Craig Levein wants Celtic to join the EPL and donate £50m a year to Scottish football.
The former Scotland manager is becoming increasingly eccentric in is views after finally being dumped from his role as Director of Football at Hearts. Since then the Tynecastle club have hardly looked back with success on the park and in the balance sheet.
With 26 wins and one draw from 28 SPFL matches Celtic could be on course for a record breaking season but it seems that that level of performance is causing some distress.
Just two seasons ago Celtic won 22 of their 38 matches. A new manager was appointed, the transfer focus switched with the results clear to see.
It is unrealistic for Hearts or Aberdeen to think about signing players like Cameron Carter-Vickers but there are teams from Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, Cyprus and Bulgaria still involved in the UEFA Conference while Hearts, Dundee United and Motherwell look in from the outside.
Explaining his masterplan in the Daily Record, Levein reveals:
Since David Murray took over at Rangers in the late 80s and Celtic kept pace with them then things have been so difficult for the other teams to be as competitive. Even before that, in the early 80s, when clubs decided that the home team would keep the gate money – that was when there was a significant advantage for the bigger clubs. And, to be clear here, you can’t argue with that decision because it’s their supporters and their money.
Joe Savage wants to split the Old Firm and that’s great. It’s a good ambition to have. But having that and making it happen are two completely different things.
My views are very straight forward – when the next financial crisis happens in the Premier League in England and they are looking for something different then I would absolutely drive the Old Firm down there myself.
I would love the two of them to play in England and represent Scotland, get the money that’s associated with that which would allow them to grow and be competitive in that league.
And at the same time if they both gave the teams in Scotland £50m a year, so a combined £100m, for allowing them to move down there then that would allow the Scottish game to grow immeasurably.
It’s a bit of a pipe dream maybe. But I can’t see any other way of Scottish football being as competitive as everyone wants it to be.
If the Old Firm were playing in England and paying for the privilege – and they wouldn’t miss £50m each – then all the other teams up here could raise their levels significantly.
Then you have a level in Scotland where you could have seven or eight clubs challenging for the title. Scottish football would thrive.
Levein currently has a consultancy role at Brechin City and is a regular expert on Radio Scotland.
Craig Levein is a Balloon! This from a guy who played without a striker, Jesus, he doesn’t even know football by doing this. Can you imagine saying that a company should give it’s competitors money because they are not as big?
Heaven forbid he said to Hearts that Edinburgh isn’t that much smaller than Glasgow so should be doing more to attract more fans and therefor more revenue and commercial interests.
The answer to his suggestion should be the same answer to the question “would any Scottish fan want Craig Levein back as Scotland manager”?
Which is a resounding “No Piss Off Craig”!
Why would Celtic or ‘rangers’ hive the rest of Scottish football £50m..??? By doing that they would be at a massive disadvantage financially to smaller clubs than them in the EPL..also..who needs permission to leave??…pay Scottish football clubs to allow them to leave …?? Are you serious?….total clown of a man
If the EPL place was achievable then Celtic wouldn’t be in it long giving away £50M.
Levein seems to have transfered his in depth knowledge of football finance to the same level as the tactic of playing with no striker.
Why is the gap between the top and the rest only an issue when Celtic are at the top. I don’t recall Levein or anyone else talking about this when old rangers were cheating their way to titles. But Celtic get their act together invest and improve and now it is a major problem. And his genius plan ‘sod off the England but pay half the telly money to the rest of us and play in the EPL on half the money the other 18 teams are on. Or maybe only Celtic will need to stump up as he would allow new rangers of whatever to keep the whole amount. What an absolute tool. Pay to leave and then handicap yourselves in your new League. Tosser.
In an ideal world it kind of makes sense,but it is just never going to happen,he is right that they could afford to give 50 million from the riches they get in the EPL but it is indeed a pipe dream.
If these clubs didnt chase these ikids away when they were young with theyre bigoted songs more would support them giving them more fi ance it would spread fthe money around l blame the schools
NURSE!
Probably the most ludicrous thing I have heard all season. Most likely illegal too.
It seems a theme though to get a couple of quid when the limelight has faded and you are not on the telly any more that you can make the craziest of statements and you are suddenly relevant again for half a day. Charlie Nicholas does it often as do some other irrelevants.
Scottish football would fade to the standard of the Irish league without Celtic or them. There would be an uptake on SB’s for the other teams but nothing of significance. One thing he fails on is population size and the travelling fans attracted to Celtic and rangers who bring in tens of millions to the Scottish economy each season as well as to these other clubs.
This conversation only crops up when Celtic are playing great football. Next season when rangers have half a squad and need to invest should be the time these other so-called large clubs should be looking for an advantage.
Funny how the corrupt sfa need celtic to facilitate their unrealistic moronic dream
No wonder Brechin City were relegated from the SPFL if that’s the sort of advice he’s dispensing to them. It’s not so much a ‘pipe dream’ as the sort of crackpot idea you have after smoking a pipe – a pipe full of strong hallucinogenic drugs.
Yes, we should leave – and then give the clubs who hate us so much a vast chunk of our increased earnings…definitely. Great idea Craig.
May’be if the home fans turned up to games instead of just the 2 from glasgow ( we are not the old firm ?) then it would generate more money to that club .
I wouldn’t get into a car with a wierdo! Fecht Cailte a Craig!
Sounds a wee bit like early dementia.
Is that the teams who are loaded enough to restrict away fan tickets.
Fk the teams that fk themselves and fk genious Levein.
I had to read that shit again.
Still confused. This Levien guy is a fkn screwball.
Going to read it again.
A fantasy story for the kids comics.
This guy is now at the stage where he needs to be put in care.
His faculties are diminishing fast.
Can you imagine if Swansea or Cardiff were asked to contribute 50m to the Welsh football authorities for the privilege of playing in England.
With Levein talking shite like that he could be the long lost love child of Spew Heevins.
with SFA the way it is and rfs crooked if celts went doown south they would need money to compete there so no kickbacks for sfa didband sfa and scots footy a lot better