Is this what New Celtic would look like?

Celtic are nearing the end of the 2025/2026 season, and as a supporter, I find it hard to describe it as anything other than deeply disappointing.

Poor performances, a lack of leadership, a drop from first to third, and a squad where some players simply don’t look worthy of the shirt. These are warning signs, and they’ve been there for a while. The worst part is that they’ve been ignored by those running the club.

When I look at Celtic this season, what I feel most isn’t anger. It’s something heavier than that. It’s the sense that something fundamental isn’t right and that it might be difficult to fix. The football has been disjointed, recruitment has lacked direction, and there’s been no real unity between the manager and the board. It feels like a club pulling in different directions, and you can see that on the pitch.

This season has proved something very clearly. It’s not about how much money you have. It’s about how you use it.

What’s hurt even more is everything off the pitch. Leadership has been missing when it mattered most. Decisions have come without clarity or communication. Supporters, the heart of this club, have too often been treated like a problem rather than part of the solution. That disconnect has been impossible to ignore.

On the pitch, Celtic have lost something too. That hunger. That edge. That sense that teams feared coming to Celtic Park. That’s gone. And when that goes, you’re no longer the Celtic people recognise.

So where are we going? What direction are we heading in? Can we get back to those standards? I believe we can. But not with small changes.

This is not about one manager or a handful of signings. It is about structure. This is about a full rebuild from top to bottom. And that’s why the coming summer could be the most important overhaul in a generation.

Because Celtic don’t need a tweak.

They need a whole new system.

I wrote an article the other day about how we need a proper football department and what that means.

I’ve also written before of the number of positions we need to fill on the pitch. It’s a scary number. But it might well be that the changes we need off it are even greater, and once again it comes down to whether or not you trust the board.

I keep coming back to the word “system”. Because modern football isn’t built on the back of one man anymore and one of the reasons we’re in this trouble is that we have, for too long, leant on single individuals holding the club together.

We have never taken seriously the idea of fixing the whole structure and focussing on alignment across the board. The clubs that succeed now aren’t playing our game. They’re designing success whilst we’re hoping for it.

Right now, I don’t think we are. So, what does that mean in real terms?

It starts at the top. Celtic need a proper Sporting Director. Not a figurehead, but someone who defines the football identity of the club. Someone who decides how Celtic play, what kind of players we sign, and how everything fits together. That identity should not change every time a manager comes and goes.

And he should be – he needs to be – a football man.

Alongside that, Celtic needs a Technical Director. Someone who drives that identity through every level of the club. First team, academy, development, all aligned. Right now, I don’t always recognise what Celtic are trying to be.

Recruitment has to change too. Completely. We need a Head of Recruitment who builds a system, not a scattergun approach driven by agents or opportunity. The club must target it, structure it, and make it ruthless.

And in modern football, the club must support that with data. A Head of Data and Analytics isn’t optional anymore. The best clubs use information to reduce risk, find value, and stay ahead. That’s where Celtic should operate.

Then there’s the coaching side.

The idea that one manager fixes everything is outdated. The modern game doesn’t work like that. Yes, we need a Head Coach, but not someone expected to carry everything alone. We need a structure behind them. This is what I covered previously, but it’s worth going over it again just for a second.

We need a tactical coach focused on opposition analysis and in-game adjustments. A set-piece specialist, because those moments decide matches and seasons. A goalkeeping coach who develops modern keepers, comfortable with the ball and integrated into the system.

These are not luxuries. These are mission critical elements.

Physically, we need to improve as well. Celtic should be relentless again. Stronger, faster, harder to play against. That starts with a Head of Performance linking tactics to physical output, supported by elite strength and conditioning staff and a proper medical and injury prevention team. Fitness is a weapon. Availability is a weapon. And right now, we’re not sharp enough in either.

Then there’s something harder to define, but impossible to ignore.

The mentality. That edge. That belief.

This team lacks that mentality in Europe, and that’s why I believe there’s a role for a sports psychologist or mental performance coach. Confidence, resilience, handling pressure — these are now trained, not hoped for. I want players who don’t fold. Players who rise.

And I want leaders. Not just one captain, but a group. A spine of the team that drives standards every day. Because when you think back to the best Celtic sides, you remember the personalities as much as the performances.

We don’t have enough of that now.

Looking forward, the academy matters too. A Head of Academy should define how we develop players, technically and culturally. And just as important, a clear pathway into the first team. Too many players get lost in that gap between promise and opportunity. Everyone knows that the people we have right now are not good enough.

We need a bridge. A plan. Because when it works, when a young player breaks through, that’s Celtic at its best.

And finally, there’s identity. Celtic is more than a football club. It always has been. That connection — between past and present, between players and supporters — feels weaker now than it should. That’s why I believe there’s a place for someone whose role is to protect that identity. To remind players what this club means.

Because wearing the shirt should matter. So, this is where I land.

We can sign a few players. We can change the manager, patch things up and hope.

But that’s not enough anymore. Not if we want those glory days back. Because this isn’t a dip in form. It’s a structural problem. The club hasn’t evolved quickly enough while the game around it has.

So, it has to be bold. It has to be decisive. It has to be complete.

In other words, all those roles must come together within one system, driven by one vision. Piece by piece, we rebuild Celtic into what it should be, modern, ruthless, intelligent, but still unmistakably Celtic.

The glory days aren’t gone. However, they won’t come back through hope alone. Instead, this club must act aggressively and bring the standards back.

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