Neil Lennon is hoping that the Europa League win over Lille can help take the pressure off the Celtic Hierarchy.
Before tomorrow’s match against Kilmarnock the Celtic Trust is organising a protest outside of the stadium, providing their own stewards and marking out socially distant spacing.
Back in the early nineties the slogan of the fans was ‘Back the Team, Sack the Board’ with the promotional leaflet for Sunday’s making it clear that the boardroom rather than the dressing room is the focus of the protest.
An article on Celtic Underground details the failings of the directors up for re-election at Monday’s AGM which includes Brian Wilson (appointed 2005) and Tom Allison (appointed 2001).
Alongside a CEO now in his 18th year in the job it’s easy to see why fans view the board as complacent with no sign of a reaction or plan on the back of three successive failures to reach the Champions League group stage which can boost turnover by 40% alongside multiple footballing benefits.
The process that gave Lennon the job on a permanent basis is also a legitimate cause for concern with Peter Lawwell claiming that no other applicants were looked at which sounds like a dereliction of duty when there was three months between Brendan Rodgers exit and Lennon’s appointment in the Hampden dressing room.
Recent form has been a symptom of the problems at the club, a win over Lille barely changes the overall picture despite Lennon’s plea in The Sun for fans to step back from Sunday’s protest:
I think it has to ease some of it off. I hope that there is a bit of a step back. All this stuff doesn’t help the players. It doesn’t help me or my backroom staff.
We’ve lost one game in the league this season. I know there’s a bit of work to be done to catch up, but there are 24 games left. That’s two thirds of the campaign. There is still so much football left.
We are all working very hard to get back a level of performance and consistency. It’s difficult with everything that is going on. It’s just a little bit of patience that’s required.
I’m all right. Sometimes things can get a bit over dramatic. People tend to blow things out of proportion. It’s not been an ideal situation, but I believe in what we’re doing. I believe in the players as well. There’s a long way to go.
I have been in this position as a manager before and prevailed. I’ve evidence to back it up. It is about passing that experience on to the players. Do I hope things calm down? I can’t control that. It’s a tough audience in Glasgow!”
Following a spirited performance last night, Sunday is actually an opportunity to show support for the team, playing in an empty stadium, and demand change in how our club is run. pic.twitter.com/CQl8uRgc5u
— Celtic Trust (@TheCelticTrust) December 11, 2020
Before the first protest, after the defeat from Ross County in the Betfred Cup, Celtic had won two out of nine matches including an 8-2 aggregate defeat to a depleted Sparta Prague side.
It may be convenient to lump the blame on supporters but before the first hint of protests from fans results had taken a definite downturn with neither the dug-out or boardroom appearing to offer any solutions.
CLICK HERE for information on the club website about directors.
