Brendan Rodgers has extended a hand of peace to the renegade Green Brigade – but warned the controversial ultras not to rip the whole arm off.
The Celtic boss is aware of the fallout behind the scenes at Parkhead with around 200 fans banned until further notice after a succession of incidents at Celtic Park and at away grounds in Scotland and in Europe. The club have also been hit with fines by UEFA for banners and fireworks in the Champions League and the catalogue of flashpoints saw the board’s patience finally snap.
Rodgers wants the support united again – but he insisted the group can’t push their luck after being given the first standing section in UK football. He said: “The club, and hopefully the guys who are out of the club, can find a solution. Because they are amazing, I will say that. I just think in life you always have to be careful. If you offer a hand, make sure they don’t want the arm.
“So, you put out your hand to help supporters, and they take the arm, not the hand. For me, our club’s strength is being together behind the team, and hopefully very, very soon we can find that, and we can support the football.
“Football clubs are about football. That’s the simplicity of it for me. When you come to the football, you’re coming to watch the players on the pitch and support the team.
“The social media stuff, gladly I’m not involved in it and I have no interest in it, so a lot of what goes on in and around that I actually don’t know about.
“I’m not naïve, I know what’s there, but there’s no way I am trawling through stuff to understand it.
“But I understand what’s happened, and at any club – especially at a club like here – that synergy is so important because it is such a force, Celtic.”
The Celtic board pointed to safety concerns as one of the reasons behind the ban. Rodgers said: "For most clubs, football is for families to come along, support their team, have a day out and enjoy the football.
“There should never be any risk going to any game of football. Listen, for Celtic, in the main that’s what it’s about. Supporters come from up and down the country here, they come on boats and planes to get to games.
“It’s a brilliant day and if their team wins, even better. That’s the end game for every game and hopefully we can get to that point.”
Off-the-field issues have hogged the headlines while Rodgers has steadily put his stamp on the side in Scotland and in Europe. The Irishman insisted his focus remains on the pitch ahead of today’s trip to Ross County.
Rodgers said: “It’s very simple, I concentrate on the football. I know that 99.9 percent of this fanbase are amazing, the support they give the club and they give the team is fantastic.
“Of course, it is clear we have a situation with a really small group of our support base, with which that dialogue and everything else is there with the board.
“They will speak on that, I will only speak for the club of course, but it’s very easy for me to narrow my focus in on the football because ultimately that is what brings the club together.”
Rodgers has recently been forced to field questions on everything from fan behaviour to Middle East politics in recent weeks but he insisted he’s a manager and not a politician.
He said: “No, and we’re not specialists in it! I don’t know why we get asked about all these things whenever our lives are all about football. But of course, as a manager – and especially as a manager of a big club – it’s multi-functional in terms of what you are required to do.
“When you are experienced, you can also offer your support and experience to players, but it’s very, very straightforward for me in terms of I know the end game for me is to be successful on the field. I can laser my focus in on the football very easily.”
thecelticstar.com
