The public presentation of the Celtic non-board seems to be “Crisis? What Crisis?”
Readers of a certain vintage will see the connection between the title and the question.
The winter of 1978-79 saw a confluence of trade disputes that indicated that Britain, as a functioning society, was breaking down.
When local authority gravediggers in Liverpool walked out of pay talks, the dead were unburied.
It was the story that summed it all up.
However, Prime Minister Callaghan, returning from a summit conference in the tropics, looking tanned and relaxed, appeared not to agree that there was any problem.
When he told the assembled hacks, “I don’t think other people in the world would share the view that there is a crisis”, the Sun ran this headline:
It was a PR own goal worthy of a Celtic AGM.
Dear reader, that’s what happens when the powerful are out of touch.
What the current regime at Celtic now faces hasn’t been a surprise to those who buy the season tickets and purchase the seemingly unending succession of club-branded merchandise.
Nor has it crept up on the manager.
Some time ago I was told of a free and frank exchange on the night of the debacle in Austria.
My information is that the man who took on EBT FC 25 years ago said quite clearly to those in the room that recruitment failures had produced one more Champions League failure.
The ruling monarch then angrily told people to, in effect, ‘get on with it ’ regarding the gaps in the squad.
Cue the frantic 48 hours of loan deals being crammed through the door.
Rather late in the day, of course.
I’m told that he also issued a fiat that there would be a sit-down during the international break to find out what went wrong.
Of course, at that moment Celtic were still in the Premier Sports Cup.
I have written here many times that, given the current resource landscape on Planet Fitba, only Celtic can stop Celtic.
Consequently, it is boardroom complacency rather than rivals that are the main threat to the Parkhead club’s dominance.
Will Celtic still be champions of Scotland on the 60th anniversary of the club’s finest moment in the heat of Lisbon?
I’m told that the board, via the Celtic Foundation, is planning a golf outing at the Palácio Hotel in the Portuguese capital to commemorate the immortal Lions.
All very corporate.
Some might say that’s tone-deaf, worthy of Sunny Jim.
I, of course, couldn’t possibly comment.
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I contacted Celtic SLO John Paul Taylor in March asking if there would be a special match to mark the 60th anniversary and or some sort of celebration in Lisbon and was told, too early to say what might be happening. Celtic have now put money first – Oasis at Celtic park for the 5 days next May, so no chance of celebrating at Celtic Park, unless its the week before or after the actual date. I guess its will be up to the supporters as usual to organise festivities themselves. I’m off to Lisbon for 25th May.
James,
He’ll be at the Dunhill next month.
Down with that sort of thing.
A golf outing to commemorate a football match: it is beyond parody, almost as much as yet another sit down to discuss what went wrong.
They’ve had that many sit downs to discuss what went wrong in recent years that our aged Board must be in need of knee replacements.
To paraphrase an old joke: How many sit downs do Celtic need to identify the bleeding obvious?
Answer: It doesn’t matter as long as there’s good reception on the golf course.
I wouldn’t be surprised if Martin walks, his health doesn’t look great and he doesn’t need the hassle, he was promised the same level of players that have left he’s been let down badly. The team is struggling with a practically non existent mid -field defence is hardly up to the mark as Europe told us, I fear the next game is going to be another hammering.
Lawell and Allison replacements appointed, surely the focus is not shift more merchandise?
I love Martin O’Neill as I love very few other public figures.
But if he offered that as a defence of his own performance at LASK, then that is not credible, and no one who cares for his reputation should be making that public.
His team was four goals ahead with an hour to go. Huge amounts of money had been spent. The players he insisted were ‘crucial’ (the captain, AJ, all three of the CBs who started against Rangers yesterday…) had not left.
It is his fault.
He is a great of our club and he delivered a league title last season in frankly desperate circumstances. So, I am not in favour of sacking him regardless of the situation (there are worse things on earth than not winning the league).
But, the club bringing in a 73 year old man who had spent the last six years on the British after-dinner and punditry circuit, mocking all modern football concepts, could only ever have been a short term move.
Good idea James . Time is coming to mobilise the troops .
I might actually travel along with others to that golf trip to get the message across to DD and co that their leisurely GOLF outings are not what our club was formed for…and ensure the press is there to witness the protest if we can organise large numbers.
That would upset the man who THINKS he owns celtic….and of course, I couldn’t possibly conclude it would be a peaceful round of golf for the men from the high towers