How Pat Bonner stumbled into organised Celtic protest while praising fan turnout vs Stuttgart

Celtic hero Pat Bonner didn’t realise it but when he spoke about the fan turnout against Stuttgart, the former Hoops goalkeeper stumbled into the organised fan protest.

Bonner was on BBC duty as he was speaking about Celtic’s continued ban of the Green Brigade as Stuttgart visited for the Europa League clash.

As James McFadden said the ban of the Celtic Ultras is harming the Parkhead atmosphere, Bonner said he still expected a hostile atmosphere after seeing fans congregate two hours before kick-off.

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Bonner told BBC Radio Scotland, “There’s 50,000 other fans in here, and they will make a racket. They love their European nights.

“And up against a Stuttgart team, they’ll be, sending out, they’ll be doing their bit, especially if the team plays well and that.

“So there will be an atmosphere in here, and it will be a good atmosphere tonight.”

How Pat Bonner unwittingly stumbled onto the organised Celtic protest

What Bonner didn’t realise is at the Celtic Fans Collective steering group meeting 24 hours earlier, a decision was made to organise throwing tennis balls onto the pitch as a protest against the board.

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And Bonner unwittingly described the protest being organised outside Celtic Park, “I came in, what, two hours ago, and it was really, really, really busy outside,” said the former Celtic goalkeeper, “and maybe people were coming early, because they knew the crowd would be big.

“But anyway, listen, the atmosphere will be strong. I know all this issue has to be sorted out and all that. But tonight is now a different type of night.

“It’s a European night.”

Was the Celtic Park protest a success?

In a word, yes. While interfering with the field of play is not everyone’s cup of tea, a protest is designed to create attention and grab headlines.

With the game live on TNT Sports, the protest got maximum coverage and caused further embarrassment to the Celtic board.

While a protest is not what every fan wants, if this board is to receive the message that change is required at the club, then these needs must.

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