Celtic fans plan to boycott the start of their side’s game at Kilmarnock on Sunday after a number of high-profile supporter groups began mobilising against the club’s hierarchy.
Already perplexed at the lack of transfer activity this summer which culminated in a Champions League play-off defeat at the hands of Kairat Almaty, fans were enraged when the club issued a lengthy statement late last Saturday night defending its position.
This resulted in the Celtic Supporters Association issuing a vote of no confidence in the board and demanding the immediate removal of key decision makers.
On Wednesday, on the back of sending an open letter to directors seeking answers for ‘repeated failures in transfer dealings’, a meeting was held in Glasgow at which groups including the Green Brigade, Bhoys Celtic and the Celtic Trust agreed a plan of action.
In a joint statement, those concerned urged fellow supporters to avoid the start of the game at Rugby Park as part of what they hope will be an escalating campaign for change at the helm.
‘Yesterday evening, a consultation meeting was held with the signatories of the recent open letter to Celtic FC,’ it read.
Celtic fans have not been slow in making their feelings known about the club’s senior figures
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A group of supporters’ associations have now got together to unite in their protest plans
Peter Lawwell and Michael Nicholson will once again be subject to ‘sack the board’ chants
‘The open letter has still to be addressed by Celtic FC despite it representing tens of thousands of Celtic fans.
‘The consultation meeting reflected the second step of acting as a collective fan movement for positive change at our club and was attended by 85 in the room and 175 online. Comprehensive minutes will soon be shared with all signatories.
‘At the meeting, there was an overwhelming consensus on the following points which were compounded by a fan survey of 38,832 Celtic fans in advance of the meeting:
‘To build on the recent “no confidence” votes on the Celtic FC board, seeking the removal of Michael Nicholson, CEO; Chris McKay, CFO; Peter Lawwell, chairman.
‘To build a strategic, escalatory campaign against the Celtic board.
‘To build a democratic and representative fan body.
‘To coordinate a “late entry” protest at Kilmarnock v Celtic to further visualise and vocalise fan discontent.
The failure of Brendan Rodgers’ side to reach the Champions League has been a hammer blow
‘To help progress these points and the fan movement generally, a steering group of volunteers is being assembled.
‘Finally, we would like to thank all who have participated in the process so far.
‘It is natural that there will be a mix of feeling regarding some actions or inaction. However, the most important consideration at this stage is maintaining, building and utilising broad fan support.’
The directors felt the ire of supporters during the first leg of the Champions League play-off against the Kazakhstan outfit, with chants of ‘sack the board’ coming at the end of the goalless game in Glasgow.
Although the team was eliminated on penalties a week later, there was still time to belatedly strengthen Brendan Rodgers’ squad.
But while wingers Michel-Ange Balikwisha and Sebastian Tounekti arrived from Antwerp and Hammarby respectively, Adam Idah was allowed to depart for Swansea City despite Rodgers stating unequivocally that no player could leave unless there was a replacement in the building.
Michel-Ange Balikwisha arrived at the club from Antwerp too late to have a say against Kairat
While Celtic did sign a free agent in Kelechi Iheanacho the day after the window closed due to his release from Sevilla, the move did nothing to quell the anger of the fanbase.
Matters then escalated when the club issued a lengthy statement justifying the way it conducted its business.
The club claimed information reported in the media about transfers was misleading or inaccurate, while stating that UEFA rules on financial fair play limited its ability to spend their significant cash reserves on signings.
This drew derision from many supporters who have watched the quality of the squad regress across the past two transfer windows through the sale of players like Kyogo Furuhashi and Nicolas Kuhn.
Rodgers, who will this afternoon face the media for the first time since the window closed, looks increasingly likely to leave when his contract expires next summer.
