Tom English shares toxic Rangers v Celtic view after Old Firm clash today
BBC Scotland journalist Tom English shared his “unpopular” opinion as to whether the toxicity of away fans is worth it in Old Firm derby clashes longer as Rangers lost 3-2 to Celtic without away support.
Rangers and Celtic announced [Sky Sports, 17 March] last month that the last two Scottish Premiership matches between the two rivals this season would be played without any away fans following incidents at recent meetings at both stadiums.
Former Rangers striker Ally McCoist could not hide his disappointment at the news arguing that the reason Old Firm derbies are the “best games” is because of the supporters and urged the SPFL to go back on their decision.
And English, taking to his personal Twitter account [8 April], to respond to McCoist’s comments believes that the toxicity of the away support is meaningless and having no away fans won’t ever allow the clashes to be mistaken for a “library reading room”.
He tweeted: “Unpopular opinion, but is the toxicity of away fans worth it in this fixture anymore? And don’t more home fans deserve to get in? It’s not like an Old Firm atmosphere with no away fans will ever be mistaken for a library reading room.”
Very unpopular
English’s comments are very baffling and are indeed unpopular given that what makes the game so special, even in an Old Firm derby clash is having fans of both teams at the stadiums, not just the home support.
Football is a supporter’s game as much as it is the footballers themselves and the players don’t really care about any toxicity as it only heightens the intensity of each match and clearly makes the game as exciting and engrossing as it is.
However, the reason for both Rangers and Celtic agreeing to have no away support for their next two games was understandable given fan safety was in jeopardy after recent incidents.
McCoist is right, however, this situation has got to be nipped in the bud quickly as both clubs may lose money over having just the home support and the Old Firm clashes could be in danger of losing its historic appeal.
Old Firm derbies are arguably one of the greatest of derbies in the world of football and having just home support for these special clashes simply ruins its attraction to both fans and even the neutrals. This situation must be solved quickly.
In other Rangers news, these two players “will depart” Ibrox according to a BBC Sport man