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The Authorities Have Given Celtic Just Half The Fans That We Asked For.

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The Champions League game with the Danish club, which looms in a matter of days, will be played in front of a one sixth full Celtic Park.

From the point of view of public safety as we swim our way out of the global health emergency it’s probably a good decision.

But the club will be bitterly disappointed by it nonetheless; it is a half of what Celtic was asking for and which we realistically expected.

Let’s put it this way; some reports today suggest that Aberdeen have given around 6,000 fans for their coming game at Pittodrie. That’s around a quarter of what that ground can hold.

An equivalent figure at Celtic Park would be more than 15,000.

We asked for 18,000 which in a 60,000 stadium would have been reasonable.

So to get only one third more fans than Aberdeen, it seems illogical in some ways.

Still it’s a step forward, a step in the right direction.

It gives us some level of support, more than we’d have been allowed at an average Scottish away ground before the bug hit, so there’s a lot to be happy about although we’re getting half what we thought we could handle.

Celtic will be balloting the tickets in short order.

Those lucky enough to be there – my fingers, toes, ears, nose-hairs and everything else are crossed – will need to exercise good judgement and restraint and be on their best behaviour, but that’s a given anyway.

Celtic’s statement has expressed the club’s disappointment at not being given more supporters for the game, but it also commits us to continuing to work hard to ensure that more and more of us are allowed to attend.

This is a developing situation.

9,000 isn’t ideal and I am sure Celtic could have handled more quite safely … but I also understand that the authorities in Scotland are playing it much more coolly than the government in London and that their priority is still keeping people healthy.

All in all, a decision we can probably live with for now.

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