The Sacrament

 

The Sacrament

Well, that’s another year over and for those who follow Celtic it has been a strange mixture of wins and worry, of trophies and tribulation. 2025 began with the team well in control in the title race but slipping to a 3-0 defeat in the derby match. The team then won ten domestic games in succession to surge towards the title and put up a decent fight against Bayern Munich in the Champions League. The team wasn’t always firing on all cylinders as the spring arrived but nonetheless were expected to win the cup final with Aberdeen and complete another treble. Celtic trounced the Reds 5-1 at Pittodrie two weeks before facing them at Hampden and in retrospect that may have fed the notion that they were certain to win the cup. As we all know, Aberdeen parked the bus at Hampden in a show of defensive defiance, and doggedness the likes of which has not seen since the Zulus attacked Rourke’s drift in 1879. Celtic seemed to run out of ideas and stumbled towards a penalty shoot-out, which, with an almost fatalistic sense of history, they lost. Few could begrudge the dogged Dons their moment of glory but it really was one that got away for Celtic.

The following season began with the team failing to defeat Kairat Almaty in the Champions League play-off match and suffering yet more penalty shoot out misery. For many fans, this result, coupled with the down sizing of the team hurt. How could a club with £70m in the bank allow the side to decline so quickly? Good players left and were not adequately replaced. Stalwarts were out injured, adding to the problems and the manager was clearly hinting in interviews that didn’t feel the club was supporting his in the manner he wanted. With the fans increasingly feeling ignored and patronised, it all came to a head at the end of October when Brendan Rodgers resigned. The club’s response was curt and ungracious…

‘Celtic Football Club can confirm that football manager Brendan Rodgers has today tendered his resignation. It has been accepted by the Club and Brendan will leave his role with immediate effect. The Club appreciates Brendan’s contribution to Celtic during his two very successful periods at the Club. Brendan leaves Celtic with our thanks for the role he has played during a period of continued success for the Club and we wish him further success in the future.’

Worse was to follow when the club’s biggest shareholder, Dermot Desmond, used the club’s website to launch a barbed critique on why Rodgers quit. Rodgers was accused of misleading fans over his contract talks and the club's transfer business and it was claimed in the article that Rodgers was "divisive" and had "fuelled hostility" toward the board and executive team. Desmond suggested Celtic's recent struggles were down to "one individual's desire for self-preservation" Amid the backdrop of increasing fan protests, which have called for the board to be sacked, Desmond blamed Rodgers for "contributing to a toxic atmosphere" at Celtic.

It was explosive stuff and as sections of the support were in open rebellion against a board they saw as overseeing an almost managed decline in the team, the hunt was on for a new manager. With Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney doing a good job as the interim management team, there were many who thought that they should be allowed to lead the team for the rest of the season. He had steadied the ship, organised the team in a manner suited to their abilities and if they weren’t in the same class as the team O’Neill built 25 years ago, at least he had them confident again and winning. The board in their wisdom pulled the plug though and brought in Wilfried Nancy from the American league. Most fans were willing to give the Frenchman a chance, but rather than stick with O’Neill’s pattern of play, Nancy immediately reverted to a back three. Without injured defensive first team players such as Johnston and Carter Vickers, the team looked confused and ill at ease with the system and began to leak goals at an alarming rate. Hearts came to Celtic Park and won 2-1 in his first game in charge. It wasn’t the tactical master class from Derek McInnes that some claim as Celtic missed some good chances to take something from the game. It was, however, clear from the Hearts’ goals that the defence was struggling. Next up was a very good Roma side who defeated Celtic 3-0 in a match they seldom needed to get out of third gear to win. Alarm bells were ringing though and fans began to question why the manager was playing ‘round pegs in square holes’ when it was obvious the team wasn’t coping well with his tactical demands. The league cup final with St Mirren followed and it seemed the time to switch to a more traditional set up as the Saints are a big, awkward side to play against. In fairness to St Mirren though, they brilliantly exposed Celtic’s defensive frailties and defended well to deservedly win 3-1.

No previous Celtic manager had lost their first 3 matches and it was with some trepidation that the side headed to Tannadice to play a Dundee United side that hadn’t beaten Celtic in 11 long years. Celtic started well, took the lead and missed some easy chances to kill the game off. However, when United equalised there was a nervousness about Celtic which saw them go into their shell and eventually lose the match. It had been a horrendous start to Nancy’s managerial career at Celtic Park. It seemed as if any team with a good tactical nous could exploit the spaces down the sides of Celtic’s back three. To play that system, a team required three good, pacy centre backs and wing backs who can get up and down the line well. O’Neill had that a generation ago with Didier Agathe and McNamara flanking the likes of Valgaeren, Mjallby and Balde. Nancy doesn’t have players of that quality today.

Celtic did defeat Aberdeen and Livingston in their next two matches. In the Aberdeen game they should have been out of sight at half time and yet found themselves at 1-1 with ten minutes left. Two late goals won the match but in truth Aberdeen played poorly. Livingston having won just 1 SPFL match all season managed to exploit Celtic’s leaky defence and in an extraordinary start to the match had the game tied at 2-2 after ten minutes. Celtic eventually wore them down with the help of one of those fortuitous penalties the VAR system doles out now and then, but the fans remain unconvinced with the manager’s style of play and tactical know how in a league he is new to. The match at Fir Park earlier this week seemed to confirm that any decent, organised team will give Celtic trouble. The alarm bells were ringing loudly after that toothless, confused display. Two wins in seven matches is unacceptable at a club like Celtic and Nancy is feeling the pressure.

So next up is the Glasgow derby with a Rangers side who are grinding out results and have had the rub of the green via recent VAR decisions. They’ll know of Celtic’s defensive set up and be out to exploit it. This match has great significance for Celtic which goes beyond a mere 3 points. The intensity of the rivalry and the ongoing split between the board and sections of the support mean that defeat could turn discontent into something much stronger.

I was chatting to a fellow fan on WhatsApp about events at Celtic Park in recent times and what the manager needs to do to turn things around. He responded with one of those darkly, unintentionally funny typos which made me laugh out loud. It read, ‘Wilfried might not be on the last rites just yet, but he has had the sacrament of the dick.’ Even in these troubled times for Celtic, we had to laugh at that one.

So welcome to 2026. Strap yourself in as I have a feeling it’s going to be quite a ride.