GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - AUGUST 03: Scott Brown arrives ahead of a William Hill Premiership match between Celtic and Dundee at Celtic Park, on August 03, 2026, in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Paul Devlin/SNS Group via Getty Images)
Scott Brown knows which side his bread is buttered on when it comes to Celtic.
He’s playing the game because as a legend of the club, he knows how to play the political game that goes on inside the walls of Celtic Park.
It’s pretty simple really.
We’re going to see exactly how this game is played at Martin O’Neill’s media conference at the weekend.
If you want anything at Celtic or from Celtic, then you must bow at the feet of the God King.
Because it is the God King who decides who gets to enter the court of Celtic, and who does not.
As one of Celtic’s most decorated captains, it is inevitable that Brown will return to Celtic in some capacity or other
That’s just the way things operate under the current regime.
And Brown knows they will continue to operate that way as long as this regime is in control of the club.
Brown is also wise enough to know that there is a distinct chance the Celtic managerial position might become vacant in the coming weeks due to current circumstances at the club.
If that happens, then he needs to have himself in the strongest position politically in the event that an opportunity for employment at Celtic Park presents itself.
Backing the fans after last Saturday’s incident at St. Andrews certainly wouldn’t help such opportunities.
So he’s playing the game, like all smart courtiers do.
And it’s clear, if playing the game involves criticising the Celtic fanbase to advance his own position, then Brown is willing to do that.
But he needs to realise what effect this will have on his relationship with Celtic fans in the current climate
Brown has spoken out negatively about the fanbase before, and it didn’t go down well.
Especially since he inferred that we want the board to go out and spend £20 million on individual signings.
Not many people were happy with his comments back then, and plenty aren’t going to be happy with his latest comments either.
As reported in the Daily Record, he is some of what he had to say about last Saturday’s incident.
The tennis balls don’t help. It wasn’t great. You don’t want that getting outside football.
I’ve had it happen to me. You’ll have had it happen to you as well in the streets, you get called all sorts. It has to be kept (within football). It can’t be every two seconds because the man’s got to live.
If that was them (the fans), they wouldn’t want it to happen to them. That’s the only way I’d judge that.
Contrary to what Brown believes, the tennis balls have helped.
The incident has resulted in the dispute between the fans and the board being highlighted on Sky Sports.
As a result, the current decline at Celtic has been spread to a wider audience.
People outside of Celtic are sitting up and taking notice of what’s happening at our club
And it’s certainly not a good look for Dermot Desmond.
This is what bothers Desmond because when Sky Sports are getting in on something like this, it means he can’t control the narrative.
If Brown thinks it didn’t help, then he’s wrong.
It certainly didn’t help Dermot Desmond.
And as a fan, if somebody threw some Tennis balls at me?
I’m not as thin skinned as Dermot Desmond, I would laugh it off, as I’m sure most people would do.
Just not Dermot Desmond.
Although he did seems to find it amusing at the time, as he was seen to be laughing in some of the photos taken.
But it’s Brown’s next comments that leave a bad taste in the mouth.
I understand the negativity coming towards the board, but they need to merge back together. The fans need the board, the board need the fans, and they all need the players.
Somehow, if there’s a disconnect somewhere, it becomes a hard place to play football, because it’s just negativity week after week.
Fans want change at board level? That’s way above my paygrade. I’d love to sit here and say how that happens and how you can merge it together.
For me, what the board did when I was there, they were brilliant. Peter, Michael, Dermot, they were all fantastic.
These comments show how disconnected Brown is from the reality of the situation.
The board and the fans need to merge together?
Read the room Scott
There is no way back for this board in the eyes of the majority of the Celtic fanbase.
The board have crossed too many lines.
They have made too many empty promises, and told too many lies.
They have given us assurances that they will learn from past mistakes, yet they continue to repeat these mistakes, and further compound them again and again.
Nothing they do or say anymore is taken in good faith.
They cannot be trusted, and when trust is gone between the board and the fans, never the twain shall meet.
There will be no merger.
And if wanting change is way above Scott Brown’s paygrade?
Then best not to comment on the situation at all.
We don’t want or need to hear how brilliant Peter, Michael or Dermot were.
Because of course they were brilliant to Brown, they made him very a wealthy man.
Hence the reason he wants to continue to ride the gravy train.
Meek protestations about Arne Engels, and telling us that they’ve done up the dressing rooms, and ‘they’re making the stadium better’ (they’re not), doesn’t cut it.
So sorry, we’re not going to listen to anything Scott Brown has to say when it isn’t in the slightest helpful.
Lecturing to us about the way we behave, and then telling us that solving the problem is way above his paygrade, is a complete waste of time.
It achieves nothing.
All it has done is show people the game that Brown is playing.
He wants a gig at Celtic Park.
He sees himself as a future manager, or at least part of a future managerial team.
And dissing the board in any way kills that dream.
That much is blatantly obvious.
Key Takeaways
- Scott Brown navigates the political landscape at Celtic, playing the game to maintain his influence.
- His comments towards the fanbase after recent incidents raised eyebrows and may harm his standing with supporters.
- Critics question Brown’s connection to the current fan sentiment, especially regarding trust in the board.
- Many fans feel the board has broken too many promises, making reconciliation unlikely.
- Brown’s remarks appear disconnected from the reality of fan frustrations and the board’s failures.
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