Michael Nicholson faces his greatest humiliation

After six horrific transfer windows Michael Nicholson is now staring at his biggest ever humiliation.

Not even a ‘penalty to Rangers’ gag to his boardroom chums will mask the failings of the Celtic CEO.

The soon to be published club accounts for the year to 30 June 2025 is likely to reveal that Nicholson was paid around £1m, what he has actually achieved in a football, sporting sense is impossible to identify.

After guiding Celtic to defeat against Kairat Almaty it was hard to see how his week could get any worse but it is a dangerous game to underestimate the Celtic CEO.

Nicholson managed to sell off Kyogo Furuhashi and Nicolas Kuhn earlier this year without bothering about bringing in replacements, it seems that he thought he’d get away with selling Idah until Rodgers’ lunchtime media conference.

Putting the manager out in front of the media while Nicholson lurks in the shadows has drawbacks.

Rodgers has drawn a line in the sand over selling Idah, not because he especially wants to keep the former Norwich striker but because he needs a replacement in the door first. Third time lucky, painful lessons learned.

On Thursday night Celtic leaked out news that they were interested in signing Kasper Dolberg from Anderlecht, sceptical fans had an idea that there would be complications in the move, it is a pattern that has been in play all summer long as the team-sheet in the matches against Kairat illustrated.

Those concerns were realised as Friday progressed, probably prompted by the comments from Rodgers.

Anderlecht and Kolberg can almost name their terms, they know the desperation of Celtic and the pressure on Nicholson.

It is similar to Augsburg and Arne Engels a year ago, back then Nicholson had the Matt O’Riley money to spend, now Anderlecht are standing firm with the knock on effect of halting the sale of Idah.

On Friday night the Irishman returned to Glasgow, on Saturday at Lennoxtown he will be in Rodgers plans for Ibrox knowing that talks are going on elsewhere to send him back to south Wales.

Earlier on in the window the failings of Nicholson could be worked around, there was always time to sort things, the UEFA signing deadline for the Champions League play off was still in the distance.

Some Celtic fans claimed that the club had a plan in place, they believed that great deals could be had in the final days, deals so good that it was worth playing Russian Roulette with the £40m Champions League pay day.

From the position of strength that Celtic entered 2025 in the state of the club this weekend is deplorable.

It is laughable that some fans promote the idea of being the best run club in Europe, apparently a model for others to aspire to.

The fact that Nicholson was pushing ahead with selling Idah before Dolberg was over the line sums up the mentality inside the club, clearly the directors and Chairman are in agreement with how their CEO is operating.

Without Idah it looks like Celtic could go to Ibrox even weaker than the side that lost out to Kairat Almaty!

If Idah decides that he is carrying a knock Rodgers has Johnny Kenny, Shin Yamada and Callum Osmand to call on with Kenny the only option with a goal to his Celtic career- the other two haven’t started a match for Celtic.