Jullien tries to reach out to fans as horror run takes its toll on Celtic star

By Euan Davidson

December 2, 2020

Christopher Jullien has spoken about the “pain” he feels for his team-mates following fan protest outside Celtic Park.

Police clashed with Celtic supporters at Parkhead following Sunday’s meek capitulation to Ross County, with 3 police officers suffering “minor” injuries.

During Celtic’s pre-match press conference ahead of a tough game in Milan, Jullien said:

“I just feel a little bit of pain for my older teammates who’ve been there for a long time. For 9 years they’ve done a really good job and I just feel a little bit of pain for them. But this is how it is.

“It’s football. Sometimes when you don’t have the wins, the fans aren’t going to be happy. It’s something I accept from the club I was at before, I know that when you don’t have the results, fans can be angry.

“I still think that we have so much in front of us, and we can fix it by being unified, being Celtic and just improving, winning every game after that.”

Jullien, McGregor and Duffy v Ross County / (Photo by Alan Harvey/SNS Group via Getty Images)

“Keep trusting”

Jullien added:

“We just [have to] keep trusting ourselves. We know that we are not in a good place right now. Working together, working hard, working more on the field, finding solutions on the field… it’s going to be better next time.”

“Football is about the two boxes. Right now, we are not efficient in the two boxes, and that’s what has cost us.”

The Frenchman can’t be blamed for much of Celtic’s woes this season.

Injured in September, the former Toulouse man has only just come back from a spell nursing a back injury. After appearing in the last two fixtures, Jullien is “a doubt” to star against Milan, at least from the start.

While media duties at big clubs are often subject to a rota system, it appears to make little sense to have had Jullien answering questions today.

He cut a frustrated figure during his press conference, and seems genuinely mystified by Celtic’s downturn in form.

If he and Celtic can begin to recreate the performances of last season, specifically against Lazio and Rangers in 2019, then fans will have more positive songs to sing.