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Merely a quarter of an hour after the club released the news of Brendan Rodgers' surprising resignation via a brief short statement, the bombshell arrived, courtesy of the major shareholder, with whiskers twitching in apparent fury.

Through an extensive statement, major shareholder Desmond savaged his former ally.

This individual he convinced to join the team when Rangers were getting uppity in 2016 and required being back in a box. Plus the figure he once more turned to after Ange Postecoglou departed to another club in the summer of 2023.

So intense was the ferocity of his critique, the jaw-dropping return of Martin O'Neill was practically an after-thought.

Two decades after his exit from the organization, and after a large part of his latter years was dedicated to an continuous series of public speaking engagements and the playing of all his past successes at the team, O'Neill is returned in the dugout.

Currently - and maybe for a time. Considering things he has expressed recently, he has been eager to secure a new position. He'll see this role as the perfect chance, a present from the club's legacy, a homecoming to the place where he experienced such success and praise.

Would he give it up easily? It seems unlikely. Celtic could possibly make a call to sound out Postecoglou, but O'Neill will act as a balm for the time being.

'Full-blooded Attempt at Character Assassination

O'Neill's reappearance - however strange as it may be - can be set aside because the biggest 'wow!' development was the harsh manner the shareholder wrote of Rodgers.

It was a forceful endeavor at character assassination, 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-interest at the cost of others," stated Desmond.

For somebody who prizes decorum and places great store in dealings being conducted with confidentiality, if not complete privacy, here was another example of how abnormal things have become at Celtic.

Desmond, the organization's most powerful presence, operates in the margins. The absentee totem, the individual with the power to take all the important calls he wants without having the responsibility of explaining them in any public forum.

He does not participate in team AGMs, sending his son, his son, in his place. He rarely, if ever, gives interviews about the team unless they're hagiographic in nature. And even then, he's reluctant to speak out.

There have been instances on an occasion or two to defend the club with private missives to media organisations, but no statement is heard in the open.

It's exactly how he's preferred it to be. And it's just what he contradicted when going all-out attack on the manager on Monday.

The official line from the team is that Rodgers stepped down, but reading his criticism, carefully, you have to wonder why did he permit it to reach such a critical point?

If Rodgers is guilty of all of the things that the shareholder is claiming he's guilty of, then it's fair to inquire why had been the coach not removed?

He has charged him of distorting information in public that did not tally with the facts.

He says Rodgers' statements "have contributed to a toxic environment around the team and encouraged animosity towards individuals of the management and the directors. Some of the abuse directed at them, and at their loved ones, has been completely unjustified and improper."

Such an remarkable allegation, that is. Lawyers might be mobilising as we speak.

His Ambition Conflicted with the Club's Strategy Once More'

To return to happier times, they were tight, Dermot and Brendan. The manager praised Desmond at all opportunities, expressed gratitude to him every chance. Brendan deferred to Dermot and, truly, to no one other.

This was Desmond who drew the heat when Rodgers' comeback occurred, post-Postecoglou.

It was the most divisive appointment, the reappearance of the prodigal son for a few or, as some other supporters would have described it, the arrival of the shameless one, who left them in the lurch for another club.

Desmond had Rodgers' back. Over time, Rodgers turned on the persuasion, achieved the wins and the trophies, and an uneasy peace with the fans turned into a affectionate relationship again.

It was inevitable - consistently - going to be a point when Rodgers' goals clashed with Celtic's business model, however.

This occurred in his initial tenure and it transpired again, with added intensity, over the last year. He spoke openly about the slow process the team conducted their player acquisitions, the interminable waiting for prospects to be landed, then not landed, as was too often the case as far as he was believed.

Repeatedly he stated about the need for what he called "agility" in the transfer window. The fans concurred with him.

Even when the organization splurged record amounts 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 to date, with Idah since having left - Rodgers pushed for increased resources and, oftentimes, he did it in openly.

He planted a controversy about a internal disunity within the club and then distanced himself. When asked about his remarks at his next media briefing he would usually minimize it and nearly contradict what he stated.

Internal issues? Not at all, everybody is aligned, he'd say. It looked like he was engaging in a risky strategy.

Earlier this year there was a report in a newspaper that allegedly originated from a source close to the organization. It said that the manager was damaging the team with his public outbursts and that his real motivation was managing his exit strategy.

He didn't want to be present and he was arranging his exit, that was the tone of the article.

Supporters were angered. They now saw him as akin to a sacrificial figure who might be carried out on his shield because his directors wouldn't back his vision to bring triumph.

The leak was damaging, naturally, and it was intended to harm Rodgers, which it accomplished. He demanded for an investigation and for the responsible individual to be dismissed. Whether there was a examination then we learned nothing further about it.

By then it was clear Rodgers was losing the support of the individuals above him.

The frequent {gripes