Celtic’s Rivals Just Cannot Stop Themselves From Inflating Fan Expectations.

Whenever a club hires a new manager there is a blaze of publicity, and lots of big talking. Usually from those on the periphery of the club who are free to say whatever it is that they want, so long as they don’t contradict the direct statements of the new guy in charge.

I remember when we hired Martin O’Neill. There was no bombast, just a simple promise to the fans, made on the steps of Celtic Park as he addressed them, “I promise to do everything I can to bring some success back to the football club,” he said.

There was no bombast or explosion of ego from Brendan Rodgers, although he was a guy who was paraded in front of thousands of supporters and is almost wholly consumed by ego and bombast. Yet there was none of it, just a simple expression of his intent to do as Martin O’Neill had vowed to. Ange himself was entirely ego free.

Not so with Ibrox appointments, and especially not the latest one.

The sound of drums loudly banging is all you can hear over there. They are doing what they always do at a time like this; over-indulging in the supremacy, overegging it when it comes to promising the fans a return to the glory days. Only fools behave like this.

Already the pressure being heaped onto their management team is enormous. Already the pressure they are putting themselves under is enormous. He’s talking about “taking the handbrake off” as if their squad has not been trying to beat teams … he talks about playing a certain style of football, as if he and Gerrard didn’t have opportunities to do that before.

The worst mistake this guy is making is in allowing people around him to talk big about mounting a challenge this season. He himself has already stumbled into the same trap. And Ibrox’s fans believe every bit of this of course, because it feeds into the idea that we’re actually a bad team who will topple when we’re given a hard shove.

This guy is just in the door and he’s digging his own football grave.

It is remarkable how often they do that over there. It is remarkable how little they learn.