Brendan Rodgers was right to defend his players after they were criticised for performing a ‘lap of honour’ after their victory over Rangers in September.
Rodgers’ stern defence of his stars was in response to police claims they prompted a riot from the Rangers fans, as reported by the Daily Record.
An internal Police Scotland memo stated there was a ‘clear link’ between the Celtic players’ celebrations and Rangers fans trying to get onto the pitch.
Rodgers believes the memo is ‘unfair’ to his players who celebrate in a similar fashion after every game.
The Hoops boss told the Daily Record: We show our appreciation and respect for the incredible support we get.
“Our aim is never to provoke or antagonise any support.”
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Defending the club
Rodgers is absolutely correct to defend his players. Celtic have to fight against any notions that they are responsible for the actions of Rangers’ fans.
Celtic have been accused of ‘lacking respect’ for Rangers in recent weeks. This comes in the wake of Celtic potentially not taking tickets for the derby next month.
That would be a horrendously bad call for the Celtic board to make.
However, it was Rangers who started this whole argument in the first place. They reduced Celtic’s allocation in the summer.
Celtic legend Tom Boyd believes it’s because they couldn’t handle watching the Celtic fans party at Ibrox.
It was Rangers who have taken the edge of the greatest derby in world football.
The huge presence of away fans was something that made the game so special.
Furthermore, taking that factor away from the occasion cheapens it significantly.
Next month Celtic will travel to Ibrox with just 800 supporters. Alas, lets hope common sense prevails and the original allocations are reinstated in the new year.