Celtic prove their class again with Derry City gesture

Celtic have proved their class once again with a their gesture towards Derry City despite their friendly getting cancelled.

After the Football Association of Ireland cancelled the friendly between Derry City and Celtic set for this weekend due to restrictions brought about by the global pandemic, Declan Devine has made mention that Celtic have assured the club a friendly will still take place in the future.

Speaking with the Derry Journal, Devine said that Celtic have offered to reschedule the match in the coming months. He spoke about the club’s preparation for the friendly, iterating that:

"“We did all our business as clean as a whistle and Celtic were very impressed with how we went about our side of things in preparation for the game. We all went and got tested and did everything by the book and then at the last minute, the FAI wouldn’t sanction it as far as I know. It’s disappointing but at the same time, Celtic have given us an assurance they will have us over at a time that suits in the coming months.”"

Obviously a disappointment for the time being, it is entirely understandable under the circumstances. With Derry City having a match scheduled on August 3rd against St. Pat’s, a match in Glasgow would have left the side with less than 14 days to quarantine after travelling from Glasgow, leading to the FAI rejecting the match.

Devine spoke to the future match between the two clubs, saying that:

"“From the players point of view, the positive out of it all is that they will be promised a game at Parkhead in the coming months.”"

Derry City currently sit seventh in their league table with four points from their four matches played, after finishing fourth in the League of Ireland Premier Division last season.

Celtic have played three friendlies to this point, all in France, with mixed results against Lyon, Nice, and PSG in preparation for their 2020-2021 campaign, having lost twice and drawn one of those games. They have a couple more friendlies scheduled as well against Ross County and Hibernian respectively before starting the campaign where 10IAR will be on the line.

Needless to say, the club need to find their form in these upcoming two friendlies as any slip up at the start of the season can prove costly. Especially with the ‘Holy Grail’ hanging in the balance.