Celtic have picked up a fourth victory in a row on the pitch today against St Johnstone, but that’s just the start of an important and newsworthy week for the club.
Over the next seven days, Neil Lennon’s team will face two further tests against Aberdeen and Ross County. Both of those could be tricky encounters.
Perhaps more importantly, supporters could get some key indications on the club’s direction off the pitch.
Interim financial results
Celtic’s interim financial results for the period ending December 31st 2020 are due before February 17th, per a statement from The Celtic Trust on February 5th.
Those will give us an enlightening look at the impact of the pandemic on Celtic’s finances. There have been predictions they will make for unhappy reading.
Although record season ticket sales bolstered coffers at the club, Champions League qualification was not achieved. There were also no significant player sales during an extended transfer window.
On the contrary, there was a fair bit of spending on Vasilis Barkas, Albian Ajeti and Shane Duffy.
Coupled with reduced matchday income and no extra crowds in for European matches, that is likely to make for a grim summary.
Yet, it’s not only financial news we’re waiting on with the interim results’ arrival.
Neil Lennon’s Celtic future
Chairman Ian Bankier has indicated we could indeed get an update on the future of Neil Lennon too.
In December, Celtic promised there would be a ‘new year review’ of Lennon’s position as manager. That hasn’t come, much to the frustration of supporters.
Paul from the Celtic Fans TV YouTube channel sent a letter to the club in January which received a response last week.
As we discussed over the weekend, it appeared to indicate that a statement would be made on the issues upsetting fans of the club, released in conjunction with the interim report.
So, suddenly we could get clarity on two important aspects of Celtic.
A meeting with Celtic supporters
Then, representatives of The Celtic Trust are due to meet with senior figures at the club. They’ll be discussing the outcomes of a Trust members call in late January.
Issues expected to be raised include a football department restructure, a review of what’s gone wrong this season, and the chairman’s role.
The Trust will then give members feedback on what was said, just as they did last time they met with the club.
Plenty to look ahead to then, as a new dawn draws closer and closer to Celtic.
In other news, Chris Jullien is still on crutches after injury.
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