......It's one of the worst conspiracy theories in the SPL.
Oh dear, don’t get me started on that.
I’ve heard it said too often that Aberdeen lie down to Celtic and only raise their game against Rangers. One reason for this, apparently, is the fact that we have a fair few “Celtic-minded” players in our team. I understand that the term “Celtic-minded” is simply a more sinister-sounding way of saying “Celtic fans”.
So we have a few Celtic fans in our team, it seems, and this may lie behind our frequent capitulations against Celtic, according to those who view absolutely all Scottish football through the distorting prism of an Old Firm lens.
I mean, given the preponderance of Celtic and Rangers fans in Scotland, it would seem almost surreal if each team didn’t have their share of them (at some time or another) in the dressing room. Not everyone can end up playing for the team they support, after all, and to pretend to yourself that once a player pulls on the jersey of your team that he’s suddenly a fan, as well, is just asking to be deceived and disappointed. I see it as no big deal and remain happy to trust in their professionalism.
Zander Diamond is often cited as an example of a player who lies down to Celtic. Those in the know like to pass around a picture of the the guy wearing (I
think) a Celtic hat whilst sitting beside a Celtic birthday cake. Something like that, anyway.
A few things:
1) I’m not sure how this picture came into circulation. If he made it public himself then the worst you can say about the guy is that he’s shown a disagreeable insensitivity towards his employers at Aberdeen and (the more excitable) fans of the club.
2) If he didn’t circulate the thing himself, on the other hand, then I think you’ve got to feel sorry for a man who has such ****ty friends or family. Or both.
But he’s a Celtic fan, no doubt about it.
3) These days.....Celtic frequently destroy Aberdeen and Zander Diamond is almost always hopeless against them. Rangers usually beat Aberdeen but the margins are generally tighter. Proof!
This dismal simplicity fails to take into the account the way that Rangers and Celtic play football, however, with Celtic being traditionally the more attack-minded team (wave after wave after wave), whilst Rangers have tended towards a more obdurate, conservative approach (save for the glory days of Gascoigne and Laudrup et al, when most Aberdeen fans would have feared playing Rangers more than Celtic – I’d hazard a guess). Or, to put it bluntly, if Rangers played like Celtic then they would destroy us, too, because we’re simply not good enough to cope with this at the moment.
(Incidentally, I’m not knocking the approach of Rangers – it’s all a skill to me – and was well impressed by their efforts in Europe. I always support them in Europe, as I always support Celtic, simply because I want Scottish teams to do well. I know some Celtic fans use it as a stick to beat Rangers with, but I’m minded not to care.)
4) I think most Aberdeen fans would laugh at the suggestion that Diamond, for example, is only hopeless against Celtic. Trust me, okay, he’s hopeless with a far greater frequency than that. Personally, I would like to see him shipped out of the club just as soon as possible – not because he's a Celtic fan, but because he’s absolutely ****e. Such a shame, really, as he showed some real promise.
5) To suggest that professional players lie down against the teams they support is to wretchedly impugn their integrity. It says more about the accusers than the players in question. Aberdeen are a poor team with poor players. When attacked with vigour, we tend to crumble. Celtic tend to attack with vigour.
Oh my God, I should stop. Sorry, Dev, I had no idea I had gone on at such length (a perennial failing). You get the jist of it, anyway, I’m sure. I think I had about another twenty or so dreary points to make. Deary me.