What will life at Celtic next season look like under the current regime? You be can be guaranteed it’ll be a hell of a lot worse than it is now…
Eric Knott 
(Action Images via Reuters/Jason Cairnduff)
Since last Sunday’s result at Dens Park, Celtic fans are now looking for scapegoats.
The reality is that since then, anybody in an authoritative role is now fair game.
Whether we like it or not, our club has entered a period of serious conflict.
The board has engaged in a conflict against the fans.
And the fans are split about who they want to blame for this mess.
For someone like myself, as far as I’m concerned we’re in this mess because of the board.
However, I’ve been predicting this for a long, long time now.
I’ve received a lot of flak for that over the last few years, but now a good proportion of my readers seem to understand where I was coming from.
Ultimately, though, in every conflict there will always be confusion.
Many Celtic fans cannot understand why we are where we are.
Because we have to respect that there are a lot of Celtic fans out there who were, before all of what’s going on at the moment kicked off, happy with their lot.
They were happy to lord it over the club across the city, and they were entirely satisfied with domestic dominance.
Europe was seen as a big adventure, but there was never much expected from it.
We have to accept that part of the current generation grew up accepting that because they knew no different.
A 25 year old Celtic fan today would have been 12 when Rangers 1872 died.
The club they see today playing out of Ibrox is what they’ve grown used to seeing.
They didn’t live through the 90’s and the pain we had to endure like my generation did, so its hard for them to comprehend why my generation, and pretty much the one after that, are the main thrust behind the current protests against the board.
We saw how Celtic was changed forever as we entered into the 21st century.
By the Uefa Cup final in 2003, we believed our club was going to go from strength to strength.
Instead, over the 23 years we have lived through since then, our club has experienced the managed decline which brought us to where we find ourselves today.
With effectively the same people in charge of the club for that entire duration.
Whether we like it or not, there IS a divide now amongst the fans.
In fact, whether we like it or not, there are still fans out there who believe the board are doing a good job.
This is because they’ve known no different.
Its because this has been the way the club has done things for the majority of many of the fans’ lifetimes.
But the fact of the matter is, on the back of last summer’s disastrous window, and the failure to qualify for the Champions League, there is now a huge chunk of the fanbase who simply want better for their club.
As I alluded to earlier in the article, the fanbase is looking for scapegoats.
The majority understand we are where we are because of the actions of the board.
But the minority, and remainder of the fans who still pledge loyalty to the board, want to blame the manager.
And this is where the division lines have been drawn amongst the fabase in it’s entirety.
The board wants to sow division because they see a fully unified fanbase working against them as a massive threat.
Right now, the majority of the fanbase wants this board gone, but not the entirety.
And as long as this is the case, it gives the current Celtic board oxygen they do not deserve.
As we discussed on our podcast last Monday night, its easy to blame Brendan Rodgers when things are not going well on the football front.
Its easy to wish him gone.
And for those that do, their wish will be granted by the end of this season.
But you cannot lay all the blame on his doorstep without looking at what brought us to this juncture.
Just think of where we’d be right now if the board had actually backed his vision?
If they had looked at the pinnacle that was Munich last season and decided that they really wanted to build on that?
Instead of tearing it all down?
Just imagine if they’d offered him a new contract in light of that achievement in return for taking us to the next level?
Two things.
A new contract.
And full backing in the transfer window to ensure we were well prepared for the Champions League qualifiers.
If those two things had happened, we would be in a completely different place right now.
In fact, I challenge any of you out there to tell me how we wouldn’t be?
After last Sunday’s result, there are many fans out there calling for Brendan Rodgers to be sacked.
For those fans who wish that, I’d suggest you be very careful what you wish for.
Because if that was to happen, the alternative doesn’t bear thinking about.
Would you want John Kennedy as interim manager for the rest of the season?
Because judging by this board’s past behaviours, that’s a very distinct possibility.
In 2021, Kennedy was given a chance to prove what he could do after Neil Lennon was sacked.
He proved nothing.
But I wouldn’t put it past the board to trust him to step into that role again.
I’m not saying its going to happen, I just wouldn’t rule it out.
Right now, that’s the worst case scenario for this season.
I feel that with Rodgers in charge, we at least still have a chance of having a successful campaign.
Without him, we have none.
And I’m fully aware that the next three domestic fixtures are pivotal in all of that.
However, once this season comes to it’s inevitable conclusion, we have all pretty much accepted that Brendan Rodgers will be gone.
So, I’ve laid out the worst case scenario if Rodgers goes during this season.
I believe its unlikely, but sometimes its never any harm to discuss what might happen if the worst came to pass.
Once Rodgers is gone, though, if our club remains under the control of this board, the future is bleak.
If you thought it was bad now, prepare yourself for a hell of a lot worse next season.
We will most likely be given somebody like Sean Maloney, sweetened with something like Callum McGregor as Player Assistant-manager/captain.
Honestly, nothing would shock me.
Damien Duff wouldn’t even shock me.
These guys do not have an imaginative bone in their bodies.
Just look at the 21st century appointments up to this point since Gordon Strachan’s departure.
Tony Mowbray, Neil Lennon, Ronny Deila, Brendan Rodgers, Neil Lennon, Ange Postecoglou, Brendan Rodgers.
All risks they lucked out with, with the exception of Brendan Rodgers, and of course Tony Mowbray was a complete failure.
And somehow, they’ve managed to sabotage Brendan Rodgers not once, but twice.
If you think this leadership has the ability to land a serious manager next season, I’d suggest you think again.
It is a virtual impossibility.
Why?
Because any serious manager who is interested in coming here will look to speak to the man who was here before.
And Brendan Rodgers will tell them exactly how things operate at Celtic.
When he does, they will run a mile.
The board won’t want a serious manager anyway.
They won’t want to be told what to do.
This board does not want to be instructed by anyone.
They want to control everything.
As we discussed before on the podcast, austerity is already at Celtic.
It has been since Peter Lawwell returned in January of 2023.
Just remember one thing though, NONE of our board experiences austerity at Celtic.
The more austerity they enforce on the club, the higher their salaries become.
A no name manager next season will be part of their continued austerity drive.
They will pay him less, and themselves more.
As long as these men are in control of Celtic, only they will benefit.
Celtic Park will not.
The Celtic fans will not.
The footballing operation, the main reason the Celtic fans go to Celtic Park, will not either.
This is our future under these men.
You can either embrace it and watch our club continue to decline, or join the campaign to get them out.
So if you think things are bad now?
You really, really ain’t seen nothing yet!
Key Takeaways
- Celtic fans are divided in blaming the board for the club’s decline since the last season.
- Some fans seem content, while others demand accountability and change due to recent failures.
- The article highlights a generational gap in fan experiences and expectations regarding the board’s performance.
- Brendan Rodgers faces growing pressure, yet the board’s failure to support him may lead to further issues next season.
- If the current leadership remains, significant decline for Celtic seems inevitable, with a lack of serious managerial options.
Estimated reading time: 7 minutes
Read Celtic. ERIC… f-,£ the board. I want the board gone. we all agree on that. You tell me who BR has made a better player???
Matt O’Riley. Rodgers showed huge faith in O’Riley, who was pivotal in us winning the title in 2024. Nicolas Kuhn, who was struggling when he came to Celtic, but Rodgers saw something in him and persevered with him until he found form. Both players were sold for a combination of £42 million. Liam Scales, who arrived back at Celtic after being on loan and fully expected to be sold, instead Rodgers gave him an opportunity to show what he could. Now one of our best central defenders. Daizen Maeda last season, huge improvement, 33 goals and was on the verge of getting his big move to the EPL, except the board fucked that up for him. As a result, he is now a shadow of the player he was because of how badly messed around he was. His workrate was never in question before Rodgers, but his finishing was poor. Look at how much that improved last season.
Yeah, the manager carries the can, but this is down to the players. It doesn’t matter what tactics and formations the manager plays, this group of players have chucked it, and nothing the manager does will make the slightest bit of difference, they’ll still produce the same dross they have been for months. They are the ‘professionals’ who are far from elite, and need to take a long hard look at themselves, they have been truly woeful, irrespective of what the manager has instructed them to do. The more experienced players especially, McGregor, Shmiecal, Tierney should hang their heads in shame, they have looked amateur, clueless, and lacking in skill and effort.
Not one has looked fit to wear the jersey, except for a couple of the new guys and perhaps Scales, the rest an insult to the colours they wear.
😂😂😂😂😂😂 You have just confirmed that you’re a twat… check the question I asked you about who is a better player currently playing for Celtic that BR has made a better player… O’Riley gone. Kuhn gone. (Both sold by the board) Scales is no better now than he was when he first arrived…. As for Maeda… are you seriously telling me that he is a better player under BR than he was under Ange. 😂😂😂😂😂
Eric
Scotty’s a green hun.
The pro board fuckwits like him try to shift the blame on to Brendan.
You can read them a mile off.
There is a strong whiff of happy clapper off the fuckwit.
What a depressing outlook n life. We might get John Kennedy, we might get Damien Duff, we might get Scott Brown, we might get Shaun Maloney??????
And we might even get Jim Goodwin or
wee Stevie Whatshisname at St Mirren who
would in all probability put on a better show against The Rangers than He of the Elite
As for this talk about Rodgers making players better. It is well known that Kuhn
had teething problems in more way than one and O`Riley was as good a player when
Rodgers arrived as when he left. He certainly didn`t make Kyogo. Hatate, Engels, Idah, Bernardo or Ralston any better. In fact, they got worse, so it`s time
to start facing life as it is not as you would
like it to be.
Regards
The Green Hun Happy Clapper.
This is probably the best piece you have ever done Eric. I agree with you 100%. But may I add something else?
I stand to be corrected here, but if we could just get rid of Lawwell alone, would that not go about 90% in helping us get right back on track? Is he not running the whole show? Is DD not to much interested in his golf to bother about Celitc?
Eric what has happened to my post? First it was up, and now it is taken down. I apologise if I have made a mistake, but I checked and it was there. So what happened?
Sorry Eric it looks like it was my mistake.