Keith Wyness stunned by Dermot Desmond’s Celtic move – ‘he will regret it’
Brendan Rodgers’ resignation has shocked Scottish football and Celtic have been told they will regret a decision they made shortly after his departure.
Rodgers left the Glasgow giants on Monday (27 October) evening, with the Hoops eight points adrift of Hearts in the Scottish Premiership.
Earlier this season, the Northern Irishman had publicly criticised the Celtic board for a lack of activity in the summer transfer window, hinting at disagreements behind the scenes.
With Rodgers gone, Martin O’Neill has been appointed as interim manager, 20 years after his first spell in charge of the club.
Celtic owner wrong to slam Brendan Rodgers
Following Rodgers’ resignation, club owner Dermot Desmond slammed the 52-year-old for his recent actions in an explosive statement (Celtic FC).
Aberdeen’s former chief Keith Wyness – who served as CEO at Pittodrie between 2000 and 2004, had lengthy spells as the chief of Everton and Aston Villa and now runs a football consultancy advising elite clubs – believes that it was surprising that Desmond had chosen to speak out.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, Wyness insisted that the statement was very ‘un-Celtic-like’, and symbolises the disarray behind the scenes.
Wyness added that Desmond will regret the statement and should have stayed above it all.
He told Football Insider‘s Inside Track podcast: “Dermot Desmond’s statement came out, which was probably the most surprising thing to me out of all of it.
“It really just emerges as a picture of a club in complete disarray at the moment, which is really unlike Celtic. For many years, I’ve observed them and done battle with them and observed the boardroom. This was just very un-Celtic-like, and that’s what really surprised me.
“I thought Dermot Desmond’s statement was rather unseemly, to be honest, for the owner to get involved in the level of detail and counterclaiming. Normally, an owner can take the high ground and let his silence speak for him; I think that can be more important than actually saying these things.
“But obviously, he felt the need, and he was very angry with Brendan. They’ve obviously had a very big argument.
“To come out with such a long statement is unusual. Normally, the angrier the owner is, the shorter the statement is. This one was well over 500 words. So that’s the thing that surprised me.
“I think Dermot will probably regret having made this statement as time goes on. And I think he’ll realise that he’s got himself into a fistfight when he should have stayed above it all.”
Rodgers eyes Premier League return
Meanwhile, Rodgers is keen to return to the Premier League after quitting Celtic, sources have told Football Insider.
Sources say that the Northern Irishman believes his track record in the Premier League, at Liverpool and Leicester City, makes him an attractive proposition for English sides.
There would also be no compensation fee to hire Rodgers after his dramatic resignation, and his camp believe that could be key for clubs scouring the market for a proven top-flight manager.
For more Celtic and exclusive news, follow us on Facebook or join our brand new WhatsApp Channel for instant updates to be sent straight to your phone.