Celtic Diary Saturday August 30: Lawwellian Double Speak ?

Our glorious leader has spoken to the nation! And the nation has listened, discussed and has agreed on one thing….

He’s not looking very well,  is he ?

Lawwell on Celtic TV

One thing is apparent from the interview, he is hurting. A job like his is all encompassing. Its not as though when he gets in his car to go home at the end of the day he can switch off. The mind will be whirring, the phone will be ringing, and the red lights seem designed just for him.

When he gets home he can’t blot the job out and settle down to watch Breaking Bad on netflix for a couple of hours, especially with Kris Commons at the window waving his unsigned contract at him.

Or maybe he’s concerned at the response to the new catering deal, with an American conglomerate who put babies in their pies and charge a small fortune for fizzy sugar soaked water. ( They don’t actually put babies in their pies, although it may be worth considering, as  that would be a lot more palatable than the combination of biological trimmings that actually lies beneath the pastry. Personal taste, of course, in case their lawyers are reading this. Not that I give a toss. )

Then theres the upcoming AGM, where the Celtic Trust are lying in wait, with teeth and claws rightly sharpened.

They are not going to let the Living Wage issue go away. As they point out on their website, there are 29,000 of us shareholders, and only 2,000 or so use their vote. If we want this to happen, we are going to have to make it happen.

Celtic Trust 2014 Resolutions

And don’t forget his foray into the teenage music market with his new boy band;

Their single, a dance/ rap  version of the Wolftones “Helicopter Song ” isn’t doing as well as the original.

Oh, bollocks, thats playing in my head now…What have I done ?

As usual, Lawwell flustered beneath the studio lights, and didn’t say anything that we weren’t expecting. The idea to use Celtic tv is a step forward, though, because he is not subject to the interpretation of others, and can say what he wants.

This leaves us, the supporter, able to judge him for ourselves.

So, instead of me saying what I think, I’d like to hear your comments in the replies after you watch it.

Well, when I say I’m not going to offer my opinion, that would be a lie. But we still want yours, as they are at least equally valid.

Lawwell, it appears, had a plan. That plan involved strengthening in January for this seasons qualifiers. Being forced to mutually consent Neil Lennon, and bring in the inexperienced Ronny Deila plainly wasn’t part of that plan.

The idea was to bring in Teemu Pukki and Leigh Griffiths to fill the void left by Gary Hooper. That didn’t work, and there was a wee bit of panic when it became apparent that Anthony Stokes wasn’t going to chip in, and Kris commons is clearly worried about whether or not he has a future at Celtic. Quite why he feels he has to try so hard to impress is beyond me, but it does appear he is trying too hard.

So, when thrown back into the Champions League qualifiers, there were demands to sign a striker. We’ll never know if it would have worked, but the impact made by the other newcomer, Jo Inge Berget, suggest it would have made no difference.

Theres a lot of work to be done to get ready for the Europa League Group games, which saw Celtic drawn against Red Bull Salburg, Dimano Zagreb and Astra (Who ? They beat Lyon, thats bloody who ), but the first steps to a settled side will be taken this weekend, indeed, some have already been taken.

Stefan Secapovic is in. a five year deal, £2.4m heading out to Gijon ( Phonetically, thats a great title for a song… ).

Wakaso Mubarak is going to be a legend ( according to Wakaso Mubarak) , Scott Brown will soon be back, -Derek Johnstone confirmed that will be like a new signing.

Leigh Griffiths will be sent out on loan to Hibernian, we hear it’ll be announced on Monday.

Virgil van Dijk has told the club he wants to leave, according to the papers. That won’t bother Lawwell. He’s been touting him all week.

And it shouldn’t bother the support. If anything, it strengthens the argument for getting someone in on loan first, because it’s not only their ability that needs to be assessed, it’s their attitude.

And frankly, on van Dijks wedding night, I hope his balls catch fire and roll off the bed. His missus has probably planned that kind of evening for him sooner or later anyway, after his antics on the streets of Glasgow.

Thing is, Peter, we are all adults. If the news is bad, tell us. We can take it. Hell, we’ll even help you to sort it out.

But don’t try to pretend things are all rosy in the garden, when its beginning to appear like we haven’t even got a garden anymore.

It’s been sold off to developers.

Tomorrow sees Celtic at Dens Park, where they will be hosted and probably roasted by Dundee, under the enthusiastic management of former Celt Paul Hartley.

Time to get the show back on the road. Sleeves up and arms swinging. Don’t forget, theres always someone worse off than you….

In the diary yesterday was a picture of Islam Feruz, the greatest player of all time who left Celtic at the age of somewhere between 14 and 35, to join Chelsea for more money , to further his career, and more money. I know I mentioned money twice, but it is twice as important to him as his career is. He’s off to join a club I’ve never heard of now, and the look on his face shows how delighted he is at the prospect.

Not as delighted as some of us are, though. Little Rat.

Now, what about these guys . Whatever happened to them ?