Former Celtic manager Martin O’Neill believes that whatever happens in the aftermath of yesterday’s HMRC victory in the ‘big tax case’ it will not hold significant bearing on the perception of his tenure in Glasgow.
The ruling from the Court of Session in Edinburgh that the use of undeclared EBTs broke tax rules has once more thrown into question the suggestion that the Ibrox club could be stripped of honours won during the years between 2001 and 2010, when the untaxed salary payments where in use.
Rangers won five league titles and four Scottish Cups during that time-span and yesterday’s ruling underlines the theory that they gained an unsporting advantage by enticing players to the club that they otherwise would not have been able to afford.
Lord Nimmo Smith ruled in 2013 that Rangers would not be stripped of honours accumulated during this time but yesterday’s ruling could see that overturned.
O’Neill, though, was reluctant to advocate any retrospective punishment despite the fact that Celtic lost out on two final day titles under his tenure at the club in 2003 and 2005, insisting that whatever action is taken years later does little to affect what happened at the time.
“What is comes down to is this: there were titles and cups that were won and lost on a field of play when two teams went up against one another,” he said. “You do not know what is going on at a football club behind the scenes and you assume that everything is as it appears.
“But these games were played a long time ago and as far as I am concerned, all these years later my emotions have not changed in terms of how I recall those great days of winning the title with Celtic and the bitter disappointment when we did not. Memories of times of great joy and times of loss stay the same.
“There is nothing that can change how I feel about those experiences. The games were won and lost at the time and there is nothing now that is going to change that.
“It is not as if you are going to feel any better about for it, whatever happens.”
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