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Merely fifteen minutes after Celtic released the announcement of Brendan Rodgers' shock departure via a perfunctory short communication, the bombshell landed, courtesy of Dermot Desmond, with clear signs in obvious fury.

Through an extensive statement, major shareholder Desmond eviscerated his old chum.

The man he persuaded to come to the team when their rivals were gaining ground in 2016 and needed putting in their place. And the man he again relied on after Ange Postecoglou departed to Tottenham in the summer of 2023.

So intense was the ferocity of his critique, the astonishing return of the former boss was almost an secondary note.

Twenty years after his departure from the club, and after much of his recent life was dedicated to an continuous circuit of public speaking engagements and the performance of all his old hits at Celtic, Martin O'Neill is back in the dugout.

For now - and perhaps for a time. Based on comments he has expressed lately, O'Neill has been keen to secure a new position. He'll view this role as the perfect chance, a present from the Celtic Gods, a homecoming to the place where he enjoyed such success and adulation.

Will he give it up readily? It seems unlikely. The club could possibly make a call to sound out their ex-manager, but the new appointment will act as a soothing presence for the time being.

'Full-blooded Attempt at Character Assassination

O'Neill's return - as surreal as it may be - can be parked because the biggest shocking development was the harsh way the shareholder described the former manager.

It was a full-blooded attempt at defamation, a branding of him as untrustful, a source of falsehoods, a spreader of falsehoods; disruptive, deceptive and unacceptable. "A single person's wish for self-preservation at the cost of others," stated he.

For a person who values propriety and places great store in business being conducted with confidentiality, if not outright privacy, this was a further illustration of how abnormal situations have grown at Celtic.

Desmond, the organization's most powerful figure, operates in the background. The absentee totem, the one with the power to take all the major decisions he pleases without having the obligation of explaining them in any public forum.

He never participate in team AGMs, dispatching his son, Ross, in his place. He seldom, if ever, does media talks about the team unless they're glowing in nature. And even then, he's slow to communicate.

There have been instances on an occasion or two to support the organization with private messages to media organisations, but no statement is made in public.

This is precisely how he's wanted it to be. And that's exactly what he contradicted when going all-out attack on Rodgers on that day.

The directive from the club is that he stepped down, but reviewing his invective, carefully, you have to wonder why he permit it to get this far down the line?

Assuming the manager is culpable of every one of the accusations that Desmond is claiming he's responsible for, then it is reasonable to ask why was the coach not dismissed?

He has accused him of spinning things in public that did not tally with reality.

He claims his statements "have contributed to a toxic environment around the team and fuelled hostility towards individuals of the management and the board. Some of the criticism aimed at them, and at their loved ones, has been completely unwarranted and improper."

What an extraordinary allegation, indeed. Lawyers might be mobilising as we discuss.

His Aspirations Conflicted with Celtic's Model Once More'

Looking back to happier times, they were tight, the two men. Rodgers lauded the shareholder at every turn, thanked him every chance. Brendan respected him and, really, to no one other.

It was the figure who took the heat when Rodgers' returned occurred, post-Postecoglou.

It was the most divisive appointment, the return of the returning hero for a few or, as some other Celtic fans would have described it, the return of the unapologetic figure, who departed in the difficulty for another club.

Desmond had Rodgers' back. Over time, Rodgers employed the persuasion, achieved the wins and the trophies, and an fragile peace with the fans turned into a love-in again.

It was inevitable - always - going to be a moment when Rodgers' ambition came in contact with Celtic's business model, though.

This occurred in his initial tenure and it happened again, with added intensity, over the last year. He spoke openly about the slow process Celtic conducted their transfer business, the interminable waiting for targets to be landed, then missed, as was frequently the situation as far as he was concerned.

Repeatedly he spoke about the necessity for what he called "flexibility" in the transfer window. Supporters concurred with him.

Despite the organization spent unprecedented sums of funds in a calendar year on the expensive Arne Engels, the costly Adam Idah and the £6m further acquisition - all of whom have performed well so far, with Idah since having departed - the manager pushed for more and more and, often, he did it in openly.

He set a bomb about a lack of cohesion within the club and then walked away. Upon questioning about his comments at his subsequent media briefing he would typically downplay it and almost contradict what he stated.

Internal issues? Not at all, all are united, he'd claim. It looked like he was engaging in a risky strategy.

A few months back there was a report in a publication that purportedly came from a insider associated with the club. It said that Rodgers was damaging the team with his public outbursts and that his true aim was managing his exit strategy.

He desired not to be present and he was arranging his way out, this was the tone of the article.

The fans were enraged. They now viewed him as similar to a sacrificial figure who might be carried out on his shield because his directors wouldn't support his plans to bring success.

The leak was damaging, naturally, and it was meant to hurt him, which it accomplished. He called for an investigation and for the guilty person to be removed. Whether there was a probe then we heard no more about it.

By then it was clear the manager was losing the support of the individuals in charge.

The regular {gripes