Former Celtic goalkeeper Rab Douglas has admitted he would be shocked if the Glasgow Derby in 10 days time goes ahead.
As quoted by the Glasgow Times, Douglas expressed his concern about fans gathering outside Celtic Park after the scenes in Glasgow last week with reports also coming out suggesting that the game currently hangs in the balance.
“It feels like we’ve been talking about the possibility of Rangers sealing the title against Celtic for months. In the end, they got the job done a game early. The scenes that followed, with Gers fans gathering in Glasgow to celebrate, were extremely disappointing.
“And that’s why I’d be very surprised if the Celtic v Rangers game scheduled for a week on Sunday goes ahead. For me, the risk involved in letting the game take place, whether it’s fans gathering at Celtic Park or somewhere else in Glasgow, looks too great. The league is won. So why take that risk?
“We’ve been battling away for a year as a country to keep Covid-19 under control. We’re now getting to a stage, with vaccinations starting to reach more of the population, where it feels like there’s maybe a bit of light at the end of the tunnel.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if the Scottish Government look at the situation last weekend and decide they won’t allow another potential flashpoint match to take place – particularly now the result doesn’t count for anything other than pride. I’m not a politician or a top policeman – who will obviously also take a view on the upcoming game – or anything like that.
“But I’m a citizen – and I’ll be disappointed if the title celebrations have set us back. We’re still in the middle of lockdown. We’re still in the middle of a pandemic. It’s not like we’re not getting any new cases. It’s not like people aren’t still dying.
“All of that has to be taken into account.”
At this stage, there does seem to be a lot of concern on the Governments side as to whether this game should go ahead or not.
In the last few months, we have seen fans from both sides congregating at some point or another and with where we are in the pandemic, finally beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel it wouldn’t come as much of a surprise to see it called off.
The one problem is what would the contingency plan be to play this game?
Talks are set to take place tomorrow to determine all the outcomes and if it does need to be played at a later date.
⚽️ Will Old Firm match go ahead on 21st?
Ministers @HumzaYousaf and @MairiGougeon in talks with @RangersFC @CelticFC @policescotland and @GlasgowCC tomorrow
Discussion aimed at avoiding repeat of crowds on streets in breach of #covid rules@scotgov says all options on table
— Glenn Campbell (@GlennBBC) March 11, 2021
