Veteran Scottish football journalist Stephen McGowan didn’t hold back on Monday night’s episode of the Graeme Spiers podcast, delivering a brutal but measured critique of the Celtic boardroom — and the man who ultimately runs the show: Dermot Desmond.
The former Daily Mail’s chief football writer called out what he described as a board “run by accountants” and one that habitually plans for “worst case scenarios” rather than actively striving for European success.
“In terms of their transfer model, ambitions, and performance in Europe, Celtic have consistently underperformed — particularly in European qualifiers,” McGowan said. “Supporters are right to feel angry, especially when they’ve been asked to pay so much for their loyalty.”
It was a scathing but accurate summary of a club that continues to bank profits while squandering opportunities in Europe. McGowan made it clear the problem isn’t just strategy — it’s the power structure itself.
“What can fans actually do?” he asked. “At the moment, some are trying to organise a new group that would buy up small shareholdings and unite minority shareholders. If they can reach 10%, they can demand an EGM; if they get to 20%, they could become a genuinely combative force.”
But that road leads to one man: Dermot Desmond.
And McGowan didn’t mince his words about the billionaire’s approach to fan concerns.
“The problem is Dermot Desmond. It’s notoriously hard to make him take notice,” he said. “As he once said in Celtic Opus: ‘If there are a million people shouting, and I am the only one who disagrees, I will take my own counsel.’ That sums it up.”
These comments feel particularly damning when fan frustration is boiling over in the wake of another underwhelming transfer window and failed Champions League playoff.
“Desmond isn’t someone who listens to others or feels accountable to supporters,” McGowan added. “So fans will need to make themselves heard in other ways — by mobilising, becoming noisy, and making life deeply uncomfortable for the board of directors.”
While the board continue to hide behind spreadsheets and platitudes, influential voices in Scottish media are beginning to say what fans have known for a long time: this is a club built on emotion being run with cold detachment — and it’s not sustainable.
Desmond’s Celtic Influence
Dermot Desmond, despite not holding a majority shareholding, remains the dominant force behind Celtic’s strategic direction. As the club’s largest individual shareholder through his investment vehicle, Desmond has wielded effective control over key decisions for over two decades. From appointing managers to influencing boardroom dynamics, his word has typically been final — often bypassing wider consultation or transparency.
Every modern Celtic managerial appointment, from Martin O’Neill to Brendan Rodgers (twice), has ultimately been signed off or driven by Desmond himself, underlining the grip he continues to hold over the footballing and commercial heartbeat of the club.
The Celtic news now has all been about this boards unwillingness to properly listen to the support while generally being dismissive. Things are in motion among supporters and we will be in attendance at a Wednesday meeting between prominent Celtic groups and fan media to forge the path ahead.
I honestly can’t believe that you bunch of jokers are trying to destroy the best run, most successful and biggest club this country has ever seen!
Just because you don’t get your own way on things that quite frankly, YOU DON’T HAVE A CLUE ABOUT, you start to throw tantrums!
You are allowing yourselves to be guided by a manager who simply stuck it to all of us a few short years ago! He is pointing fingers at everyone except himself for HIS failings! Yet you believe him! This same guy that you all wanted to form a LYNCH MOB for in February 2019! The man you didn’t want back!
The man who blew the Cup Final last season! The man who couldn’t beat the lowest EVER ranked team in the Champions League, in fact, couldn’t SCORE AGAINST THEM OVER 210 minutes!
The man who hasn’t defeated the worst rangers team in their thirteen year history in the past six games!
THE MAN WHO IS WALKING AWAY AT THE END OF THIS SEASON, MIDDLE FINGER IN THE AIR?
YOU ARE BACKING THE WRONG HORSE.
What did Brendan Rodgers ever do for Celtic. Laid the foundations of 8 League Titles, improved the pitch, recruited Sinclair, Rogic and God knows how many other class players.Yes he got some signings wrong, every club does, (Salam at Chelsea) but we support him because of his real achievements even if it is time in June for him to move on. Last season he moved us forward in the Champions League for the Board’s incompetence to knock us back. What you have said is attention seeking and plain daft.
eh? i think you will find that Neil Lennon signed Tom Rogic for Celtic!!
Gosh so Neill Lennon signed Rogic. Well that changes it all, Delia out. How about bringing Brendan Rodgers in he might achieve something?
Yeah Peter, gtf
Manager (and backroom staff) if cheap, more spent on players.
Manager (without backroom staff) more spent on him if they demand high wage, much less spent.
Unless they have been told. ‘There will be a fire sale’, then they get 45% of player sales over three years (unless they wish to sell manager to other team).
So when St Brendan goes, there will be a fire sale.
If he stays, there will be a fire sale, everyone worth selling will be sold, replacements will be of a cheaper wage’d model, with an eye on sellin them too if they don’t toe their line.
So back where they stand, from over 10 years ago when Roaring Ronnie arrived.
I got simply fed up with this ‘slash and burn’ Fitbaw.
And renounced my season cards.
Fed up financing their kids through college, whist my nieces and nephews struggled to remain employed.
So, I gave them more cash assistance and Cfc Plc get abuse.
I sit in my warm abode and watch Celtic play on an available free application stream (Celtic TV with branding removed) on my fire stick.
I’m sure they have found new suckers to sit on the three seats I no longer pay for.
They say ‘Never give a sucker a even break’
Cfc Plc never give, they’re all take. Then they piss on your open mouth and expect you to say ‘More, much more, please sir ‘.
Joe = Peter lawwell in disguise 🥸 , just go away .
United we stand, sevco supporters if we fail.
They’re also far from happie that Cfc Plc have tha cash tae bury their pauper’tastic, loaned strangers team, and don’t need tae spend that much and stay ahead of tha 69’ers.
Their happie tha reporters are tryin tae bury Cfc plc for them.
Can’t believe a Celtic fan states that Rodgers recruited Rogic. He was here long before Rodgers.
As if Rodgers knows all the players in the world and says ” Get me this guy from the French 2nd division.”
The manager ( Rodgers) says to the scouting team ” Find me a midfielder that can hold up play” the Scouts go out check out and find these kind of players then show Rodgers the potential player’s highlight reel. If manager is happy with it, he says to go get that player. (Or manager recommends a player he worked with or knows like the Japanese players under Ange) sometimes the scouts just say ” you are having this guy” as we have seen happen a few times when manager openly says he never heard of this guy.
When we had John Park, he came back with players like Van Dijk, Wanyama, Denayer, Dembele.
The current scouts come back with Idah, Engles and co.
The scouting team is woeful, Rodgers is clueless and the administrators of the club drop the ball every year.
How are players not identified and signed in first week of the window? Instead we chase this guy and that guy but never want to pay the asking fee. We then go in to CL qualifiers with a guy that has never played with his team mates.
This fish rotted from, the head down.
This will continue until someone can pry Desmond out of his shares and then clear out everyone from Nicholson to Rodgers.
Now that Forest have sacked their manager we will see how long Rodgers puts up with the rotten to the core Board.
I am sure fans wouldn’t blame him if he left as he never signed on to not only be treated as badly but to be blamed for the transfer mess.
Celtic are well run as business that’s the bottom line nothing will change that business plan. As football club average ambition by the board that’s your lot celtic fans if you want change stop spending your hard earned cash supporting shit football in a shit leauge.
Joe your an utter clown. Sure this isn’t the first time I’ve read something you’ve posted and felt compelled to say the same.
Are you a member of the CSA? Affiliation? Did you attend any of the meetings with Nicholson? Nah? Didn’t think so.
Just you stick to sitting on your arse typing passive aggressive messages on your phone.
Which part of deadline day would you say was well run? Which part of weakening us in almost every position is well run? Which part of being mismanaged so badly, we miss out on the champions league millions for the seventh of 8th time in circa 15 years is well managed? How is losing 10 in a row to the youngest club in the country being well managed? How is narrowing your recruitment searches to recently retired ex players well managed?
Need i go on??
Generally the attempt by Board loyalists to redefine the problem is part of the problem.I have no doubt about how hard Nicholson works or how much he loves the club but that’s not the issue.
Since January the club have had 2 transfer windows to address the departure of out main striker over the past 2 seasons and failed. They also failed to address growing supporter concerns about this, witness our loss in the Cup Final.
They have continued their ‘hard nosed’ recruitment policy which has back fired. Accountants are key to ensuring fiscal competence but we need additionally more imaginative and creative management, too many book keepers.
The Board failed to apologise for their mistakes which would have gone some way to reduce vitriol and they have failed to use their recent communication to demonstrate how they will rectify their failures.