30th December 2025; Fir Park, Motherwell, Scotland; Scottish Premiership Football, Motherwell versus Celtic; Celtic CEO Michael Nicholson
Chris Sutton has backed the Green Brigade decision to say away from Thursday’s Europa League tie against Celta Vigo.
Sunday’s 7-1 win over Hearts has changed much of the mood around the club with Thursday’s match falling into the must-win category.
Celtic’s attitude to the Europa League has been questioned.
When he announced his squad for the competition Martin O’Neill stated that the SPFL was the priority.
That comment came after Jota, Shim Mheuka were left out of the squad.
So far Celtic are pointless after two matches, losing to Benfica and Ferencvaros. They are sitting in 34th place in the 36 team Europa League ‘group’.
Ten days ago the Green Brigade announced that they wouldn’t be taking up tickets for any cup matches this season.
Sutton told the Daily Record:
The Green Brigade should stick to their guns. I don’t always agree with the way they go about things but I can understand their frustration and the feeling supporters are being ignored.
They are taking the kind of action they feel will force Celtic to take note. They are not alone either. I speak to a lot of Celtic fans who feel angry and frustrated at the lack of ambition shown in terms of Europe. The win against Hearts was a real positive but rattling a couple of domestic opponents doesn’t change anything.
It’s only been a few days since they were turned over by Benfica. Martin O’Neill tried to put on a brave face but Celtic were thoroughly outclassed.
Sunday’s win was much more like it but supporters have been crying out for European success, and they have not been properly equipped to compete at the Europa level never mind the Champions League.
Boycotting big matches like this is a drastic measure but I can understand how they see this might be a way to get the message across.
No fan is obliged to buy tickets or attend any matches.
A Celtic Season Ticket covers 19 SPFL Premiership matches and nothing else.
GREEN BRIGADE OPT TO STAY AWAY
The Green Brigade announcement came after a club statement blamed the Green Brigade and Celtic Fans Collective for the tennis ball protest at St Andrews.
The decision not to attend was based on a number of factors, mainly the treatment that the Green Brigade has to go through.
Tifos are almost a thing of the past with intensive security in place around the standing section which houses the 250 Green Brigade members.
Sunday’s 7-1 win over Hearts will boost interest in the Celta Vigo match.
Last season Celtic suspended the Green Brigade for five months while welcoming the Union Bears to the stadium.
Chairman Brian Wilson came up with a variety of reasons for that suspension before performing a u-turn for the post-split fixtures.
An uneasy peace has been in place since then.
Now, on the back of the tennis balls statement the Green Brigade has decided to take action first rather than wait for another suspension.
During the summer Celtic announced the launch of Celtic Connect to improve relations with fans. No update has been delivered on the progress of Celtic Connect.
Going back to the article earlier when Gough was dishing out advice to the new sevco next big thing heading out the door for LOADSAMONEY,lol even offering the young player his phone number.
Looks like Dick Gough still hasn’t learned his lesson in giving out his phone number to young boys.
One bit of advice to the young player,if he asks to meet up in the toilets in Sauchiehall Street,let the cops know.