chairman charts way ahead at agm

David Friel
CELTIC Chairman John Reid has reiterated the board’s ongoing commitment to investing in the football team but has vowed never to jeopardise the long-term stability of the club by racking up unsustainable debt.

Dr Reid presided over a passionate, robust and entertaining AGM at Celtic Park's Kerrydale Suite and, along with Chief Executive Peter Lawwell and manager Tony Mowbray, covered a host of topics during an informative question and answer session with around 700 shareholders.

In opening the meeting, Dr Reid outlined the club’s healthy financial state and thanked the supporters for their continued backing during “a period of transition” on the pitch.

“I’d like to thank the fans who turned up today,” he said. “That was a very big meeting of supporters and, while being extremely well-humoured, it was passionate as well. They have given us financial stability and have supported us on the pitch during a difficult time.”

Tony Mowbray, upon being introduced, was given a rapturous welcome and video interviews with the Chairman, Chief Executive and manager followed before a number of resolutions were passed.

It was then on to the open Q&A session, with around 15 to 20 Celtic supporters being given the chance to air their views in the 70-minute discussion.

Among the topics being covered were potential signings, foreign trips for fans, European ticket schemes, ticket prices, the standard of refereeing in Scotland, the Celtic scouting system, racist chanting by visiting supporters at Celtic Park and, in one of the more comical moments, the length of Georgios Samaras’ hair.

The Chairman also gave a revealing insight into the lengths Celtic went to in trying to strengthen the squad in January 2009 and pointed out that the Hoops are the only club in Scotland regularly spending serious money in the current troubled financial climate.

Staying on the subject of the SPL, the Chairman stated that any financial struggles faced by other clubs in Scotland are entirely irrelevant to Celtic’s future plans. “It doesn’t matter to us what happens anywhere else,” he said.

This view was echoed by the Chief Executive, who admitted that Celtic are extremely hopeful of securing the transfer of South Korea midfielder Ki Sung-Yong in the coming months and are well aware of the “impetus” January signings can bring to the side.

Afterwards, Dr Reid spoke at a press conference and stressed that the Celtic board will do everything in their power to aid the new manager’s plans, while also being aware of the pitfalls of irresponsible spending.

“It is obligatory on us to seek better value for money and we all believe that, including the manager,” said the Chairman.

“What I don’t think is legitimate is the pretence that, somehow, you can just borrow endless amounts of money to try and make up for the financial advantage your competitors in Europe have. You can’t – in that way lies ruin.

“The vast majority of the fans and shareholders who were there today know that. You could see that from the response of the people in the crowd at the AGM.

“We guarantee 100 per cent commitment and energy in searching for additions to help Tony build a new team, but it isn’t a matter of waving a magic wand.

“We won’t fall into the populist trap of trying to buy an easy ride for the next few months, by selling the future of the club.

“In one of the videos we watched at the AGM, we saw Celtic being close to bankruptcy. If you spend money you don’t have to such an extent that you get debts you can’t afford, which was the position of Celtic 15 years ago, then you lose control of your own destiny.

“This board will do everything we can to ensure that never happens to Celtic Football Club. We have learned our lessons about uncontrollable and unsustainable debt and we’ll do everything we can to maintain our independence.”

Celtic’s Chief Executive said: “We understand the importance of January in terms of the new impetus, especially when this is Tony’s first season as manager. He’s looking for something different.

“We will do our best in January and there is finance available. This is not a ‘Celtic will break the bank’ type quote. There is finance and we have a good track record of getting players in January over the last few years, but there are no guarantees. There are so many different variables, other than finance.

“We are flexible with the debt. It’s not an obsession. If you do the right things elsewhere, debt looks after itself and we’ve proven that over the years.

“It’s about flexibility within a manageable level of debt. We all know what can happen when you go beyond that line.”