Wounded Desmond ready to strike back
Chief football writer and our Monday columnist
SOMETHING unusual happened in Scottish football last month that almost, amid the ongoing outcry over Rangers fans’ title celebrations, the continuing fallout to the Slavia Prague race hate row and mounting speculation about who Celtic were going to bring in as their manager, went unnoticed.
Dermot Desmond, the principal shareholder of the Parkhead club, did an interview.
Well, kind of.
There was no socially distanced press conference at Lennoxtown. No television, radio and newspaper reporters were invited along to grill the independent non-executive director over why the bid to complete 10-In-A-Row had failed so spectacularly. Rather, a Q&A was posted on their official website. It is safe to assume he was quite comfortable with the content.
Still, for a fiercely private man, an individual who makes JD Salinger look like Kim Kardashian at times with the way he shuns the limelight, it was quite a departure.
There are often brief quotes from Desmond attached to statements. When manager Neil Lennon finally departed in February, for example, he paid his tributes.
Every now and then he will chat briefly to Sky Sports at a golf pro-am.
But this was an 815 word article in which he responded to supporters’ queries.
The content and tone of the missive were interesting too. It is often said the softest thing about the billionaire Irish financier is his teeth. However, he had clearly been irked, wounded even, by the fallout to a disastrous campaign.
He took particular exception to a suggestion made by Brian Dempsey, the former director who had helped Fergus McCann to seize control of his boyhood heroes way back in 1994, that he was not a true fan. He described that assertion as “contemptible”.
He also dismissed Dempsey’s appeal for him to sell his stake in the Glasgow club to fans, defended the current corporate structure and hit back at scathing criticism of outgoing chief executive Peter Lawwell and his fellow directors.
Perhaps it is no great surprise the businessman felt like getting a few things off his chest given the relentless abuse that he and others have been subjected to in the past eight months.
Having followers of the club you have invested millions into over the decades and helped bring unprecedented domestic success to, unfurl banners branding you a despot and accusing you of negligence must stick in the throat. His comments suggested he was far from happy.
But whenever that is the case Desmond usually takes affirmative action.
When Celtic lost to Rangers on penalties in the Scottish Cup semifinal at Hampden in 2016 – a defeat that is, nearly five years on, still their last in that competition – a report emerged stating that he was less than impressed with how the Ibrox hierarchy had celebrated the victory.
It was announced the following day that Ronny Deila would be leaving as manager at the end of that term. Brendan Rodgers was soon brought in to replace him. Back-toback Champions League campaigns and four consecutive trebles then followed.
It is no surprise, then, that much has happened since Desmond put his head above the parapets. It was confirmed last week that Nick Hammond, the head of football operations, has moved on to “pursue new opportunities”.
Eddie Howe, the former Burnley and Bournemouth manager, is set to be confirmed as the new manager.
Richard Hughes, the one-time Scotland internationalist, has been tipped to join as technical director.
The appointment of an individual who is, despite the relegation that
Bournemouth suffered last season, held in high regard in his native England and had been widely tipped to land a Premiership job, with Crystal
Palace, Newcastle United and Sheffield United all being touted as potential destinations, will be a coup for Celtic.
It will be a response to the failure that Celtic have suffered on the park this term, a reaction to Rangers deposing them as the dominant force in the Scottish game and an indication they are intent on silencing their critics and reclaiming the Premiership trophy.
Howe will need to rebuild his entire squad if he does take over. Scott Brown is leaving. Kristoffer Ajer, Ryan Christie, Odsonne Edouard, Leigh Griffiths and Tom Rogic could all depart. Elsewhere, Shane Duffy, Mohamed Elyounoussi and Diego Laxalt will return to their parent clubs.
When Rodgers came on board in 2016 he had many talented players at his disposal and only made two major signings – Moussa Dembele and Scott Sinclair.
Howe will need significant funds if Celtic are going to reclaim the Premiership trophy from Rangers next season. But he will not have accepted the position without castiron assurances about the backing he will receive. Money will be forthcoming despite the financial impact of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Desmond is a shrewd operator who will steadfastly refuse to allow Celtic to operate at a loss even if Rangers are prepared to do so.
He is, though, clearly determined for the 2021/22 season to be a vast improvement on what has preceded it and will find a way. There will certainly be no difficulty selling season tickets in the coming weeks. It will be fascinating viewing.