From Charlie Saiz…
Was left wondering after a wee late last night discussion with a fellow Tim online as to where most folk wanted us to be come this stage in the proceedings in this Years campaign at Celtic?
Personally speaking I looked on listened and listened to what Ronny Deila had to say about his hopes and aspirations for our wonderful Club.
And I liked what I was hearing.
He was clear and positive about where he wanted us to go even though he came across as a guy who had just won the Lottery but who was calm enough to plan what he was going to Invest his money on.
He had a very tough act to follow in Neil Lennon probably a tougher act than Martin O’Neil was for Gordon Strachan as Neil was a Successful Celtic man through and through.
Neil brought back the “Thunder” and gave us quite a few bolts of Lightening throughout hi stormy tenure as Boss.
Real highs and real lows…. Barca and Morton say no more real genuine extremes.
Neil of course was afforded the luxury of time and patience after all he was a Celtic Man proven both on and off the field and how much he got what it is we demand from our side.
Ronny had no such foundations to build on when the name Ronny Deila emerged from the Green and White Chimney Smoke at Celtic Park most of us simply went blank and headed for Google.
All that aside I watched as pre Season unfolded,took notice of the Youth getting involved and thought (prayed) perhaps the guy is not all PR and sound bites handed down from the sharp suited man upstairs.
I too cringed through splayed fingers as we crashed in Europe to Legia and Maribor then naturally wondered if he was going to be afforded the luxury of time and patience Lenny got?…a big ask for some as it would turn out.
I was prepared to afford the man 6 months to steady the Team and another 6 to set proper our course.
After all the loss of the Lenny Management Team coupled with the departures of both Forster and Samaras was always going to affect things on the pitch.
Especially in Europe.
Even more so as Ronny was adamant we were going to pursue a more expansive,quicker more attacking pressing game at Celtic.
All of this was going to take time,effort and patience from us to let it develop.
I asked myself several weeks after Deilas arrival what did I expect this Season given all the upheaval,given we have appointed a Manager from a much smaller Club and arguably a poorer League in Norway?
The League Title had to be a must as we had cantered the previous Season no Team had offered a challenge worth talking about so that was a given.
As for the Cups I wanted the Scottish Cup but then I always do as I don’t much hold much regard for the League Cup..never have only in the context of treble does it matter to me.
We all know how scarce those have been at Celtic Park.
So I settled on a League and Cup Double as I do most Years as I thought both were attainable given the side Deila picked up and the general strength in depth of those around us.
As for Europe…well that’s an entirely different kettle of fish.
My overall summation of Europe last Season was that we struggled in the Qualifiers (no big thanks to our Buy to Sell Policy and the timing of the departures)narrowly squeezed by a Shakhter outfit who I consider the most one dimensional team we have ever played at that Level ie a big punt into the giants in the box whenever possible.
The home game was exciting yes it got the juices flowing but goal line clearance and crossbar saved us that night make no bones about it we got lucky.
In the Groups I felt we were Average to poor as neither AC or Ajax were particularly strong last Season and Barca… well Barca just destroyed us.
I can honestly say that the Barca game was the first game in many ,many years I actually thought “Ref blow the f’kin whistle and put us out our misery”. that was after 60 minutes btw.
We were humiliated by Barca.
We got away with it previous Season defended for our lives and caused them problems on the set piece and break not so this time.
Lady luck went awol and reality kicked our c#nts in.
The problem I have always thought is this mentality of having two styles of play for Domestic games and Europe.
It’s not natural for a side to play 95% of it’s Football all year on the front foot attacking teams then reverting to a defensive mindset whilst playing on the back foot for the bulk of games as we have done in Europe.
We don’t have the squad for that and we don’t have the quality of player either.
It was only a matter of time before it caught up with us.
So it makes sense to me to deploy a System that caters for both and requires less thinking about in the long run.
Ronny Deila said from the outset he wanted us playing a more aggressive,attacking way in a Formation he thinks will serve us just as well at home as it would abroad.
I happen to think he was spot on.
Many questioned the set up reverting to one main Striker being Supported by 3 fellow Attackers.
As I said change is seldom easy or problem free.
So my thoughts were perhaps an extended run in the Europa for a Season whilst we add to and bed in a new Ethos and players.
So in finality was my thoughts on the Season ahead my hopes were a League a Cup and a good showing in the Europa a level I think we were at last Season.
So far yes there have been a few blips along the way but that was always going to be the case.
But I did believe we had the players to do it and the Manager to perhaps see it through.
Tonight we take on Inter Milan in the San Siro for a last 16 place in the Europa League, we sit on top of our League whilst still being involved in both Cups …a Final already secured.
Would I have settled for that in June last year?
Damn right I would.
after tonight it will be Ronnie Deila legendary Celtic man 2 nuthin to the good guys COYBIG
My thoughts entirely, so good post 🙂
Great credit has also to go to the players and coaching staff, they have obviosly bought into Rony’s ideas, the players are markedly fitter, sharper, and technically improved.
1-3 the night.
Cheers B man appreciated.
HH
“Lady luck went awol and reality kicked our c#nts in”
This may be my favourite line on the interweb!
🙂
Express more like thomas the tank engine , could be embarrasing tonight both on and off the pitch,the ticket office needs to sort out the way they distribute tickets after yet another fine
When you have a License to play in Europe d-head you of course can have a say in Europe.
Get bacl to your Train Wreck and pray there will be survivors this time son. 😉
You have an EGM coming up with a convicted shameless and glib liar seeking the keys to yer big hoose. Is that no enough for you wory about ya Hun.
The good news is that we are only going to get better and better.
If luck
Lost half my comment…..
If luck is on our side tonight I think we will win, but it doesn’t go our way tonight next season will be a different story. We will blitz our way through the CL qualifiers and compete well in the group stage. Domestically we will destroy every team we play.
It’s a great and exciting time to be a Tim.
we have to keep it tight at the back and get to half time without conceding then I think we will sneak it in the second half.
HH
I can now finally see the progress Ronny talked about during the winter. We are pressing teams well, our attacking play has more variation, the lads from Dundee Utd have been a revelation so far and young guys like Henderson, who I think can go all the way, are getting some game time.
But there are still questions to answer. Not only against Inter but all season in Europe we have conceded soft goals – individual errors, collective errors, overly casual – the awful article in the Record today about why Celtic would get mauled was right about one thing – you don’t have to work particularly hard to score against us. In a few away games we took the lead or got back level only to minutes later chuck it away. So there is still a balance to be found between being prepared to attack away from home and making sure we are hard to break down, and at present we haven’t reached it. I d be staggered if we come away with a clean sheet tonight, delighted, but staggered.
And I still believe in some domestic games we can change the shape and play with two strikers. Good as Brown and Bitton have been together, in some games, when we are ahead already, or if we are struggling to break a team down we could sacrifice one of them for another striker and change to a 442 system. Not saying it’s the only way we should play, but it would be good to have a plan B for when teams have coped well with our shape and we can’t get the goals we need.
I also don’t understand what’s gone on with Scepovic – Ronny gave him a run of a few games, praised how he was playing and then he has not kicked a ball since. I’ve always thought he looked decent and would get better when his teammates understood his movement better, but he seems to be the latest £2m forgotten man after Bangura etc.
The challenge for next season and CL qualifiers –assuming we win the league first of course- is we’ll likely need two centre halves – Dennayer away back to Manchester and Van Dijk away somewhere, more likely a Stoke or Swansea than an Arsenal
So I m not trying to be overly negative, the team is shaping up really well and Ronny has gone up massively in my estimation, but I m not ready to be unequivocal in my praise.
For tonight I would play the exact same team as last week – Commons is just not mobile enough, especially away from home and wont offer the defensive cover that Armstrong will or the counter attacking threat of GMS, an Griffiths pace and movement really bothered Inter last week and is more suited to counter attacking away from home imo than Guidetti who wants the ball to feet more. If he is any sort of shape to play I d have Forrest on the bench too if we need goal in the last part of the game.
The result tonight doesnt matter. We cant lose.A win would be some fete but a loss or draw is no shame in the san siro.This will be a night to guage the progress of a side/system gettin to grips with a new (to them)football philosophy and training regime.The futures as green as stormont on Paddy’s day. Re yesterdays fine,cunningly handed out on the day the noose is tightening on the huns for incessant/institutional sectarianism,could our hardcore fans stop getting us lumped in with that scum by summoning maratime rescue FUCKIN FLARES. The authourities will do anything to uphold an “OLD FIRM” fans troble agenda. Personally im a big fan of the green brigade and enjoy the atmosphere they generate around CP. Can you please be smarter than spfl,the sfa/uefa and police scotland,cant be that hard .Hit them with ure Tim wit a la Billy Conolly ,Frankie Boyle ,Kevin Bridges or deadhead67
A lot of good points Charlie.
To qualify for the Champions League and finish third place; that is my realistic expectation of Celtic. The odd season we might fail to qualify for groups/finish 4th, and on other occasions (hopefully in the future) we’ll make top two and get last 16 Champions League, but principally 3rd is the best we can hope for. Complacency is the reason we don’t clean sweep domestically, in Europe failure is due to our budget and habit of being unable to retain our best players.
So back in June if you’d offered this tie I’d have thought after Champs League – superb; after a Europa campaign – fair enough, especially in his first year.
Cheers Gerry I agree the Aim must be Champions League but I think the Board became to blinkered about the Buy to Sell Policy and it left us a bit short.
This Season could well be the perfect storm so to speak, a Season where the Manger got to invest in players he really needed (Armstrong and GM-S) whilst selling for decent profit the ones who wish to go.
By that I mean Virgil who was bought with selling very much in the thinking behind his purchase.
So long as we are actively looking at a suitable and similar quality replacement then it should not impact us to greatly in the Qualifiers in the summer.
We have a chance of a clean sweep and building some serious momentum under Deila a win tonight might just be a massive injection of belief we need to keep it building.
If we go out I would rather went out swinging myself and not just curling up in a ball hoping for the kicks to stop coming.
The New style counters the Budget aspect especially if we continue to do it for the full 90 in every game.
The 4-0 Gubbing on Sunday was a sign we have definitely move forward on that score.
Not even a hint of Euro slackness or fatigue they were all at it for the full shift.
Good times ahead hopefully.
Charlie,
Good piece.
You know my thoughts,as I was in the doubting Thomas camp.I have always gave Manager’s time,but Maribor coloured my judgement on Ronny,to a certain extent.
I have NOW bought into his 4-3-2-1 system.It is attacked minded by design.He still needs a quality striker to play the front role.
Ronny deserves a Treble,for all the flak he took from the media and fans.
I will toast Ronny,when that day comes.
Hail Hail!
No worries bud doubt is a natural response to change,failures and blips just help to feed the doubt.
The System is perfect we are now playing with 4 in attack and the additions of Zig and Zag have bolstered that as they both bring goals as well as pace and ability.
I still believe there is work to be done regarding the side and I totally agree INVESTING in a QUALITY STRIKER is a must for a side like us who produce so many clear cut chances in games.
The Van Dijk money should go on a CB and a Striker with proven European level experience.
The only other position that concerns me is LB I think we need to buy or bring someone in who is going to push Izzy for a start.
He get’s injured we have problems bud.
The jury is still out, should be in on Sunday evening
Fair do’s Doc but the signs are good no?
try to be brief: Still not happy with lone striker and formation (essentially defensive WW), the formations been used before and well beaten before.
Fitness trumping skill worries me as I don’t think we can compete at that level. You like your stats, look at the av distance covered by most CL knockout teams compared to last season. An increase in performance of 18-20% by guys in thier mid thirties would be investigated in any other sport. I don’t want our players to be tempted to go down the wrong road.
On the plus side: One of the best transfer windows I can remember. Armstrong and GMS have slotted in so well it looks like they’ve been with us for years. The recent performances have been of a high quality.
I might not like the formation or the lack of threat up front but we’re starting to play some entertaining football and i’m back to getting excited about watching Celtic. It’s been said before but I feel that it’s best summed up by the phrase “there’s a real buzz about the place”.
There is a real buzz about the place that’s a definite.
The Crowd was inspiring the team last Season.
The team is now inspiring the crowd.
As it should be.
HH
Anything we get tonight is a bonus, this is a learning curve, the big games is against the sheep herders on Sunday. So far what he has brought in has strengthened the pool, more importantly players who think Celtic.
The bonuses with Delilah is that there should be no more Baldes or Putrids next season is where he will show the new team he is striving for.
We want the rebel to stick it sevco COYBIG
Excellent post Charlie and I find it very hard to disagree with anything you’ve said. I was one who wanted rid of this guy without giving him a chance. I’ve eaten the words, the humble pie and scoffed the manky hat! I can see us getting a result tonight. HH
No worries Holy we are all singing from the same Hymn sheet now.
That’s all that truly matters in the end.
I hope we achieve something glorious tonight perhaps fate has dealt Ronny a wee hand with Griffiths injury and sorted the dilema out of who to start up top?
Go John Guidetti write yersel into Celtic folklore son…
HH
Nice piece of work Charlie. Although you are way behind Ralphs inappropriate joke stakes 🙂
Anyhoo, I agree on all points and hope that Ronnies Roar will ring out tonight and we will all bear the fruit of his and the teams endeavors to change, improve and take em on on the front foot rather than play rope-a-dope.
Cheers bud I held back a bit on the spiritual side of things due to previous observations in recent weeks 😉
Mon eh hoops.
hard luck Celtic ime proud of yese
that ref must have been drinkin wae dallas last night
I hate hard luck / could have been stories, but…. neither of VVD’s cards should have been given. The ref was conned. Would have been nice to have seen 11 v 11 for 90 minutes – I think we could have won it.
Still happy with the team and with the way we are playing. Never thought we’d get through, so more annoyed at the ref’s performance than disappointed at getting knocked out.
Big Virgil has been doing that tackle in Scotland since he arrived with no problem from any referee.
The linesman who was goal side flagged it straight away I think he made the refs mind up myself.
Poor call.
The second was a foul and a poor error of judgement by Van Dijk who I think has shown his naivety a bit tonight at this level.
On Van Dijk I think if he has any plans on competing in the Champions League any time soon he might want to consider stopping at Celtic for another 2 Seasons because I don’t think he’s quite as advanced as he seems to think he is.
At his level the frontmen can mug you in a flash.
He needs to fine tune the art of Central Defending I think.
What tackle? Big Virgil barely breathed on him, diving bastard disgraces have conned us again.
I was impressed that Van Dijk left the pitch without protest and didn’t feel the need to deck the diving, cheating, scumbag bastard and bite the eyes right out his skull.
Superb analysis Charlie. The Lady Luck line is genius.
Now the Hun is trying to get the word Hun banned as anti Protestant .I have been using it since the Sixties when we regularly humped them then watched as they left early for home. Purely a football fan term for the departing Rangers Fans .Go Home Ya Huns.sung in repetition.they are so sensitive when they want a wee 3 letter word used by most supporters in Scotland banned. I thought they were a non racist multi cultural support so when used to describe them en masse how can the word be anti Protestant. So sad ,Everybody Hates us we don’t care, when they really do.
On the singing of go home ya huns…
http://youtu.be/BayuAhAiI1w?t=18m36s
How can these same people be upset about opposition fans singing this back at them?
CS why did u make me watch 15 mins of the Hun repertoire before the punchline. Must have been a lot of Protestants in that Bayern team then.
The Video starts on the singing bud.
18m 36s in 😉
So who is not on Board the Deila Express then?
Aberdeen were great first half, we looked a bit jaded and disjointed first half but like all good sides took the one chance we had and buried it.
Thought Efe Ambrose at LB was an inspired move myself he had a terrific game I thought.
Second half the fitness, the positive mentality Deila has installed came through you would be forgiven for thinking Aberdeen faced Inter Milan with 10 men for 60 minutes 3 nights ago not Celtic.
Superb Champions display the treble is now definitely on Bhoys.
my mate is still waiting until the end of the season before deciding. He just can’t admit he got it wrong.
And Guidetti screwed up at least 3 of the easiest chances he’s likely to get – he’s making Balde look like a centre forward.
Lol Is he Argentinian by any chance andy?
I think Guidetti is a good bit off the finished article and along way off the “Super Swede”shite ,many hung round his neck early doors.
Best thing that could happen is he plays mediocre till the end of the Season and we pick him up for free as others lose interest.
I’d keep Griffiths and Guidetti and have a clearout with the rest at the end of the Season.
We need to find a quality finisher for next Seasons CL push.