The first question I was asked this morning by a solicitor and non-football fan was, “How much is Brendan Rodgers worth?” I said, “He’s probably earned around £30m over the last 15 years”. “So he has enough to sue, if anything Dermot Desmond said is wrong”, came back. You and I both know, he’s not going to sue. It’s all true. It is also high time Celtic took a direct approach to communicating with the supporters.
Who of us would have guessed that Brendan Rodgers, Brendan Rodgers, the man of legendary impeccable character, would have his “conduct and communication” called into question? How shocked was I to read that Brendan’s assertion about the club were “simply untrue”! Untruths come easier to some than others.
Two players in particular are pertinent to the assertion that Brendan had “full knowledge, approval, and endorsement” of players bought and sold; Kyogo and Nicolas Kuhn. “Sell them” is not what should have been said when offers came in for either player. Brendan has favourites in the squad. Others, not so much.
The first thing Martin O’Neill is likely to do when he meets the squad is put an arm around Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda, and put a call into Cameron Carter-Vickers. Where there are favourites, there are outsiders. Celtic have looked and played like a team divided for most of this year.
This absolute mess was predictable and predicted. On his return as manager in June 2023, I wrote, “Brendan will find a united dressing room, backroom and supporter base. We should all try hard to keep things this way, self-indulgent schisms do nothing for Celtic.” Two years later Dermot Desmond wrote that Brendan’s words and actions were “divisive, misleading, and self-serving”.
Predicted: “Self-indulgent schisms” and we got “divisive… self-serving”. I called it.
The wee-man toxicity that left the club in 2019 was welcomed back to my utter astonishment. Pardon my, “Welcome to Celtic, Brendan” on the day, it was with the best intentions but not entirely sincere.
Martin O’Neill was brought in with a remit to unite the dressing room. A team divided cannot win. Players need to know they are respected. The Honda Civic stuff was not a material comment, merely a public manifestation of what had been the reality at Lennoxtown for a long time.
Celtic has been set back years as a consequence of the decision to appoint Brendan in 2023. I hope the board recognise this, reflect how it came about and on their role in the mess. If you welcome the fox into the hen house, you cannot complain when he eats the hens.
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I always thought BR didn’t like Kyogo. Not personally, rather the way the team had to set up, no high balls, to suit Kyogos style.
In fairness Paul67 has never been happy with BR’s return, barely containing contempt on occasions. The rest of us went along with Brendan, as most of our results were positive. This season is different. I (like most) do not know who is responsible for player sales and purchases, but I do know we should be getting better results with what we have.
In my opinion Dermot Desmond is not the kind of guy to come out publicly the way he did unless he was certain of the facts. Do not underestimate his anger at the Board members being targetted, particularily their familes.
MON and Shaun Maloney should get the best out of our squad in the interm, but we need a top manager going forward. The days of weak huns (and Hearts) are going. No more easy leagues, which is a good thing, stronger squad should reflect well in Europe.
The Chinese curse is upon us, “we are living in interesting times.”
“It’s all true”
Except where it isn’t – like:
“ Every pound generated by the club is reinvested”.
Or
“ We all share the same ambition: to ensure Celtic’s continued success domestically and to achieve further progress in Europe.”
Which contradicts what the CEO and CFO said at the recent meeting with fans where they saw European ambitions met by qualifying – no mention of making progress in that, which was minuted.
Everything else is flannel – Rodgers was clear he’d had discussions about a contract but no formal offer – Desmond said the same thing.
Desmond also says “ They have contributed to a toxic atmosphere around the club” while neglecting to mention the briefing against the manager during the summer or the toxicity following the recent “engagement” with fans groups.
It’s for the best Rodgers has gone, but let’s not kid ourselves that he was the sole, or even key problem at the Club at the moment. We have a Board presiding over a deteriorating team, a deteriorating stadium and couldn’t deliver the Barrowfield revamp on schedule. A Board who despite having tens of millions in the bank doing nothing put the cost of season books up by more than inflation and initially offered EL tickets with no concessions. We found ourselves in this position in the Covid season and here we are 4 years later in the same spot. Our recruitment has largely been poor for the past 10-15 years but for Ange’s first season when a certain someone wasn’t around and McKay (and Nicholson in the January window to be fair) operated recruitment on the basis of improving the team and plugging gaps. The Board are the dead weight on our progress!
This is all a bit messy and unbecoming of a club like ours. DD’s statement is a shocker. We knew relationships had broken down but that is all we knew. Looks like it was Brendan with the board and DD and Brendan with the players ?
I suspect Brendan was brought in and told he would be sacked and the rest of his contract paid up. But he must sign an NDA,
He has told them to shove it and resigned instead. I was a big supporter of Rodgers but the team have been a pain to watch and the quality of play has been abysmal. He had to go. The club was toxic. All self inflicted. All so sad.
I think Maloney is being groomed as our next manager with MON there to guide. Hope I am wrong.
Is Kennedy def away ?
That is a strange one given the breakdown was with Rodgers.
Perhaps now the likes of Bernardo, Trusty and Pusey might get a game under this new regime.
Maolmuirre O Muirgehasa,
Cap doffed .A perfect summation of “The moustache”.
Most of us are squarely on the outside. We have only what’s in the pubic domain and whatever inferences we can draw from that, plus or minus our own take.
Paul67 is the only person I know on this site who has reliable information from the inside. That makes him worth listening to. Whether you like what he says is strictly secondary.
Folk who come on here and dis him on his own space do so freely, but as often as not come across as resentful of Paul’s access and their own exclusion from it.
DannyMcGrainCSC
McKays name on Stock Exchange statement re BR….
Quiz time
If Part II of this article was titled ‘Divisive, self serving and still here’
….to whom would that refer?
The Battered Bunnet on 28th October 2025 12:49 pm
I agree.
Nicolas Kuhn. “Sell them” is not what should have been said when offers came in for either player”
—————–
Do you remember what you did say, Paul? This might refresh your memory:
“footballers are assets to you and me. We want them for what they can do on the field, and we want them to move on when that output drops, or can be improved upon. Man-love has its limits.
Whatever we did with Nicolas, let’s do more of it.”
https://www.celticquicknews.co.uk/the-limits-of-man-love/
I see the usual suspects are on trying to pick a fight with those who disagree with them.
Be back tomorrow pre-match.
🟩⬜️🟩⬜️🟩⬜️🟩⬜️🟩⬜️🟩
I wonder if the mob realise they’ve backed themselves in to a corner.
Taken to its logical conclusion they have to hope Celtic fail.
If O’Neill and Maloney are successful in getting a tune out of this squad, what will it say about the guy they replaced?
Has anyone ever seen TURKEYBHOY and TURKEYBHOY in the same room?
———————-
Aye, and its poultry in motion 👍
It seems a bit odd to me. Desmond and the board wanted BR back even though he’d left us in the lurch. They were obviously keen on him then and willing to forgive his abrupt desertion.
Now they say he’s divisive, lacking in conduct, communication and has created a toxic atmosphere. What changed? He was their choice. They should have some responsibility.
I suppose on the positive side, brendan doesn’t need to worry now about being blamed by p67 for not winning the league given there’s only been 9 games.
Every cloud…
For over two years, we’ve read P67’s constant attacks on BR, a lot of it personal in nature. A lot of it,reflecting very poorly on him.
It doesn’t come as a surprise that once again, accusations are presented as fact.
Get past the froth today, we’ve a minority shareholder using Celtic to settle his scores – I’ve no doubt BR said plenty to him yesterday.
A manager having favourites is just play ground stuff. MoR was clear who he preferred to play under. In any job, people will get on better with some than others. That’s life. But rather than focus on the fact we’ve appointed a 73 year old manager to win us the league, we get big brother like gossip.
Desmond and his board need emptied. The boycott and fan collective are going nowhere.
Mark Fotheringham coming in as a coach is latest rumour.
🤔
Martin O’Neill press conference at 3.30pm
We are where we are, and as you can’t change history (it’s true!) we need to focus our energy on moving forward. So alongside finding a suitable new manager (with Kjetil Knutsen of Bodø Glimt being mentioned favourably) we absolutely need a proven goalscoring striker ASAP.
With the noise around Cluj being keen to cash in on Louis Munteanu at a significantly reduced price after previous unfruitful interest from Celtic, perhaps we should look to get him in ahead of the January transfer window in order to beat off possible competition from elsewhere and get him familiar with his team mates and ready to go from day 1.
His record in a less attacking and less dominant team than Celtic is pretty decent, suggesting that he could certainly deliver 25-30 goals a season for Celtic. And at 23yo he still has his best years ahead of him.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Munteanu
Headtheball on 28th October 2025 1:02 pm
It seems a bit odd to me. Desmond and the board wanted BR back even though he’d left us in the lurch. They were obviously keen on him then and willing to forgive his abrupt desertion.
—————–
When BR came in he said that he understands how the club operates and is willing to work within that framework.
He obviously changed his mind at some point that’s why we started getting the sly digs about the quality of players.
I’m a bit more optimistic about our recovery, although I share Paul67’s worries about a recruitment process thats landed us where we find ourselves
As mistakes go it wasnt the worst but ignoring the obvious risks was poor judgement. You hope that some of the obvious fury in DDs statement last night was born out of frustration with himself.
Strategically it was a disaster, you’d hope that that will play into who we look at next. No more saviours, no more “transformational” managers, hungry head coaches who want to come to Celtic and prove themselves and are prepared to work within the structure we have, not look to change things to suit their own needs.
The squabble about Brendan’s leaving shouldn’t hide that we’re in a bad way. With Brendan, with his excellent record in previous seasons gone the reality of where we are is brought into sharp focus – poor in the champions league, poor in the Europa league, poor in domestic football.
A young head coach might mean we struggle to turn things round quickly but I don’t see why it cant be months rather than years. We’ve done it quicker from a worse position although we had an exceptional guy.
We don’t really have any other option, so let’s get going
Bada – It has been confirmed that Fotheringham has joined Celtic’s interim coaching staff. Or as the Sun call him, Fozzy.
Ran Desmond’s statement through Chatgpt.
Question – Does this statement come across as professional, and does the individual appear to have the best interest of Celtic football club at heart.
Overall Assessment
Professionalism: 6.5–7/10
It’s articulate and fact-based in parts, but emotional and accusatory language reduces its professionalism.
Perceived motive:
While the closing paragraphs do project concern for Celtic’s best interests, much of the middle section reads as damage control and personal defense, not purely a statement of stewardship for the club.
Public perception likely:
Supporters may see it as the club “setting the record straight,” but neutral observers — including media — would probably view it as a public fallout rather than a balanced, dignified communication.
The most embarrassing thing I’ve read since our minority shareholders drunken tirade
When I posted this yesterday at 4.19pm I was only a few hours out :)
If BR woke up tomorrow and decided he’d had enough, do you think our board would:
A. Ask DD who he fancies, ideally with an Irish connection (MoN, NL, BR . . .)
B. Go with what is there (Maloney and Kennedy)
C. Go cheap and with a Celtic connection (Brown)
D. Show ambition and vision and get a European coach with an impressive CV (Knutsen perhaps)
E. Show no vision but splash the cash and offer Ange a return ticket.
My money would be on B or C.
– – – – –
BIGCHIPSUK on 28TH OCTOBER 2025 1:13 PM
Knutsen is a good call, I think his contract is up in December and he’s git exactly the sort of record of developing players that would serve us well
He has had offers from bigger clubs than us in the past so he might go to the EPL and he has a strange deal with Bodo that means he gets a cut off the profits from player sales. Which isnt to say he might not fancy Celtic with a different deal
Where do i find Martin O’Neill press conference?
Sky Sports News best bet,another reason we should have an app,for pressers,tickets etc
A Dermot Desmond masterstroke! You can smell the fear from der hun and rightly so. In one fell swoop our season is back on track. Be afraid unbelievers, be very afraid!
Domestic dominance, ad infinitum. Ave Ave
‘No disconnect between the board and manager’ we were told only a couple of weeks ago. Now we’re expected to believe them?
I suspect that the Chants of ” SACK THE BOARD” will be even louder than before/during Tomorrow nights game v Falkirk ?
I wonder IF Brendan Rodgers will try and SUE Celtic FC for ” CONSTRUCTIVE DISMISSAL” once he gets his lawyers involved ?
I don’t see BR taking legal action.
Suing your former employer doesn’t look good for your CV.
BR will say his piece when he’s ready and he’ll move on to another top job.
Meanwhile the executive that has never worked at another club in their careers will continue in their job for life at Celtic – pouring Desmond his tea.
The Parkhead Faithful
@TheParkheadF
Fan account
🗣 | Martin O’Neill speaking with Jim White on talkSPORT this morning.
https://x.com/TheParkheadF/status/1983129725405978985?t=A10INmlmrEkIOP3Qn6xFHg&s=08
This does not change the fact that we need to modernise the board. The statement should have come out from our CEO.
Another patsy with no guts.
DD is never here and generally doesn’t get involved in the club.
“The first thing Martin O’Neill is likely to do when he meets the squad is put an arm around Reo Hatate, Daizen Maeda, and put a call into Cameron Carter-Vickers. Where there are favourites, there are outsiders. Celtic have looked and played like a team divided for most of this year.”
What does this mean? BR played Reo, Daizen and CCV at every opportunity even when they were not playing well. Most fans I know think Reo should have been dropped weeks ago. Daizen wanted to leave and BR vetoed it – hardly suggesting he was pushing him out the door or treating him as an outsider.
Where will i find Martin O’Neill press conference?
Alas poor Brendan I knew him well….
Where be your jibes now…?
Where indeed? That said we got a pretty good couple of seasons out of him, and only a Maeda miss away from another treble in the Scottish Cup Final. Overplayed his hand this season though, swithering over a new contract and angling for a new club, but it was Brendan that ending up getting hooked. In his self serving (see what I did there) interview with Kelly Somers last week on BBC 1, he said he hoped to manage for another 200 more matches. He may well do but I would be surprised if it is in the EPL, especially if any aspiring club asks him for a reference. Norwich will need a new manager soon, lets see if he can do a Swansea there.
I told anyone who would listen as soon as BR managed to get rid of junior and his efforts at signing players that was the end for him.
It took time but blood is thicker than water so as well as newspapers being briefed the major player would be getting story’s as well !!!!….