The after-party chaos at Celtic is the worst I’ve witnessed — and I’ve worked with some of the world’s most notorious criminals.

A veteran Scottish crime photographer who has spent decades documenting riots, gangland figures and violent unrest across Britain and Europe has described the scenes that unfolded after Celtic’s title celebrations in Glasgow as among the most frightening experiences of his career.

Brian Anderson, who has photographed notorious criminals and covered major public disorder incidents throughout the years, said the violence and disorder he encountered in Glasgow’s Trongate and Merchant City after Celtic secured the Scottish Premiership title was comparable to some of the most dangerous riots he has ever covered.

Police and fans clashing in the Trongate(Image: Brian Anderson)

The 55-year-old photographer, who now operates his own Naked City blog, placed himself directly in the middle of the disturbances on Saturday night in order to document the unfolding events.

However, what he witnessed left him shaken and injured after bottles and missiles were hurled during clashes involving supporters and police officers.

Veteran photographer says city centre resembled a war zone

Anderson explained that the atmosphere during the disorder quickly became terrifying as drunken supporters rampaged through the area.

He described scenes of total chaos while trying to photograph the violence from close range.

“I was in the middle of a war zone,” Anderson said while reflecting on the incident.

“I was getting abuse from the fans on the rampage and it was absolute chaos.”

The photographer explained that throughout his career he has often deliberately placed himself in dangerous situations to capture moments that others could not document.

Many fans wore tricolour balaclavas(Image: Brian Anderson)

“I like to record history and get the images nobody else can get and that requires me to be in the heart of things,” he added.

His determination to stay near the centre of the disturbances meant he experienced the violence at close quarters as bottles flew through the air and police attempted to contain the unrest.

Young woman knocked unconscious during violence

Among the most disturbing moments Anderson witnessed was a young woman being struck by a bottle thrown during the disturbances.

According to the photographer, the woman collapsed after being hit in the head by a missile believed to have been thrown by supporters.

Brian was amongst the chaos on Saturday(Image: Brian Anderson)

“A girl was lying on the deck,” Anderson explained.

“I saw her being struck by a flying bottle which had come from the Celtic fans.”

He said many of the individuals involved appeared heavily intoxicated and were throwing bottles indiscriminately toward police lines without caring where the missiles landed.

“They were so drunk they were throwing them at the police but not caring where they landed,” he said.

“The bottle hit her on the head and she went down.”

Anderson recalled seeing a bystander rush to help the injured woman after she collapsed.

“A guy who was sitting at the side of the road picked her up and carried her to the police cordon where eventually she was let through for treatment,” he said.

The incident was one of several moments during the night that left Anderson deeply alarmed by the level of disorder unfolding around him.

Bottles flying through the air created terrifying conditions

The experienced photographer explained that the danger escalated as missiles continued flying across the streets near the police cordons.

At one stage, he encountered a supporter wearing a tricolour balaclava standing shirtless near riot police officers.

“Another guy with a tricolour balaclava was standing with his top off with the riot police behind him,” Anderson recalled.

Riot police were called in(Image: Brian Anderson)

“I think he might have been trying to discourage the violence, but I was busy taking pictures among the fans and it was absolute chaos.”

He said the situation became increasingly dangerous as supporters turned hostile toward anyone documenting the disorder.

“It was so dangerous and I had to get out at one point because people were turning on me,” he explained.

The constant barrage of bottles created an atmosphere of fear even for someone accustomed to covering violent incidents.

“It was scary because of the number of bottles whizzing past my ears,” Anderson added.

Photographer injured while documenting disturbances

While attempting to photograph the unfolding scenes, Anderson himself suffered an injury after broken glass pierced through his footwear.

“These were drunken maniacs throwing bottles,” he said.

“I got injured by a bottle that smashed and the glass went through the sole of my boot and cut my foot.”

The photographer also claimed he was pursued by police officers after taking pictures of an injured individual during the disturbances.

“I was also chased by the cops after I took a photo of someone injured,” he said.

“It was truly frightening and absolute mayhem.”

Despite years of experience working in hostile environments, Anderson admitted the events in Glasgow left him genuinely fearful for his own safety.

“I eventually limped away because I feared for my safety,” he added.

Anderson compares chaos to infamous riots across Europe

Anderson is no stranger to dangerous assignments and has spent years photographing major criminal figures and violent public disorder incidents.

Over the course of his career, he has photographed notorious London gangsters including Freddie Foreman as well as Kray rivals Eddie Richardson and Charlie Richardson, who controlled sections of London’s underworld during the 1960s.

He has also worked closely with former Scottish gangland figures such as Paul Ferris and Tam McGraw.

The streets were covered in rubbish(Image: Brian Anderson)

Some of those assignments reportedly led to threats being made against him because of the images he captured.

Beyond gangland photography, Anderson has also covered major riots and protests across Europe.

Among the most serious incidents he documented was the so-called “Battle of Rostock” during the 2007 G8 summit in Germany, where violent clashes between police and protesters reportedly left around 1,000 people injured.

He also covered the infamous riots in Manchester ahead of the 2008 UEFA Cup final involving supporters of Rangers F.C. before their clash with FC Zenit Saint Petersburg.

“Mindless maniacs” blamed for ruining celebrations

Despite having witnessed major unrest previously, Anderson insisted the scenes in Glasgow ranked among the most dangerous he had experienced.

“I covered the Battle of Rostock and also the riots in Manchester at the UEFA Cup final in 2008,” he explained.

“I had to hide under a bin lid for that one and I saw another photographer being kicked senseless.”

“I was the only person who captured what was a full scale riot.”

Comparing those experiences to the disturbances following Celtic’s title celebrations, Anderson said the danger level was similarly alarming.

“This one at the weekend was up there with that even though it was smaller,” he said.

“It was very dangerous due to these mindless maniacs who are spoiling it for decent supporters.”

The photographer criticised those responsible for the violence and rejected attempts by some individuals to justify the behaviour seen on the streets.

Police officers seriously injured during disturbances

The disorder unfolded across the Trongate and Merchant City areas of Glasgow after approximately 3,000 Celtic supporters gathered following their team’s Scottish Premiership title victory against Heart of Midlothian F.C..

During the disturbances, bottles and other missiles were thrown toward police officers attempting to maintain order.

Police later confirmed that two officers suffered serious injuries during the unrest, while 14 arrests were made.

Mark Sutherland, an Assistant Chief Constable with Police Scotland, later expressed anger and disappointment regarding the violence directed toward officers.

He said he was “disgusted and frustrated” by the behaviour witnessed during the celebrations.

Sutherland also urged Celtic Football Club to take responsibility and help prevent similar incidents occurring in future years.

According to police, one officer sustained facial injuries after being struck by bottles, while another was left bruised after also being hit by missiles.

Anderson praises police response amid “pandemonium”

Despite the scale of the disorder, Anderson believed officers handled an extremely difficult situation as effectively as possible.

“The police did well to hold the line,” he said.

“It was mindless thuggery.”

He also criticised attempts by some people to minimise or defend the violent behaviour witnessed during the celebrations.

“Some people have tried to defend the behaviour but throwing bottles is never acceptable,” Anderson stated.

Describing the atmosphere on the streets, he added: “It was pandemonium.”

The veteran photographer even compared the disturbances to a historic urban battle because of the scale of the chaos in Glasgow city centre.

“I’ll remember this as the battle for Merchant City,” he said.

While he praised police efforts to contain the violence, Anderson insisted officers should never have been forced into such dangerous circumstances in the first place.

“The police handled it well but they should never have been out in that position,” he concluded.