Rod Stewart sends Rangers fans message after Celtic showdown
Rod Stewart admitted that he “missed” Rangers fans during the Old Firm derby as Celtic struggled their way to a 2-1 win at Parkhead.
The Old Firm derby has been played without away fans for several seasons now, and although Rangers offered Celtic 708 tickets for the reverse fixture at Ibrox earlier in the season, they were rejected. [BBC Sport]
However, with no away fans at the games, the atmosphere suffers from only the home side being heard, whether that is at Ibrox or Celtic Park, something Stewart has called to change.
“I missed having Rangers fans. I missed the banter between the two sets of fans,” Stewart said live on talkSPORT on Tuesday (2 January).
SUB
There is no wonder why the atmosphere is lacking when only one set of fans is in attendance. Imagining the Manchester derby, the Milan derby, the Merseyside derby or the Northern London derby, it would be extremely boring if the ground was full of home fans.
With a rivalry, fans can bounce taunts and teases off each other. This can lead to bigger emotions, which is where the fear factor comes in. But with more safety checks and resources to keep the fans separate outside of the ground, there should be little to no incidents.
Rival fans live side-by-side in everyday life, so why should violence be introduced when it comes to watching a game of football? Some people do take it too far but Stewart’s opinion is highly understandable. The atmosphere is silenced just that little bit without a back-and-forth, which leads to fans getting comfortable and not supporting their players as much.
It also has a massive impact on the away players. Without the support of their fans, energy can drain so quickly, especially when going down to 10 men against the team top of the Scottish Premiership.
But Rangers seemed to be the better team in the closing stages of the most recent Old Firm derby. Who is to say that Philippe Clement’s side would not have scored a late equaliser if their fans were there to push them to the finish line?
In other Rangers news, a star player has announced his return from injury.