Are the walls finally beginning to close in on Dermot Desmond at Celtic?

Dermot Desmond is clearly not a man who is rattled easily, unless of course you throw some tennis balls at him on a golf course.

But if we’re being honest, the only thing that was rattled that day at St. Andrews was his ego.

He then used Celtic as a vehicle to voice his disdain at being made to look foolish in front of his elite cohorts.

On that particular occasion, he was smart enough not to attach his name to ‘a club statement’.

When it comes to his despot dictatorship of Celtic, it is very hard to rattle him.

Because for Desmond, ignorance is bliss.

He has continuously ignored the wishes of the Celtic support for the best part of two decades as principal shareholder.

But has the time come where he can no longer do that?

It seems that we might be closer to that time than we imagine after the events of the last few weeks.

Especially after Charlie Methven’s revelations on ACSOM and The Celtic Exchange

It is clear that Desmond has overstepped the mark when it comes to his authority at Celtic.

What is also clear, is that Methven exposed Desmond’s violation of Rule 9 when it comes to the whitewash granted by the Takeover Panel.

John Hughes published a fantastic article on this subject over on his site, Son of Celtic.

If you really want to know the extent of Desmond’s brazen dictatorship at Celtic, I’d highly recommend clicking the link I’ve provided to John’s article.

It also clearly lays out the consequences of Desmond’s violation of rule 9.

One of the most frequently asked questions by fans is how can we do anything when it comes to the grip Desmond has on the club?

Well, it would appear there is an opening to do something now.

The key to all of this is ensuring that it is done in the correct manner.

It might not get rid of Desmond, but it could set the wheels in motion when it comes to reducing his power over Celtic

Rather than focusing on the technicalities of Rule 9, I’d prefer to focus on Desmond the individual in this article.

Because it’s clear that the walls might finally be starting to close in on him.

I think it’s fair to say that Desmond is now one of the most despised individuals in the history of Celtic’s boardroom.

The mere mention of his name invokes anger amongst the majority of our fanbase now.

His defenders amongst the support are dwindling, as more and more people begin to realise how much he is holding our club back.

He has done damage to Celtic’s reputation that will take a long, long time to repair.

What has emerged from the discourse on Desmond over the last few weeks is one thing.

The problem at Celtic is Dermot Desmond.

That is a fact.

It cannot be disputed.

He controls every aspect of the club.

Despite the fact he is not permitted to do so in his position as principal shareholder.

Throughout his business career, Desmond has rarely heard the word no from anyone

Therefore, he never expected to hear it from anyone at Celtic when took up his 34.9% shareholding.

In Peter Lawwell, he had his consigliere at Celtic.

I’m not going to go down the Lawwell rabbit hole today, but we all know what kind of influence he had on the club.

He was clearly a trusted confidante of Desmond’s.

But in reality, he was just an extension of Desmond, and was paid handsomely to carry out Desmond’s wishes.

As we know, in 2018, he was the highest paid CEO of any football club in the UK.

What is clear more than anything else when it comes to Desmond, is that he is not a true Celtic fan.

Therefore, he does not view Celtic through the prism of a fan like you or I.

Desmond openly admitted he never had any prior ties to Celtic before he was introduced to Fergus McCann as a potential investor by Brian Phelan in 1994

Ross Desmond claims his father grew up supporting Celtic, which contradicts Desmond’s own narrative where he only stated he had a ‘fondness’ for Celtic as a boy.

I think if Dermot Desmond was indeed a true Celtic fan, we would not find ourselves where we are today.

Ironically, Desmond had this to say in 2014 interview on the club website:

The football club is about the fans. It’s a merger between all the players, the coaches, the executives and the fans and we’re all unified in our love of Celtic. So I think a football club without fans is not a football club.

Hard to believe those words came from the man who has caused such huge division at Celtic today, isn’t it?

But in this particular interview, it was his vision for Celtic 20 years from then.

We are now 12 years on from the time he said this:

I see the club getting stronger on the playing field. I see the club being visionary in development internationally and I see the Celtic fans and the club per se, having a partnership that will be a model for all other football clubs.

That worked out well, didn’t it?

Stronger on the playing field?

We are the weakest we’ve ever been in that department.

Visionary in development?

We have gone backwards since 2014, with our stadium and the infrastructure around Celtic Park crumbling around us.

As for the Celtic fans and the club having a partnership that will be a model for all other football clubs?

I’m sure ‘all other football clubs’ are looking at Celtic right now and shaking their heads

Desmond’s 2014 vision for Celtic was admirable, but in truth, it was all a lie.

On the evidence of what we see today, Desmond had no intention of ever delivering that vision.

His final message in that interview for the fans?

Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow.

Well, I think he got that much right.

We don’t stop thinking about tomorrow, unlike him.

But our vision of tomorrow is of a club without the Desmond’s involved in it.

Dermot Desmond has proven over time that he is not a man of his word.

If he was, Celtic would be a much different club today.

Not the clusterfuck it currently is…

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