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Under No Circumstances Should Our Players Take Part In Scotland’s Pre-Season Friendlies.

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The SFA and the SPFL eah? Forever helping Scottish clubs.

Some of them, anyway. Or one of them. We all know which one. We also know who they have zero interest in helping. The Champions. The country’s representatives at European football’s top table. We know that because they never have. Look at our schedule towards the end of 2017. It was ridiculous and it now seems apparent that a single decision – to move the League Cup final from March back to November – has caused chaos.

I mean, who’s idea was that anyway? To slap a cup final into what everyone involved knew full well was a period of Champions League and Europa League group games? Whose moronic idea was that? What were they thinking about?

And what is the SFA thinking about in deciding to schedule to international friendlies for the pre-season when our players are either just away on holiday or just back from them? When we have not three but four Champions League qualifiers in front of us?

Is this sheer mind-numbing stupidity on the SFA’s part or is it worse than that?

Because surely they understand how that could impact on our plans for the team? Surely they get that other Scottish teams will be no keener on this than we are, except for those whose players generally aren’t good enough to play for their national sides?

This is a scandalous move from the SFA and Celtic should have no part in it. I’m on the record on this site as supporting our national team, and I think any player asked to play for his country should be proud to do it, but this is a wreckers move from an Association that simply doesn’t give a shit about the clubs it represents and these “friendlies” are nothing but a money spinning exercise for a governing body most of us have had it with.

And as such, Celtic is well within its rights to refuse to release our players for those nonsensical, un-necessary and potentially damaging games, especially as they involve travelling halfway around the world. One is in Mexico, the other is in Peru for God’s sake.

Celtic should announce, in advance, that none of our players will be available for selection in either of these games. They are nothing but a junket opportunity for SFA blazers whose incompetence played into our failure to qualify for the World Cup.

They fulfil no other purpose.

They serve no other function.

Celtic should treat both of these games with the contempt the SFA reserves for us. It’s a joke.

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