The Celtic board remains under intense fan scrutiny.
Despite agreeing to a meeting with Celtic Fans Collective on Monday after being urged to by Brendan Rodgers, there is still plenty of work to be done for the board’s relations with supporters.
A desperately disappointing summer transfer window which saw an under-equipped squad crash out of Champions League qualifying against Kairat Almaty pushed many fans’ patience to a breaking point.
After numerous stadium protests by Celtic fans, the board addressed the situation with various statements, but the meeting on Monday showed that many fans remain far from happy.
Now, one broadcaster has offered his solution for the situation, naming the only way that fans can make the board act.
Peter Martin on Celtic board vs fans situation
It’s been said that the Celtic fans and board want the same thing, which is for Celtic to win. But winning isn’t the issue. It’s the strategy.
The safety-first approach of the club in the transfer market prevents the club from being more competitive on a European level, despite vast resources.
Dialogue between the club and supporters can’t be a bad thing, but early signs are that it isn’t yet promising to lead to any positive change.
For Peter Martin, speaking on PLZ Soccer, the only way that fans can cause change is clear.
Martin said: “Clearly a number of people are quite critical of Celtic and their attitude towards the criticism that has come their way.
“But nevertheless, whether the Celtic supporters increase their anger by more displays, more shows of unrest, whether it’s tifos or it’s not buying tickets…
“Not buying tickets and not buying merchandise is the only way that this board on their bonuses react.
Not buying tickets is understandably a no-no for many fans – but desperate times call for desperate measures.
The biggest issues with the Celtic board situation
We all know that football clubs are ultimately accountable to their supporters, but in literal terms, Celtic’s position as a public limited company means that they are only truly reliable to their shareholders.
Of course, many of these shareholders are supporters, but not all of them. If they are happy with their dividends, the board are technically fine.
That’s where fans’ pockets come in. If the money going into the club decreases, then the club (in theory) have to take supporters’ feelings into greater consideration.
But Dermot Desmond is the club’s minority owner, and he isn’t short on cash. As fruitful as we hope these meetings will be, nothing is really changing unless Desmond’s mind does.
