Paul Wilcox, Chair of the Celtic Trust, has blasted Dermot Desmond ahead of the club’s AGM next month.

The support has made a major push for Desmond, the club’s principal shareholder and main decision-maker, to make an appearance at the meeting; something he hasn’t done for over two decades.

Last year’s AGM was adjourned early amid chaotic scenes stemming from unhappy fans in attendance, reaching a boiling point when Desmond’s son Ross delivered an astonishing speech labelling some fans ‘bullies’ whose “only vocation in life is to be anti-establishment”.

This time around, Wilcox and others are keen to see the main man show face. Desmond hasn’t officially communicated since his explosive statement about Brendan Rodgers last October, though fans suspect that he was the voice behind an unsigned club statement after fan protests at St Andrews last month.

Paul Wilcox on ‘Shocking’ Dermot Desmond

Speaking to The Herald, Wilcox said: “There’s been a lot of attention on specific board members over the past year, people like Michael Nicholson, Chris McKay, Peter Lawwell has obviously left, Brian Wilson as well. That’s not going to stop.

“But I think what this AGM really should do is bring into sharp focus the role that Dermot Desmond has at the club, both as a non-executive director but also the influence he wields as the principal shareholder.”

Further explaining the focus on Desmond, Wilcox continued: “Dermot Desmond is the non-executive director.”

“Dermot Desmond is the one who should be turning up to these meetings, and he has not attended a Celtic AGM in 20 years. That is shocking for someone that is a non-executive director that’s accountable to shareholders.

“It calls into question what this business is. This doesn’t change his shareholding of the club, it doesn’t change the 34% that he holds, but why is he officially being re-elected as a non-executive director when he’s not performing the functions of a non-executive director?

“And he has no intention of performing the functions of a non-executive director if he’s not turning up to any meetings. So, I think there’s a lot of focus needs to come into that because the board is in dire need of fresh thinking, new individuals that can come and engage with supporters.

“At the minute, you have a non-executive director that’s the principal shareholder that wields undue influence over what appears to be all aspects of the club’s operation. And it’s really hamstringing the club in many ways.

“All of that feeds into other areas like fan engagement, the communication that comes from the club, through to recruitment and the academy.”