Another day in pre-season brings contrasting fortunes for Celtic and their rivals Rangers as they prepare for the upcoming campaign.
While the Bhoys are making strides on their USA tour, playing against teams like DC United and Manchester City, Rangers are grappling with a series of setbacks. Their stadium remains unfit for hosting games, they are losing friendly matches, and pundits like Kris Boyd are speculating that manager Philippe Clement might be on the verge of quitting.
The turmoil continued on Wednesday night when Clement, in an unusual move, returned to an already concluded press conference to announce that Todd Cantwell had requested to leave the club and was subsequently demoted to training with the B team, as reported by Sky Sports.
Since his arrival in Scotland, Cantwell has often been a target for Celtic supporters’ mockery and jabs from figures like Chris Sutton.
Todd Cantwell’s Misstep on Callum McGregor
Cantwell has sometimes fueled the banter himself. In April, he made peculiar comments to Sky Sports, suggesting he had a greater desire to win trophies than Celtic captain Callum McGregor. Cantwell stated, “There’s a rivalry there, right? Listen, there are things which are said on the pitch and things which are said off the pitch. And, as a player, I think you should respect. I want to win probably just as much as he (McGregor) does, probably a little bit more, to be honest, because he has been up here a long time. It’s a rivalry, it’s a competition. Both teams want to win, both teams need to win. It stops there, that’s all it is.”
McGregor, who has never lost a cup final and has secured 22 trophies in his decade with Celtic, made Cantwell’s comments seem ill-considered at the time, and they appear even more misguided now.
Cantwell’s recent admission that he wants to leave Rangers contrasts sharply with McGregor’s unwavering commitment and success. McGregor has consistently been a standout in the derby, rising through Celtic’s ranks from the academy to dominate the rivalry.
Clearly, there are levels to this game, and McGregor is on a different one compared to Cantwell, despite Cantwell’s assertion that he has more desire to win.