicely along to Scott McDermott’s piece in the Record today about Hamza Igamane.

Before I get fully into that, it is clear that there is a culture in the Ibrox dressing room that is rotten.

Similar to the culture of the club itself.

Russell Martin, sadly for him, thought he could change that culture.

Hamza Igamane is a perfect example of everything that is wrong with that culture.

His behaviour yesterday exemplified that.

He threw a tantrum because he believes he should now be at Lille, and the club has denied him that opportunity.

Because, as they always do, they tried to get a bidding war to commence for their player.

I don’t know who advised the Americans that this was a good idea, based on past ideas.

But its clear from the examples of Alfredo Morelos and Ryan Kent, it NEVER worked.

Whoever told them that it would, must be very convincing.

Well, either that, or the Americans are extremely naive and stupid.

I guess that remains to be seen.

The start to their tenure has been nothing, if not farcical.

At this moment in time, between both Glasgow clubs, it seems to be a case of, “If you think you behave farcically, then just look at me.”

With Celtic, its a case of let’s do our best to handicap an elite manager, and ensure that he leaves the club because he’s making us look like fools.

His ambition is getting out of hand.

With the Ibrox side, its a case of let’s give a manager millions to spend on EFL lower level dross, and hope that while he’s at it, he can change the culture of the club, all while realistically challenging Celtic.

Yet to date, he hasn’t even managed a League win.

I’m not sure which is more farcical.

The fact that the Ibrox side has backed their manager all the way, or the fact that our board won’t?

The Hamza Igamane farce is just another example of how out of their depth the Americans and Russell Martin actually are.

After Sunday, if Celtic win, its going to be a case of shit of bust for them.

Even if they somehow manage to beat us, realistically, it will only be a stay of execution for Russell Martin.

Because two weeks later, they’ll probably drop points to Hearts again at Ibrox.

That’s just the way it is over there.

Martin has already lost the dressing room.

The players might raise their game for the visit of Celtic, but that’s only because they won’t want to be seen to capitulate to us.

Inferences by Michael Gannon in relation to what Walter Smith might have done to Hamza Igamane are pointless.

Because the club he managed no longer exists.

You can’t even say, look how far they’ve fallen since then, because they haven’t.

It isn’t the same club.

It might cling desperately to the same culture in the stands.

But it has never had a culture of winning since it came into existence in 2012.

Only a culture of being serial losers.

Which it will never shake off until it stops trying to emulate the dead club.

The Americans and Russell Martin probably naively thought they could change that culture.

And I have no doubt they understood it would not be easy, but I doubt they imagined it would be as disastrous as it has been since the season commenced.

And as shit as the Ibrox side is, the behaviour of our board is even shittier.

They get away with the way they behave because in reality, since 2012, we have never really been challenged.

In the single season we did face a challenge, it all came apart at the seams.

The mask fell off our board, and they were really shown up for what they were.

Utterly clueless in the face of a real challenge.

Their best response?

We’ll do a mid-season review.

By which time our season had fallen completely off the rails.

And the absentee landlord gave the fanbase the middle finger because we dared to demand better.

So yesterday, the Hamza Igamane saga was just another facet of the shitshow that is Ibrox.

A shitshow that the Americans and Russell Martin have lost complete control of with the season not yet four League games old.

We could effectively kill off any challenge from them next Sunday.

That isn’t good for the Scottish game, and it certainly isn’t any good for Celtic.

It lets our board off the hook.

But I don’t think that’s going to wash any more.

The inaction of this summer’s transfer window has opened too many eyes.

The draw against Kairat Almaty has changed too many attitudes now.

Attitudes that won’t be reversed.

The Ibrox side might be farcical right now, but our fans now know we are too.

ZERO AMBITION

NEGLECT TEAM

BASIC BOARD

The truth hurts.

We need to face it, just as the Ibrox side needs to face theirs.

Who will do it first?

Renewal is coming…