Celtic boss Neil Lennon believes UEFA fines could’ve bought another player

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Neil Lennon has claimed that the total cost of Celtic’s UEFA fines could’ve signed him a new player.

Celtic have felt the need to close the Green Brigade section of Parkhead for tonight’s clash against Rennes (CelticFC.net). This comes after a total of £500k in fines have been dished out by UEFA due to pyrotechnics and illicit banners (BBC).

It’s been a frustrating sight for club chiefs too. Chief Executive Peter Lawwell stated at yesterday’s AGM that his “heart sinks” when he hears certain songs or sees specific banners (Scottish Sun).

Lennon is also backing the club too. Speaking to the Daily Record, he put into context how much money has been wasted on UEFA fines.

“It’s fair to say we could have bought a player for that amount of money. It’s all going to UEFA. The club have taken this action now. We’re hoping it will be a deterrent for that sort of behaviour, but not for them coming into the ground.

“It’s not ideal, but there are rules and regulations the club has to adhere to. Health and safety and so on. We’re all hoping this will be a short-term thing.”

Hopefully this all goes away in the near future

This isn’t the kind of publicity we need to be having at this time of the season. It’s an unnecessary distraction, and hopefully the club and the Green Brigade can hold talks and get to the bottom of this.

Lennon isn’t wrong when he says the fines could’ve been enough to sign a new player. Granted, for £500k you would hardly get anyone of real profile, but he’s clearly frustrated at the club losing money.

This isn’t ideal. The club needs the fans behind them, and this furore has come at a seriously inconvenient time.

Yet, £500k paid out over a fairly lengthy period of time isn’t something to get too upset about. It’s not much of an impact on our transfer budget when you consider some of the player sales we’ve had over the years. Neil’s point is valid, but the Green Brigade have hardly taken a huge bite out of our kitty.

It’s also important to recognise the work that the Green Brigade does away from the football pitch. Only two days ago it was reported that they helped raise almost £18k for their annual Celtic Park food drive (STV). It’s unfair to let that kind of thing go under the radar.

We’re all fighting the same fight here. We’re all big Celtic supporters who want the club to be as successful as it can possibly be. There’s no need for such in-fighting amongst the club and an element of the fan-base.