Green Brigade reveal new protest banner at Celtic Park for 5th consecutive day

By Euan Davidson

June 8, 2021

The Green Brigade have put up another banner outside Celtic Park.

Today marks 104 days since Neil Lennon left Celtic. While Ange Postecoglou looks sure to be part of the Bhoys dugout for 21-22, the disappointment over Eddie Howe means nothing is being taken for granted yet.

Lennon, who left in February, recently spoke out against a “new breed” of fans. In an interview with The Times, the former Celtic manager made his objections to certain groups within the support obvious, and while he didn’t mention any by name, you could comfortable surmise that his words were aimed at the Green Brigade amongst others.

Of course, Lennon still hasn’t been replaced. John Kennedy took over as interim boss, but poor performances under the former centre-back ruled him out of contention to keep the job long-term. There is still fierce debate within the support about Kennedy’s role at the club, moving forward.

Eddie Howe, of course, agreed “in principle” to take the Celtic job back at the start of April [Sun]. However, the former Bournemouth manager made a shock U-turn, leaving the board to look at different options. Roy Keane, Rui Faria, Enzo Maresca are all reported to have had talks about taking over, but Postecoglou remains the favourite.

Celtic director Brian Wilson joins the infamous banner list

Today, clearly, the ire of the Green Brigade is aimed towards Brian Wilson. Wilson, a former Minister of State for Scotland under Tony Blair, has come under heavy criticism for his part in the board’s failure to hire a new manager.

Celtic are still without a Sporting Director as well as a manager. There has been significant talk about hiring a Director of Football ahead of pre-season. Like Howe, there was a clear favourite, in Irishman Fergal Harkin. However, Harkin received no offer from the club, and remains a key figure at Manchester City.

The Green Brigade at Celtic Park / (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty images)

For the Green Brigade’s part, this is continued pressure. Fans en masse may not always agree with them. But the facts are that it’s been a laughably long time since the club had a permanent manager in charge. With Champions League qualifiers ahead, either Postecoglou or someone equally qualified really needs to be in place soon.

If it’s delayed any further, we could be in for another long season.

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