NOT TO BLAME
Spending £35m proves we weren’t complacent, says Lawwell
PETER LAWWELL last night f l atly r ej ected accusations t hat t he Celtic board have been asleep at the wheel as the bid for ten in a row has floundered.
Despite defeating Kilmarnock on Sunday, Neil Lennon’s side r emain 13 points behind Premiership leaders Rangers, albeit with two games in hand.
Following the club’s failure to qualify f or the Champions League, as well as elimination from the Europa League and Betfred Cup, hundreds of angry supporters have descended on the stadium i n recent weeks demanding change at boardroom level.
Responding to allegations the club hierarchy have been culpable of neglect, Lawwell pointed towards an unprecedented £ 35million i nvestment i n the team as Covid-19 took hold.
Speaking at the club’s annual general meeting, the Celtic chief executive said: ‘ If you go back again to last May, we were crowned Premiership champions for the ninth time in a row.
‘ We have won the treble Treble and, next week, we could win the quadruple Treble. Incredible domestic success.
‘Despite that, in the summer, we strengthened the squad — knowing there is going to be a challenge this year — to a level we haven’t done before.
‘We came out the window with
a very strong squad and we spent as a club — over the previous 14 months, July 2019 to that point — £35 million. ‘We have never spent anything like that in the past. ‘We have strengthened and we’ve kept all our big players, so that is not complacency. And I believe we saw that coming and prepared for that. ‘We are investing in football to take the club forward and in no way were we sitting back being complacent and waiting for things to happen.’ Lawwell says the frustration felt by supporters over a poor start to the season is no different to those in the boardroom. ‘I can fully understand it,’ he added. ‘We are all Celtic supporters here. I can understand the frustration, I can understand the disappointment that, in a big year, we have had such a difficult run over the last eight weeks. And that’s what it is. Eight weeks. ‘I can see that because I am a Celtic supporter myself. I was born a Celtic supporter, I will die a Celtic supporter, my family are all Celtic supporters, so I get it and we understand it. ‘What we are seeing here, particularly in today’s world and social media world, you are seeing accusations that the board are holding the fans in contempt. ‘They are suggesting they are entitled. It can get a wee bit over the top.’ Last week, the board came out publicly to back Lennon after a run of just two wins from 12 games led to calls for his dismissal. Defending the manager again, Lawwell said: ‘Neil’s credentials as a Celtic man are there for everyone to see. His credentials as a football manager are there for everyone to see. He was the man (for the Celtic job) in February 2019. ‘He was the man for it last summer. And we believe he is the man for it just now. ‘He has the trust and confidence of the players. He has the trust and confidence of his backroom and we believe, at this particular time, he is the best man to try and recover this deficit in the league and get us on to ten in a row.’ Yesterday’s meeting was held virtually due to ongoing restrictions, meaning supporters were only able to send in questions for the board in advance. Despite vocal opposition by many fans, five directors, including the absent Dermot Desmond, were safely re-elected. Resolution 11 on the agenda — known as Resolution 12 in recent years — asked that ‘the board takes steps to refer the SFA to UEFA with regards to its licensing practices’. This is a reference to Scotland’s governing body granting Rangers a licence to play in Europe in 2011 when the Ibrox
club had outstanding taxes. Explaining the board’s opposition after the motion was rejected, chairman Ian Bankier said: ‘The board knows this is important to shareholders. ‘Following the conclusion of the court proceedings in 2017, in the light of information made available during those proceedings, the club called on the Scottish FA to hold an independent review of all matters, including the licensing process followed in 2011. ‘The SFA declined to hold such a review. The club remains of the view that an independent review by the Scottish FA is the best way forward but that’s a matter the board can’t control.’