It is remarkably, shockingly, easy for Ibrox’s directors to manipulate, coerce or encourage our media to play their historic role of Useful Idiots. There is little question that this is how they are seen by all connected to that club. They are mugs, there for the using.
It is a role that some of them must be comfortable with. Or why in God’s name would they continue doing it? Why would they continue to push out Ibrox disinformation and spin, repeatedly, without fail? They must have no shame whatsoever.
The latest example of it is before us today, as their club goes on the PR offensive over the ticketing showdown. Much is being made of the fact that they have “offered us” tickets; yeah, the same number that started this in the first place. This isn’t some big magnanimous gesture in an effort to move this thing forward. It’s an insult, it’s a piss take.
And unless they offer ample guarantees to our club that our supporters will be safe at those matches I fully expect that Celtic will turn those tickets down on the same grounds as we did the last time we visited their stadium. Let them take Celtic Park tickets if they want them, it will end all talk that our club hasn’t fully accommodated their own security concerns.
But they know what it is that Celtic wants, and so this “offer” is a public snub to us and two fingers to our fans. Yet the media paints this as if it were an act of altruism. They can shove it. The faces at the top over there may have changed, but they’re just as arrogant as the board that was there before them and if they think this will convince a single Celtic fan that their club wants to make peace over this they had better think again.
We all know what they’re up to, and that this is the latest attempt to put us on the wrong side of the debate. But there is no debate to be had here; offering us 700 tickets puts our fans at risk and until they offer us proper guarantees or restore our allocation our club should refuse to take them. We are here because their club behaves recklessly and it cannot control its most thuggish supporters. Their board panders to these people instead.
I would urge that Celtic holds firm here and turns those tickets down. Yes, Ibrox’s media allies will whinge that we’re the ones spoiling the spectacle but too bad so sad, they can say what they like because they are preaching in this case to the Just Not Interested. There isn’t a single Celtic fan I know who isn’t behind our stance on this 100%.