Celtic interim chairman Brian Wilson has said the club's board faced "hard but fair" questions from 120 fans at a supporters club event in Greenock. The two-hour session saw club chiefs, joined by manager Martin O'Neill, answer "searching" questions on a range of issues.
Board and manager face supporters
Alongside Wilson, chief executive Michael Nicholson, chief financial officer Chris Mackay, head of safety and security Michael Hargreave, and head of business operations Paul Mayozer were all quizzed by fans. O'Neill attended the event as the club's manager.
O'Neill has come under pressure following a winless start to the Europa League campaign, league and cup defeats to Rangers within a week, and a 2-0 loss to Falkirk at the weekend that saw Celtic miss the chance to move seven points clear of their rivals. The veteran boss has the option to extend his current deal by a year this summer, and his future came up for discussion.
Transfer business and ownership questioned
Transfer business was also a hot topic, with fans taking aim at the board through various protests over the last two years. Spending against revenue raised from player sales has been criticised, as has the form of club record signing Kasper Hogh, with many fans feeling the squad is short of the quality expected.
In the wake of the Celtic Fans' Collective demanding that supremo Dermot Desmond makes his first appearance at a club AGM for 20 years, both Nicholson and Mackay responded to questions over whether they were beholden to the Irishman with an emphatic no. Desmond sent his son Ross to last year's AGM to read a prepared statement, with the event descending into farce as shareholders made their feelings clear, resulting in former non-executive chairman Peter Lawwell cutting it short. A date for this year's meeting is yet to be confirmed.
Grateful for respectful approach
Wilson stressed that the "respectful" approach from punters at the Greenock branch was key to the board at least attempting to answer the questions put to them. He said: "We were grateful to the Greenock Celtic Supporters' Club for hosting this event in a way that allowed everyone to make their points, many of them critical, and to ask searching questions which we did our best to answer."
