Tit. For. Tat.
Rangers started it. Celtic have responded.
Earlier this month, Rangers announced that they would be reducing its allocation for Celtic fans heading to Ibrox for away games this season.
The Scottish club are now limiting away fans from Brendan Rodgers’ side to 800 for the two Premiership games in 2018/19. Celtic kept counsel and considered their position but, on Friday, came out firing. A statement from the league champions reads:
‘[We] have confirmed that it will issue approximately 800 tickets to visiting supporters for the fixture against Rangers at Celtic Park on September 2. This mirrors the decision announced recently by Rangers.
‘This is not a development we welcome and it is unfortunate that the initial decision came without any form of discussion. The previous arrangements worked well for both sets of supporters as well as contributing to the status of the fixture as a sporting occasion.
‘Following the unilateral action by Rangers, we cannot allow our own supporters to be doubly penalised, by having access to the away fixture reduced so dramatically, while not being offered the opportunity to maximise our own support at Celtic Park.
‘The rules of the SPFL call for ‘reasonable’ provision to be made for visiting supporters, without being specific on numbers. Within that context, we would welcome further discussions involving the two clubs and the SPFL.’
Celtic are, for now, restricting the Rangers allocation to 800 for that early September fixture.
The club will ‘closely monitor the implications for crowd management and other factors surrounding these fixtures’ and there may yet be room for manoeuvre as the season gets underway.
Getting spicy already.
