Scott Brown has condemned the mindless fan violence that has tarnished the Old Firm fixture in recent years, saying troublemakers in balaclavas have ruined the showpiece for everyone.
Celtic and Rangers meet at Ibrox in Sunday's Premier Sports Cup quarter-final before clashing again at Parkhead in the Premiership a week later. There will be no away fans at either game after a season-long lockout was announced following trouble at Celtic's Scottish Cup penalty shoot-out win at Ibrox in March, when supporters from both sides stormed the pitch, clashed with police and threw flares and bottles.
Brown: 'They just want to cause problems'
The 41-year-old, who played in 44 Old Firm derbies, said: "The passion of the game is being pulled away with having no fans there. I understand why that’s the case because you can’t have people running on and throwing things, and fighting."
"I have no time for that but we are getting a wee bit away from what Celtic and Rangers are. It’s pride, passion and enjoyment of the bragging rights at the weekend. That’s what it should be but there are a lot of people who turn up with balaclavas and they are wee idiots if I am honest. They just want to cause problems."
Brown said the Celtic fans would be "devastated" they cannot attend because of those individuals, adding: "See if you want to do that, go to a field and fight someone and see how hard you are. They want to hide behind masks and that is both sides, not just Rangers."
Call for trust and facial recognition
Brown said he feels for the clubs trying to stage the games and called for a solution that allows trusted fans back in. He said: "Some people are against facial recognition going into stadiums and that is because they want to go fighting afterwards. If someone sees my face at a game, I’m not really bothered."
"You have your seat and your number and if you come off that and go on the pitch…that’s you barred. See you later. Eventually you get to a situation that you can trust the fans coming to the games. Hopefully we can get back to a situation where there are thousands of away fans back at the games."
Players must silence the crowd
Brown insists Celtic's players should relish silencing the atmosphere at Ibrox, and expects captain Callum McGregor to demand that. He said: "Would I fancy it? Yeah. Celtic won’t be going there worrying about having no fans. They will go there and try to quieten the crowd."
"I know Cal McGregor and that is what he will be saying to the lads. The players will know what to expect and as soon as the game starts, you can’t hear anyway. It becomes every man for himself at that point."
Brown also refused to tar all ultras with the same brush, praising the Green Brigade's contribution to the atmosphere during his 14 years at Celtic. He said: "There are good points because they set the tone in the stadium with the atmosphere. What we can’t have is the other stuff - the fighting and the problems afterwards. That kills the chances of fans going to games."
