‘Scotland is a laughing stock with no title race’
Former Celtic striker Nicholas says without a resurgent Rangers there is no hope for national side
HARLIE NICHOLAS grew up a Celtic fan in Glasgow and ended up playing for his boyhood heroes in two separate spells. At 55 years old he remains a supporter, even if his refusal to “toe the party line” on Celtic matters has not always ingratiated him with certain people, most notably major owner Dermot Desmond who once reportedly took Nicholas to task for something he had said about his stewardship of the club.
“It was about me saying he was treating the football club like a toy – and after that phone call I believed he’d thrown his toys out the pram,” recalled Nicholas. “Some ex-Celtic players toe the party line but I told him I don’t do party lines. That’s not my style.”
The former striker may, therefore, be in a minority of one among Celtic fans when he reveals a wish for Rangers to get back on their feet for the benefit of Scottish football. Nicholas still lives in Glasgow but most of his media work takes place down south, where Sky Sports colleagues like to rib him about the parlous state of the game.
Celtic have been largely untouchable in the four years since Rangers’ financial demise but that gap has grown even greater this season following the appointment of Brendan Rodgers as manager. Given the prospect of regular Champions League money and potential transfer income on a similar scale, there is more chance of Celtic disappearing off into the horizon than there is of Rangers or anyone else getting close to them again. Nicholas, despite his allegiances, doesn’t think that is good for the game as a whole.
“As a kid coming through the ranks at Celtic, my dream was to score the winner in an Old Firm game,” he said. “That’s my upbringing and nothing’s changed. But I’m also a realist. I work in the media and, although I now work in England and don’t need to sell the Scottish game, I still care passionately about it.
“They laugh at us down there, of course they do. They say “when’s the split coming? When do Celtic get the trophy?” I get all that and I laugh and I make the best of it. However, I’m not enjoying it.
“I just want the edge to come back. In the past two seasons Aberdeen took us to February or March and, although we knew they weren’t going to win, it kept it going. The Celtic fans need