What message is Dermot Desmond waiting to hear from his Glasgow investment?
Apparently Celtic’s biggest shareholder is in weekly contact with Neil Lennon, presumably he has similar or more regular communications with Peter Lawwell.
Desmond doesn’t get overly concerned with the day-to-day workings of the club but he does have a grasp on the bigger picture, when something strategic is going wrong and needs fixed.
That moment is now. Things are badly, badly wrong at Celtic. Two old favourites have over-stayed their welcome with immediate and decisive action to be taken.
At Hampden in May Desmond with deep in discussions with his fellow directors after the final of the Scottish Cup before Lawwell popped into the showers then walked in on a media conference to announce that Neil Lennon had been offered the manager’s job on a permanent basis.
Three years earlier at Hampden, legend has it that Desmond took similarly decisive action as no-mark directors from another club gloated over a penalty shoot out cup victory. There was almost another penalty shoot out today.
Having presented a solution in the form of Brendan Rodgers in 2016 that revived the entire club into unprecedented domestic success a personalty clash last summer has returned the club to the position it was in back in April 2016.
An entire revamp is needed starting with the Chief Executive, any changes that leave him in place with his appointments in every area of the club is a waste of time. Whatever the pay off package it will be money well spent, certainly less than the cost of the annual exit from the Champions League.
As Lawwell leaves so too, inevitably will Neil Lennon. With our gratitude. He arrived in our hour of need in February, more than surpassed expectations and deserves our eternal gratitude but not the job of manager as a sign of thanks.
A brand new Chief Executive with an open mind alongside a solid manager can salvage this season, it could turn into a memorable season for the right reasons. If Desmond delays, if he can’t hear the mood music his trip to the Dunhill Cup at St Andrews next month might need postponed.
Losing out to Cluj wasn’t a fluke or unexpected, it’s the fourth time in six years that the club has lost out to unseeded opponents with far smaller resources.
James Forrest bailed the team out a good few times last season, he did it again today but the next 15 days are fraught with danger.
Action is required tonight not tomorrow, Friday, next Friday or Monday September 2. Anything less would be an act of gross neglect, it’s Time for Change. Tonight.
