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Merely a quarter of an hour after the club released the news of Brendan Rodgers' shock departure via a perfunctory five-paragraph communication, the howitzer landed, courtesy of Dermot Desmond, with whiskers twitching in obvious fury.

In 551-words, key investor Dermot Desmond savaged his former ally.

The man he convinced to join the club when Rangers were getting uppity in 2016 and needed putting back in a box. Plus the man he once more relied on after the previous manager left for another club in the recent offseason.

So intense was the severity of Desmond's critique, the astonishing return of the former boss was almost an secondary note.

Twenty years after his exit from the club, and after much of his recent life was given over to an unending series of public speaking engagements and the playing of all his past successes at the team, O'Neill is returned in the manager's seat.

For now - and perhaps for a time. Based on things he has said recently, he has been keen to get a new position. He'll view this role as the perfect opportunity, a gift from the club's legacy, a homecoming to the place where he enjoyed such glory and adulation.

Would he give it up readily? It seems unlikely. The club could possibly make a call to sound out their ex-manager, but O'Neill will act as a soothing presence for the moment.

'Full-blooded Attempt at Character Assassination

O'Neill's reappearance - as surreal as it may be - can be parked because the biggest shocking moment was the harsh way Desmond wrote of the former manager.

It was a forceful attempt at character assassination, a labeling of him as untrustful, a source of falsehoods, a disseminator of misinformation; disruptive, misleading and unacceptable. "A single person's wish for self-preservation at the cost of everyone else," wrote Desmond.

For somebody who values decorum and places great store in dealings being done with discretion, if not complete secrecy, this was another illustration of how unusual situations have grown at Celtic.

Desmond, the club's most powerful figure, moves in the margins. The absentee totem, the individual with the power to make all the important calls he wants without having the responsibility of explaining them in any public forum.

He does not participate in team annual meetings, dispatching his offspring, Ross, in his place. He seldom, if ever, does media talks about the team unless they're hagiographic in tone. And still, he's reluctant to speak out.

There have been instances on an occasion or two to support the organization with confidential missives to media organisations, but nothing is made in the open.

It's exactly how he's wanted it to remain. And that's exactly what he contradicted when launching all-out attack on the manager on that day.

The directive from the club is that he resigned, but reading Desmond's criticism, carefully, you have to wonder why he allow it to reach this far down the line?

If the manager is guilty of every one of the accusations that Desmond is alleging he's guilty of, then it's fair to ask why had been the manager not dismissed?

Desmond has charged him of spinning things in public that were inconsistent with reality.

He claims his statements "have contributed to a toxic environment around the team and fuelled hostility towards members of the management and the board. Some of the abuse aimed at them, and at their families, has been entirely unwarranted and unacceptable."

Such an remarkable charge, that is. Legal representatives might be preparing as we discuss.

His Ambition Conflicted with the Club's Model Once More'

Looking back to happier days, they were tight, the two men. The manager lauded the shareholder at all opportunities, thanked him whenever possible. Brendan respected him and, truly, to no one other.

This was the figure who took the criticism when his comeback occurred, after the previous manager.

It was the most controversial appointment, the return of the returning hero for a few or, as some other supporters would have put it, the return of the shameless one, who left them in the lurch for Leicester.

The shareholder had his back. Gradually, Rodgers turned on the persuasion, achieved the wins and the honors, and an fragile truce with the supporters became a love-in again.

There was always - always - going to be a point when his goals clashed with Celtic's business model, though.

This occurred in his first incarnation and it transpired once more, with bells on, over the last year. He spoke openly about the sluggish process the team conducted their transfer business, the interminable delay for prospects to be secured, then not landed, as was too often the situation as far as he was concerned.

Repeatedly he stated about the need for what he termed "agility" in the market. The fans agreed with him.

Despite the club spent record amounts of funds in a twelve-month period on the expensive one signing, the costly Adam Idah and the significant further acquisition - all of whom have performed well to date, with Idah since having departed - the manager demanded more and more and, often, he did it in public.

He planted a bomb about a internal disunity inside the team and then walked away. When asked about his comments at his subsequent news conference he would usually minimize it and almost reverse what he stated.

Internal issues? Not at all, all are united, he'd say. It appeared like he was engaging in a risky game.

A few months back there was a report in a newspaper that allegedly originated from a insider close to the club. It claimed that the manager was damaging Celtic with his open criticisms and that his true aim was managing his departure plan.

He didn't want to be present and he was arranging his exit, that was the tone of the article.

The fans were angered. They then viewed him as akin to a sacrificial figure who might be carried out on his honor because his directors did not back his plans to achieve success.

The leak was damaging, naturally, and it was meant to harm Rodgers, which it did. He demanded for an inquiry and for the responsible individual to be removed. Whether there was a probe then we heard no more about it.

By then it was clear Rodgers was losing the backing of the individuals above him.

The frequent {gripes