The Way Irretrievable Breakdown Resulted in a Brutal Separation for Brendan Rodgers & Celtic

Just fifteen minutes after Celtic released the announcement of Brendan Rodgers' surprising resignation via a perfunctory five-paragraph communication, the bombshell landed, from the major shareholder, with clear signs in obvious fury.

Through 551-words, major shareholder Dermot Desmond eviscerated his former ally.

The man he persuaded to join the team when their rivals were getting uppity in that period and required being in their place. Plus the figure he once more relied on after the previous manager departed to Tottenham in the summer of 2023.

Such was the ferocity of Desmond's takedown, the jaw-dropping return of Martin O'Neill was almost an after-thought.

Two decades after his departure from the organization, and after much of his recent life was dedicated to an unending series of appearances and the performance of all his past successes at Celtic, O'Neill is returned in the manager's seat.

Currently - and maybe for a time. Considering things he has expressed lately, O'Neill has been eager to get a new position. He will see this one as the ultimate chance, a gift from the club's legacy, a homecoming to the environment where he experienced such glory and adulation.

Will he relinquish it readily? You wouldn't have thought so. The club might well reach out to contact their ex-manager, but the new appointment will act as a soothing presence for the moment.

All-out Effort at Character Assassination

O'Neill's return - as surreal as it may be - can be parked because the most significant shocking moment was the brutal manner Desmond described the former manager.

This constituted a forceful attempt at character assassination, a labeling of him as deceitful, a source of untruths, a spreader of falsehoods; divisive, misleading and unjustifiable. "One individual's desire for self-interest at the expense of others," stated Desmond.

For a person who prizes decorum and sets high importance in dealings being conducted with confidentiality, if not complete secrecy, this was a further example of how abnormal situations have become at the club.

The major figure, the organization's most powerful figure, moves in the background. The remote leader, the individual with the power to take all the important calls he pleases without having the obligation of explaining them in any public forum.

He never attend team AGMs, sending his son, his son, in his place. He seldom, if ever, gives media talks about Celtic unless they're hagiographic in nature. And even then, he's slow to communicate.

There have been instances on an occasion or two to defend the club with confidential messages to media organisations, but nothing is heard in public.

It's exactly how he's preferred it to remain. And that's just what he went against when going full thermonuclear on Rodgers on Monday.

The directive from the club is that Rodgers stepped down, but reviewing his invective, line by line, one must question why did he permit it to reach such a critical point?

If the manager is culpable of every one of the things that Desmond is alleging he's responsible for, then it's fair to ask why had been the coach not dismissed?

He has charged him of spinning information in public that did not tally with the facts.

He claims Rodgers' statements "played a part to a toxic atmosphere around the team and fuelled hostility towards individuals of the executive team and the directors. Some of the criticism aimed at them, and at their families, has been entirely unjustified and unacceptable."

What an extraordinary allegation, that is. Lawyers might be mobilising as we speak.

His Ambition Clashed with Celtic's Strategy Again

Looking back to better times, they were tight, Dermot and Brendan. The manager praised the shareholder at every turn, thanked him whenever possible. Rodgers deferred to him and, really, to nobody else.

It was Desmond who took the heat when his returned occurred, post-Postecoglou.

It was the most divisive appointment, the reappearance of the prodigal son for some supporters or, as some other Celtic fans would have described it, the arrival of the shameless one, who departed in the difficulty for another club.

Desmond had his support. Over time, the manager turned on the charm, delivered the wins and the honors, and an fragile peace with the supporters became a love-in again.

There was always - always - going to be a moment when Rodgers' goals clashed with the club's operational approach, however.

It happened in his initial tenure and it transpired again, with added intensity, recently. He spoke openly about the slow way the team conducted their transfer business, the interminable waiting for prospects to be landed, then missed, as was frequently the case as far as he was believed.

Time and again he spoke about the necessity for what he called "agility" in the transfer window. Supporters agreed with him.

Despite the organization splurged unprecedented sums of money in a twelve-month period on the expensive Arne Engels, the £9m Adam Idah and the significant further acquisition - none of whom have performed well so far, with one already having departed - Rodgers pushed for increased resources and, oftentimes, he expressed this in public.

He set a controversy about a internal disunity inside the club and then distanced himself. When asked about his comments at his next news conference he would usually downplay it and almost contradict what he stated.

Lack of cohesion? No, no, all are united, he'd say. It appeared like he was engaging in a risky game.

A few months back there was a report in a publication that allegedly originated from a source close to the club. It claimed that the manager was harming the team with his open criticisms and that his true aim was orchestrating his exit strategy.

He didn't want to be present and he was arranging his exit, that was the implication of the story.

Supporters were enraged. They then saw him as akin to a martyr who might be removed on his honor because his directors wouldn't support his vision to achieve triumph.

The leak was poisonous, of course, and it was meant to harm Rodgers, which it did. He demanded for an investigation and for the responsible individual to be removed. Whether there was a probe then we learned nothing further about it.

At that point it was clear Rodgers was losing the support of the individuals in charge.

The frequent {gripes