Reality starts to close in on the Celtic board, and we are going to pay dearly for it
The reality of the decimation the Celtic board have subjected our first team squad is starting to become very clear now.
Eric Knott 
LINZ, AUSTRIA - AUGUST 25: Celtic chief executive Michael Nicholson during a UEFA Champions League Play-Off Round Second Leg match between LASK and Celtic at Oberosterreich Arena, on August 25, 2026, in Linz, Austria. (Photo by Craig Williamson/SNS Group via Getty Images)
Fate is the idea that certain events are meant to happen and cannot be changed.
For a while now, I think Celtic has been headed towards a certain fate.
Constant managed decline and and the downsizing of our squad is leading us towards this fate.
It was and it is inevitable that we are headed towards a crisis which is going to cost our club dearly.
The news today that it looks like Kieran Tierney and Kaspar Høgh are likely to be out for up to 4 months due to injury is a devastating blow.
In addition to that, Callum Osmand limped away from Celtic Park yesterday with his leg in a boot.
Our squad has been reduced by 16 players over the course of the summer, with Michel Ange-Balikwisha the latest in a long line to depart the club.
Squad depth is now non-exisitent.
We have recruited just four players in the summer window, one is now out long-term to injury.
What Celtic is looking at before transfer deadline day is barely worth talking about.
Project players with little to no first team experience, and loans with no buy option.
We are in no way ready for an energy sapping season ahead of 60+ games.
We scraped over the line against Falkirk yesterday.
Better teams than them will push us all the way.
I do not doubt that we are going to lose games this season, because it will be impossible not to due to the condition of our squad.
Our first team is the weakest it has been in my living memory, and an extended run of injuries is going to leave us looking at the B team to fill the gaps.
In all the years I’ve been supporting this club, I’ve never seen us this weak.
I do not expect Michael Nicholson to achieve anything of note in the last two days of the transfer window.
If he didn’t achieve anything since last June, he sure as hell isn’t going to in 48 hours.
Reality is closing in on the men in the Celtic boardroom, and as the headline in this article says, we are the ones who are going to have to pay for it.
16/05/2026
I wrote an article on Friday, where I said that a collapse of monumental proportions would be the only thing that would force change at the club.
It seems that they are hell bent on ensuring we are headed toward this fate.
All of the targets we had before last Tuesday night’s shit show are gone.
The board have given up on the ambition we seemed to be showing when there was an assumption the Champions League gamble would pay off.
One thing is certain, the gamble never pays off.
It produces an 80% failure rate.
The current decimation of our first team squad seems to be another gamble the board is taking.
But I get the feeling that this season, they’ve pushed it too far.
We needed a full squad rebuild over the course of this summer, they have instead dismantled our squad.
And at the risk of repeating myself, only purchased 4 players.
Might as well be 3 now, considering the situation with Kasper Høgh.
Reality and fate are inevitable here.
Unless Michael Nicholson somehow miraculously manages to land 6 players before deadline day, we are serious trouble.
13/05/2026
And if the football operation ends up in serious trouble, then the board are going to end up in serious trouble.
Because as I said in my article on Friday, if domestic bliss goes, that’s how they go.
Domestic bliss is the only remaining thing that protects them.
Without it, they are finished because if that goes, the last vestige of patience this fanbase has with their shocking corporate mismanagement of our club goes too.
It’s shredded, and they cannot survive that.
Last season, domestic bliss was 3 regulation time minutes away from going to down the tubes.
We are entering into a season with our squad decimated already.
3 League games in to the season, and we have 3 long term injuries already.
As I stated earlier, squad depth is non-existent.
Martin O’Neill might have performed a miracle last season, but unfortunately for him, the board has now decided that miracles are the standard our 74 year old manager has to deliver.
This is what they do.
They attempt to achieve everything with the bare minimium.
Well, that just isn’t going to cut it this season.
If we end up losing our title because of their utter inability to purchase the players required for our squad, then they are finished.
They will have pushed it too far.
And the fanbase will not rest until they are gone.
They have two days to sort this mess out.
Do you believe they’ll achieve that?
No, I didn’t think so.
Key Takeaways
- Celtic faces inevitable decline due to squad downsizing and injuries, leading to a looming crisis.
- The current squad is the weakest in years, and recent recruitments lack quality and depth.
- Michael Nicholson has failed to improve the squad before the transfer deadline, risking failure in the upcoming season.
- The board’s poor management and lack of ambition could cost the club dearly, with fans losing patience.
- Without significant new players, Celtic risks losing its domestic success and facing serious repercussions.
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I agree with all you said Eric, but how can the fans force change. The board seems to be judged by the financial state of the club by Desmond, we lost the UCL money, but the season ticket £40ish million is banked, the Engles and Maeda money along with other sales is banked. Europa league money is on the way. We were shouting the same song this time last year. The fans are powerless unless they don’t turn up and don’t renew their season tickets next July, but we know those things will never happen. The best we can hope for is a boycott of one game which will still see at least 20,000 in the stands. They have us by the balls. And who knows what is behind this lack of ambition. I am not a conspiracy theorist but something stinks
We need these people out of our club but how do get Desmond out , is it over 30 per cent he has plus he has allies that will back him up . If by losing our domestic dominance is the price we pay to get our club back then I’ll take that . There was according to Brian Wilson going to be a major rebuild . Liar fucking liar .There is going to be a lot of pain we have to take before things get better . That means ripping up the season tickets . Dont spend any money at all . It’s the only way .This Desmond is a sadist . How in the hell have we been so blind that we let this fox into the henhouse