A group of Celtic supporters are fuming at injured goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel after he attended Manchester City vs Arsenal instead of the Hoops' Scottish Cup semi-final at Hampden. The player opted to watch the Premier League rather than a crucial match for the side that still pays his wages.
The 40-year-old recently went through surgery on a shoulder injury and will leave Celtic upon the expiry of his contract in the summer. He still works for the club, and fans expected him to be at Hampden, so there was understandably some shock when he was instead pictured at the Etihad.
Posting to his Instagram story, he captured himself with the Premier League trophy, with the caption reading: "Big game at the Etihad as well. Reunited with an old friend."
This story came after he wished Celtic good luck for their game against St Mirren, but some supporters saw the first story as avoiding backlash for the Etihad one.
One supporter said on X: "He's been stealing a wage for too long at Celtic. Yes, I get that the management and medical team also share the blame for this overweight, unfit goalie playing so many games. He played for us for selfish reasons, all about trying to get to the World Cup, doesn't care about us at all."
Another person said: "The worst part of it is the token gesture on the post before this related to Celtic. It's just so insincere."
One fan remarked: "Has he forgotten he’s still an employee of Celtic?"
But there are also some users defending the goalkeeper.
A defender said: "Encouraging a pile-on of our players isn't a good look. I frankly couldn't care less where he is if he can't play for us. Also, I don't know where he's based right now. It just isn't a big deal."
Another stated: "I would have checked out after his every touch was booed v Stuttgart as well to be fair."
Is the criticism of Schmeichel right?
Although it would have been nice to see a player who is still contracted to Celtic actually be there for their game, I don't think it's as big a deal as everyone is making it out to be. Yes, he accepted another role, but the club must have given him permission for that.
We don't know where he is based for his surgery. It could be outside of Glasgow. Julian Araujo was another injured player who wasn't at Hampden, but we don't see the same level of criticism for him. People are picking and choosing which players they are angry at, and there is no justification for this.
Schmeichel leaving Celtic can't come quickly enough. He'll be able to work in a better environment, and supporters will be able to finally get him out of their heads.
Add us as a preferred source on Google