There are quiet stadiums in football, and then there are moments that make no sense at all. What unfolded in Celtic’s win over Hibernian is something rarely witnessed in the game.
The pre-match build up to the Easter Road clash was centered around Hibs fans wanting their team to lie down to Celtic to help stop Hearts winning the league.
That didn’t unfold on the pitch as Hibs battled with Celtic for the full 90 minutes. But it was what the Hibs support did after their equaliser that left Michael Gannon absolutely speechless in the capital.
How about that, Celtic fans? Three massive points
Kelechi Iheanacho yet again!
The Hibs reaction to equaliser vs Celtic that made no sense
When the Hibs equaliser arrived, the reaction should have been euphoric, but instead it became the defining example of just how strange this was.
Michael Gannon described the ground as half empty and went further by explaining how fans appeared confused rather than energised by the moment.
He said: “The place was half empty. The ones that were here, I genuinely think they were confused or actually just saying, ‘No, I don’t want to win the game.’ I mean, it’s weird.”
That alone would have been unusual, but what followed pushed this beyond bizarre.
Gannon continued: “We’ll get to the contentious goal before halftime, but I’m walking up to get my pie at halftime and there’s two guys arguing about the handball kind of angrily suggesting the goal shouldn’t have stood. They were Hibs fans! I was like, ‘We’ve smashed through the looking glass here’.”
The key detail was not just frustration, it was direction. These were Hibs supporters arguing that their own side’s goal against Celtic should not have counted.
He added: “We’ve got Hibs fans arguing about a goal that shouldn’t have stood for them. So, it’s bizarre and it was weird,” which captures exactly how far removed this was from any normal reaction.
This is the kind of reaction Celtic fans would never accept
That is where this goes beyond strange and becomes something Celtic supporters will immediately recognise as wrong.
Gannon was not just describing a flat atmosphere, he was clearly stunned by what he was seeing and hearing from Hibs fans in the stands.
Supporters were not just quiet, they were actively questioning their own team, with fans arguing their own goal should not have counted and reacting with confusion instead of celebration.
There is context to it. The wider situation around Hearts meant some Hibs fans had their own reasons for not fully embracing the moment.
But that is exactly why it stood out so sharply. In football, instinct usually takes over, and an equaliser brings noise, urgency, and belief.
Celtic fans will look at that and recognise it immediately. That reaction does not happen at Celtic, and that is why it felt so out of place.
Some will argue it would be no different in Glasgow under the same circumstances. That debate alone shows just how unusual this moment really was.
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