PAISLEY, SCOTLAND - AUGUST 25: Celtic CEO Michael Nicholson during a William Hill Premiership match between St Mirren and Celtic at the SMiSA Stadium, on August 25, 2024, in Paisley, Scotland. (Photo by Craig Williamson/SNS Group via Getty Images)
Paul Larkin has thrown up an interesting and very believable theory over Celtic’s failed bid to sign Kyogo Furuhashi from Birmingham City.
His story confirms almost every angle of incompetence in the Celtic boardroom, and elsewhere in the club.
Michael Nicholson’s only qualification for the job of CEO is his close relationship with Peter Lawwell.
No other football club would consider appointing a lawyer with a personality bypass as their CEO.
CELTIC AND THE CEO ISSUES
A whole range of skills are required to be an effective CEO, Nicholson only knows how to do things ‘the way big Peter would’.
Late in the summer transfer window we discovered that Nicholson refused to take phone calls from Birmingham City.
A deal had all but been agreed to sign Yang Hyun-jun on Deadline Day. The winger was in Birmingham ready to complete the formalities.
Unfortunately Nicholson wouldn’t answer his phone. The deal was off, Patrick Roberts went on loan to Birmingham from Sunderland. Yang returned to Glasgow.
It seems that Celtic are paying a heavy price for the actions of Nicholson.
On his Substack account Larkin reveals:
We have already seen the fiasco of the Kyogo approach where, because of previous strained relations due to the Yang deal, the board decided to bypass Birmingham City and go direct to the player who initially assumed Birmingham had granted permission.
Once Birmingham City found out they pulled the plug immediately. This was after Celtic had already briefed the media on Kyogo’s imminent return.
Look deep into that and you realise Celtic had no players lined up for January despite the glaring deficiencies in the team and the clusterfuck of a summer transfer window.
Celtic’s favoured media messengers led with the Kyogo return story on Thursday. At Friday’s media conference Martin O’Neill had to put out the line that the player wants to stay on at Birmingham. Highly unlikely.
Larkin has produced in depth books and documentaries highlighting many of the unique issues in Scottish football.
Like others he has discovered one very uncomfortable truth.
Celtic are quite happy with all governance issues in the Scottish game. So comfortable that they are complicit and the last club to ask questions about licensing, Financial Sustainability, referees and other similar matters.
Martin O’Neill will host a media conference on Tuesday during which he is expected to be asked about the lack of transfer business.
The big problem staring us in the face is that they don’t want to spend any money, stop giving them your money
Correct … they don’t want to spend OUR money.
Che you are 100% correct no players will come in this transfer window , that = no trophies this season and because you bad bhoys slagged off the board tut tut that’ll teach you
This is getting depressing. Desmond’s lackeys sitting in the office doing nothing or at best pretending to be busy while really doing what he tells them. Has anybody seen the books with proof of the bulging bank account with our money in It? Coz I’m thinking it could be getting siphoned off into an offshore account. And the Tash might be getting ready to disappear Ronnie Biggs style. Just saying coz I can’t see any other reason for another static transfer window when it’s obvious what we need to do.
I agree with you barna bhoy. It’s there proof of x amount in the bank? Has it been invested in another of dastardlys projects?
Why invest your own money when you can invest the money of the bottom feeders who give you millions every year for nothing in return.
Do not renew your season tickets this March because nothing will change
That’s so crazy / unprofessional that it’s perfectly believable, where our Board is concerned.
And Nicholson’s successor is going to have start building bridges with other clubs,
because our club’s name must be mud amongst many clubs outside Scotland now?
This simply makes future loans / transfers even more challenging to complete?
But, for a club to approach any player directly is totally incompetent. No excuses.
Well – It’s only The Tartan Hoops home kit and maybe a couple of polo shirts…
But that’s around £200 they’ve lost from me because of their actions…
Actually because of their F***in INACTIONS !
Well as we all know celtic should be years ahead of they cheating bastards at liebrox but p.lawwell let the newco sevco fc 2012 catch up to make Scottish football look good and as for the corrupt sfa.spfl not taking their titles our cups away for using EBT SIDELETTERS thats why us fans should ßtop giving money to celtic because they dont spend it they keep for there own pockets so thank fuck i stopped buying my ST and Tops celtic can go to fuck as they’ll won fuck all maybe a title and a cup here and there and i blame that board for selling our best players and buying shite players so its now the newco sevco fc turn to take over for a while just watch this..
martin will get 2 loans and a project
has nobody sussed the reason money isn’t being spent is any transfer money was used for Barrowfield did you actually think they would invest in Barrowfield and the first team
Norwich City a nothing little fixture filler club have just BOUGHT an entire Data Analysis Company headed by an Ex-Arsenal analyst for £ 2m
Smart move as this ensures they cannot assist other clubs and will surely recoup the initial fee quickly – Meanwhile at Celtic we still rely on fag packet ideas & hopeful suggestions, tips from ex players or pot luck from selected agents
Bad enough we are still using 1990 salary guidelines & Transfer ideas or making a Profit on our annual Transfer budgets.
But be very clear a continued failure this season will cost Celtic at least 15-20,000 season tickets, £20-40m CL Income & a lot more in Sponsorship / Mechandising. Once lost it is very difficult to attract back again. The COVID Capitulation was bad enough, deliberate sabotage but NO-ONE will accept a repeat with £77-80m sitting in the bank paying Corporation tax of £ 11m a year !!!!
Now we see MON making similar comments to BR, how long before we hear more car comparisons. If Trusty gets injured and we have only Welsh or Murray (Both well short of required standard) Our season is finished / Kaput
Strachan did the club a favour and stayed an extra season, he got Willo Flood, Now MON has stepped up AGAIN his “Reward” a pitiful recall for Welsh !!!!!!!!!!!! Call them out MON Board put up or shut up and face the real fury or 50,000 fans demanding heads roll at Board level, a couple claim to have been victims of abuse , well that NOTHING compared to the hell on earth that will erupt if this Transfer window closes with another huge profit in the kitty