Furious Celtic hit back at Green Brigade amid plans for Palestine flags
Celtic have escalated their battle with the Green Brigade by denying members of the supporters' group early entry to Celtic Park before their game against Atletico Madrid.
The build-up to the Champions League tie has been overshadowed by a row between the club and its famous supporter group. The Green Brigade has seen its allocation for away tickets suspended by the club following trouble at recent away fixtures with Feyenoord and Motherwell.
Celtic were fined £23,000 by UEFA for the use of pyro by fans in Rotterdam, while there was also trouble at Fir Park last month when fans got onto the pitch. The Glasgow club have now clamped down further on the Green Brigade's activities amid allegations of more bad behaviour.
The Daily Record reports that the Green Brigade has been denied access to the stadium before the Atletico Madrid match due to threatening behaviour towards club employees and some fans breaking into Parkhead through fire doors during the Lazio clash. Fans are also allegedly sharing photos of police officers online in an action dubbed “pig watch”.
However, in a lengthy statement, the Green Brigade has accused Celtic of taking pre-emptive action to stop fans from showing support for Palestine amid the ongoing conflict with Israel in Gaza. The group has vowed to distribute “thousands” of Palestine flags outside the stadium after holding up flags during the 4-1 win over Hearts on Sunday.
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“Currently, hundreds of fans are suspended from away matches due to an association with the Green Brigade; despite receiving no correspondence, no allegations, nor any detail regarding any investigatory process,” the statement read. “The suspension was communicated to the Green Brigade on Friday afternoon ahead of the Hearts match on Sunday afternoon despite alleged concerns dating back four weeks.
"In addition to this, the Green Brigade face further restrictions at Celtic Park designed to impede on our support and use of our standard matchday materials. We are determined to overcome these and provide full backing for the team as always.
Celtic supporters held up Palestine flags at Hearts on the weekend (Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)"Despite disingenuous claims, we have absolutely no doubt that these sanctions are motivated by a desire to quash political expression within the Celtic support, specifically in relation to Palestine at this time. In spite of this, and any further obstruction, we once again encourage fans to courageously fly the flag for Palestine.”
Celtic were sanctioned by UEFA in 2016 for a pro-Palestine display in the qualifying clash against Israeli side Hapoel Beer Sheva. The club are concerned about the consequences of something similar amid the heightened tensions caused by the war in Gaza.
Celtic are bottom of Group E in the Champions League having opened their campaign with back-to-back defeats against Lazio and Feyenoord. The Scottish giants have gone 10 years without victory in front of their fans in the competition, while manager Brendan Rodgers has won just two of his 20 games in charge of Celtic and Liverpool in the Champions League.
Despite the backdrop of problems with their own fans, Rodgers is confident his side can bounce back. “The fans expect us to fight and run and to play quality football,” he said. “That’s the style this team wants to play and we will continue to do that.”
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