Why have Nancy's tactics board & green shoes caused consternation?

If you told Wilfried Nancy that his handheld tactics board and choice of footwear would dominate the fallout from a debut defeat as Celtic manager, you'd probably have some explaining to do.

Tell any Scottish football fan, however, and they wouldn't bat an eyelid.

After all, it was only a matter of months ago that Russell Martin's decision not to wear a suit - or brown shoes - was making it more difficult for him to win over some Rangers fans.

The fact it was then viewed as some kind of small win for replacement head coach Danny Rohl to not make that same mistake was pretty bizarre.

That's the daft discourse we've become accustomed to within Scottish football, but why should it matter? And does it have to stop?

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Why are we talking about this?

In the aftermath of Celtic's defeat by Hearts on Sunday, BBC Scotland pundits Jackie McNamara and Neil McCann referenced the memes that would be on the way after Nancy was seen using a small tactics board in the home dugout.

They were right. Social media was almost instantly flooded with images edited with AI assistance.

Nobody is trying to police light-hearted patter - something Scottish football fans do best - but the media fallout since has felt even more excessive than usual.

Yes, we can hear you crying irony as you read another piece of content relating to this issue.

Former Celtic striker Chris Sutton reacted to a newspaper column by ex-Hearts forward Ryan Stevenson, labelling it "one of the dumbest and most backward takes" he had ever heard.

Stevenson had lambasted Nancy for pulling out a "little tactics board" and wearing eye-catching green and white trainers.

Former Celtic player Scott Allan, meanwhile, described it all as a "massive overreaction".

"The tactics board thing is immaterial to anything," he said on the BBC's Scottish Football Podcast.

"The guy's in the door two days. He doesn't speak perfect English. He doesn't know everybody yet, so he's trying to show somebody something via a tool.

"The reaction to things like that, I think we should be better."

'Nancy reaction way over the top'

But why does this even need to be a topic of discussion?

Putting jibes between supporters to one side, does the savagery from pundits and media come from a place of snobbery?

There have been suggestions the optics of the tactics board weren't great, but if Celtic had won those very suggestions would be non-existent.

They didn't win, of course, but why shouldn't a manager use the tools they feel benefit them?

Then you can factor in that Nancy had just a handful of hours on the training pitch with his team before Sunday.

Former Rangers coach McCann said himself that players often prefer to see tactical information visualised.

Ever wondered what coaches are looking at on the iPad propped up in the dugout? Shock to the system here, but they're not ordering a takeaway or catching up with their new favourite series.

Sure, fans want positive first impressions from their manager, and perhaps some of the Celtic support had toes curling when they saw Nancy's mini tactics board while their side were 2-0 down at home.

That can be true while also recognising that the fallout has been extreme.

"I think the reaction really has been over the top," says Celtic fan podcaster Paul John Dykes. "You've got the visual element - let's get the message across quickly.

"After the second tactical switch, we create five chances. If we pull the two-goal deficit back, he's a genius and the tactics board's genius."