Over the last few days, I’ve been ploughing my way through a number of articles, emails and comments in order to try to work out whats going wrong at Celtic. We can all agree that something is.
Whats to be done to fix it ?
Lets put ourselves into the shoes of owner sometimes operator Dermot Desmond.
We know from past experience he only steps in when he feels he has to.
We think, judging by the way the wind is blowing-and there’s been a lot of it lately-he’s already started to make waves, along with another billionaire board member, Dennis O’Brien .
I know.
Lets allow our imaginations to run riot…
Dermot Desmond and Denis Obrien, most of you will know that these guys are our 2 majority shareholders and that by adding up these 2 bhoys bank accounts you would be rounding up to the closest billion. We also know that at least one of these men enjoy a round of golf most days of the week and enjoys the odd trip to turin to hand out 50 euro notes… what is also known is one of these men have influence at the corridors of power at the irish fa and is actively funding the current managerial dream team of Martin Oniell and Roy Keane for the Irish national team
Now for the purpose of this story lets imagine that the MSM in Dublin actually enjoy seeing there flag carriers performing well on the big stage. Lets imagine that on the eve of their team’s trip to France they wouldn’t dream of publishing a story that would have no other effect but negative on the national teams players. Lets also imagine a scenario where our majority shareholders do care about the fortunes of the club they call their own, a club that they support and attempt to have the best interests at heart…
Celtic’s drastic fall from the last 16 of the champions league to laughing stock in the Europa League has not gone un-noticed with oor Dermot. We hear that after the Ross County debacle our man was straight on the phone demanding that action was taken to save the season. Imagine for this story the head teacher telling the deputy that his little project has failed and that he would be advising what actions will be implemented for the forthcoming new term to improve on performance and attendance
So far, we’re keeping it barely credible, but its our imagination, and we can take it where we want to…..
An agreement in principal that will see the return of the Messiah Martin Oniell with Roy Keane as his assistant has been struck that will see the pair take over the reigns immediately after the Irish national teams interest in Euro 2016 has ended.
Perhaps Desmond has noticed his toy is broken, and if he wants to play with it again, he’ll need to send it off to be fixed. More importantly, it can’t be fun for him if his pals on the golf course keep pointing at him and laughing. Thats serious stuff, you know.
A couple of our lads from the Lennon CSC were in dublin at the weekend, and my lad is still over there. Not that I’m saying that this is where the story has come from, especially as our CSc memebers struggled to remember what time the plane left Liverpool, so anything they would have been told would have been long forgotten.
And my son is an idiot, with an over active imagination.
Don’t know where he gets it from.
So, with Kleenex sales going through the roof near the home of regular contributor Monti the Zuma, it appears that Martin O’Neill may make an appearance in the hot seat again, which will give him an opportunity to finally achieve something in a team which doesn’t contain Henrik Larsson.
But what will happen until then, if indeed there is any truth in the story ?
Which, of course, there isn’t. Its merely the product of an over active imagination.
Several sources are predicting that Ronny deila won’t last the week, some even say he won’t last today.
Of course, if the board were to come out and state that his job was safe and ask if we could please stop all this tittle tattle , then we’d know it was all bollocks and we could turn our imagination to more , er, interesting things, which also could involve tissue paper, but nothing has , at the time of writing, been ventured in that direction.
So, despite winning two trophies so far, and being at the top of the league and still in the cup, it appears the experiment is over. Patience and sticking with a plan are just two things that don’t happen with this board, especially if there’s any chance they can abandon it with a move to deflect away from their own sorry performances.
As such a statement has not been forthcoming, we can only assume that a replacement has either been appraoched, such as another drunk claimed, in Gordon Strachan, or there was more behind the appointment of Davie Hay and Tom Boyd as club ambassadors.
Is this the new triumvirate to take us to five in a row ?
There is not a single Celtic supporter who would not get behind these guys, McNeill as figurehead, Hay as manager, and Boyd as coach. especially where the defence is concerned.
Boyd, in the style of a prime ministerial candidate , went out of his way to support the manager yesterday,
Textbook stuff, but at least with Boyd you know he means it. He cares deeply about Celtic, as he revealed not exactly exclusively, in the podcast he did with us a while back.
however, he didn’t add
” I have no interest in the job myself, or any job other than the one i have, but if others felt that I would be better serving the club in another position, I would have to consider it. “
Largely because no one has asked him yet.
If steadying the ship is whats needed, then these three, with Boyd and Hay in active roles, are probably the best hands to have on the rudder.
Personally, I’d like to see these two replace Collins and Kennedy, but my feeling is its gone too far for that now.
And O’Neill without a chequebook or Larsson ?
Well, he will be given some money, but not as much as before, and no doubt he will have to sell, if only so everyone can fit in the dressing room, but I suppose it won’t be dull around here next season.
And with Roy Keane alongside him, at least the media will be a little more careful with their words.
Theres someone else who wants to be in on things at Celtic Park as well…
“I have spoken to Peter Lawwell about maybe helping the club in the future. He knows I am always ready for Celtic.
“I have known him a long time and I can help get players.
“I work for a bigger agency in Slovakia now. There is more money to invest. But it is hard to find the very best players.
“With the money that Real Madrid, Barcelona and Bayern Munich have, how can you compete and get these players at 16?
“Even in Slovakia and the Czech Republic, the best teenagers are already with the biggest clubs.
“But Celtic do have a chance of getting players between 18 and 21.
Lubomir Moravcik, the man who joined Celtic when it transpired we couldn’t afford a proven talent like john Spoencer, has thrown his hat into the ring and has offered his services as a scout over in Eastern Europe.
Its worth noting that only piss poor Scottish hacks were ignorant of the great mans abilities on the field, and in Europe the man is recognised for what he was, one of the best number tens in the business. When he joined Celtic,he had 76 appearances for Czechoslovakia under his belt, and when he retired, they disbanded country.
If he were to recommend Celtic to a young player, then they would listen.
Are we putting the band back together here ?
Well ? Its my imagination, I can take it where i want to.
Now, if you want some really good news that didn’t begin in my imagination, I got this from Tom Campbell, author of so many Celtic books, this morning;
I went for my check-up today, and had an x-ray and ECG, and then met the heart surgeon. He was very pleased with what he saw.
And I am very pleased to report it.
The UEFA youth cup tie between Celtic and Valencia will be live on BT Sport at 5pm today. The game will be played to a conclusion, and the winners will go through to the last sixteen of the prestiguous competition.
So thats your fix sorted until the weekend.
And well done to the under seventeens, who kept a few of us interested yesterday when they recorded Celtics best win against a continental club yesterday, coming from behind to beat Benfica, no slouches themselves at this level, 3-2.
This link takes you to Alkass Cup website, where the team had been competing. something the MSM had largely ignored, where you will find a quite inspiring match report,
Sensational Celtic subdue Brave Benfica
Look, if that PR post at the club comes up, I’ll give it a shot. I can’t do any worse than the goons currently in the post. In these dark and confusing days, we need good news, no matter where it comes from.
Former shirt sponsors Tennents produced a quite amusing response to a customer when he wanted to host a party on their premises.
If they don’t give it to me, theres a job waiting for Mr. MacArthur at Celtic.
Come on, pout some bloody fun back into the game.
Todays caption competition concerns a superb shot of life in the east end of glasgow.
No doubt someone will ruin the image with a witty and poignant remark. Hopefully, anyway.
Anyway, i’m away to chill out and have a go of this customised version of a popular board game;
Its the same as the regular one, except you borrow the money from another game in order to play.
Caption ( i ken ) Monti and Charlie always the best of pals, you can see them in bed together at night,gonna put the krttle on Charlie?i ok darlin leave that feckin x box alone ya twat.
Last night i had my thoughts on who our next manager might be.
Tom Boyd/Davie Hay Legends,experianced and popular.
Henke/is he ready yet?
Keano/D.D.love child./P.L.nightmare.
Patrick veira/my choice but to expensive.
John Terry/Montis his agent.
Lubo I Love YOU.
I’m sure Charlie Saiz and I would get along fine on a night out, unless he started talking about his time in Ireland with the Army.
My mood would drop at that point.
I survived an IRA Mortar Attack in 1994 in the quaint little town of Crossmaglen.
I later said Auf Wedersehen to Crossmaglen and farewell to Carrickmore 🙂
Due to the fact I used to sing Sean South and the Broad Black Brimmer over the fence to the locals after a heavy Saturday night sesh in the pubs they decided to write this wee tune in my honour..
https://youtu.be/1siHLgXidUQ
Part of this story was made up in the spirit of E Tims and Ralphs fervent imagination … 😉
” So farewell at last to West Belfast, to the Markets and the falls, they quickly got the message there, it was written on the walls, Brits out “!
Ah, one of my favourite tunes Charlie Bhoy!
I know I am humbled that I was the inspiration.
Talking of Belfast… I was in my vehicle nea the peace line at Girdwood one sunny day on route to move some Barriers when a local mob of youths stated pelting the convoy we were in..
So the dick at the front decided to pull up and issue them some ahem instructions.
I had been forced to get changed very rapidly on arrival so had quickly thrown a combat Jacket over my top and slung on some boots with my jeans.
To the gang of youths suprise I opened my Armour plated door and revealed my Celtic Top to them as they prepared to launch another volley of brick etc…Stopped them dead in their tracks so it did and defused the situation in a second.
Some smiled ,one even shouted up the Celtic the others just stared confused.
Editorial Note: This is a true story based on historical fact.
I wouldn’t have thrown the brick, but I would still have told you to go on home!
Being part Irish I suppose I was sort of home 😉
How can anybody be part Irish? everybody knows its the Major Gene,that dominates other Genes.
Its to paraphrase the Deed clubs anthem.
Simply the Best,the master Gene,the gene that no other gene can surpass.
CHARLIE SAIZ
Fair play to you,mate. I have a fair few friends down here-Swindon-who were in the forces and right good Tims too. Not much else available then,I’ve never even considered holding it against them.
One was in the paras,btw,another might have been based at Hereford.
Another even made it to Warrant Officer,1st Class. Did better wi his life than most he knew growing up.
(For the avoidance of doubt,this is not an ad for joining up!)
Thanks Mick no doubt that will have gone down like a cup of cold sick for some but I was young and foolish desperate to see the World etc etc.
When I was in the Province I actually met and had a drink with 4 guys I went to school with within the space of 2 months and 3 seperate areas of the Country.
3 very good Tims and an orc.
Lack of decent employment (catholic in a protestant town) and opportunity can be a great stimulus for many a young man who seeks a good wage and some adventure.
Looking back I have no regrets just a wee bit less ignorant on the subject than some I suppose.
I would not advise anyone to join up now.
Fuck that.
Ah had a good Glasgow mate when ah lived in London he was Celtic daft, great laugh. He got in trouble wi the police in Glasgow late 60’s and got telt in court basically yi can do 5 years in BarL or join the army, he chose the latter. Spent time in N I throughout the ‘troubles’ Aye, he had a choice but he joined up afore said ‘troubles’ began. Anyhoo enough aboot that fae me.
He’s ma Bro Mide.
A real staund up guy.
Mike,
If I was John Terry’s agent, he would be captaining Celtic!
Great defender, a leader and a cunt.
Just what I like in a captain!
Monti,you just encapsolated some of my pals.
Wouldn’t let that clown Keane anywhere near Celtic.
He’s an attention seeking arsehole of the highest calibre.
Just like John Collins then.
Aw plum, how nice of you.
Plum,
No need for that at all!
John Collins is fair game though?
No Charlie,
I think ALL of us need to cut the insults out!
you obviously missed the comment deleted by the author
@bgbhoy
I must have but I could not fail to notice yours.
Please cut it out.
Totally agree Pum. Canny stand the man. Love MON but don’t want him back either. And as for Davie Hay…c’mon ti buck; great man, managerial material these day: eh, naw !
THERE MUST BE NO MIRRORS IN YOUR HOUSE SO.IF THERE IS YOUR A HYPOCRITE.
But I was promised 5 new signings the super Warb said.
Is today April 1st?
Can’t see it. Remember MON spoke about life in the slow lane? Well, we are in the ditch now and I canny see him coming back into club football management.
Plus, his ROI teams were/are pish to watch.
If and this is a BIG IF, they are willing to spend a million pound plus on a management team then Moyes is your first port of call.
Well, that’s my day of work f*cked then….lol….
In a good way…..
Ralph please god let it be true!
Could you imagine the effect on the Celtic support if Martin 0’Neill was appointed today, the response of the crowd AND team on Saturday?
In all seriousness, I would not let Deila take the team to the season’s end.
When I say seasons end, I mean winter! HH
Strachan in until the last fixture of this season has passed!
Canny see it happening Monti, but you can dream ( no me, you ) as for Strachen same applies. It will IMO be RD til end of season, they mair than likey new blood and by new ah mean never-been-Celtic-manager-before.
You would do well to remember the club was built on ” dreams “!
Good morning Ralph and fellow lunatics,
Glad to hear Tom.Campbell is on the mend, HH Tom and hope to see your name on here soon.
Onto another Tom now, Tom Boyd, loved the guy as a player and I usually enjoy most things he has to say on our Celtic, ( clears throat) however Tom I have to disagree on your ‘ support ‘ of the hopefully airport bound. Ronny Deila.
Without going into it, he is a disaster, sorry Tom, results particularly in Europe and this season in the league, is a joke.
Would love to see Martin O’neill back in Paradise as I think this would immediately unite the support and the place would get a massive lift.
As for mon being without significant funds and Henrik Larsson? You just need to look at the job Martin did at Grantham town, Wycombe wanderers and Leicester City, all without major funds and Henrik Larsson.
At least,at the very least the passion will have returned to Celtic Park….and so would I! HH
P.S. One key thing when it comes to possible funds, I think the players are already there, we don’t need to spend major funds, just maybe two or three key signings.
Martin O’Neill would get much,much more out of the current squad. HH!
Monti you really need to get that cough seen to it’s been plaguing you for weeks on here.
Have you tried Cunni Linctus by Bitchums?
Was that too much?
Bahahahaha!
Since Tom Boyd works for Celtic TV I dont think he can work for the club and talk down the manager.
You should listen to recording again It’s quite clear he feels rather passionate about the subject.
As do I.
As do I!
Never doubted that for a second Monti.
Thought you didn’t go because you work on Saturdays?
That’s right, but you can always change your job!
Good point, well made Monti. Will be good to have you back! HH
Only if he stands his round,if he starts his usual pish then hes oot.
if there are people out there that dont think the above would be the best thing for us just now then they are delluded… ive said from day one that the ronny deila style appointment at the time was the CORRECT move… we had to try something different… sadly, the man we brought in was not up to the job… he lacked leadership qualities and the players have treated with him with disdain almost from day one… from team talks about shagging women to ‘intense’ training sessions in gran canaria that he was not there for one of!! he preached of clean living, profesionalism 24 hours a day yet he was out in playa del ingles with some bird every day on the piss!! bit like the priest telling his parish not to sin but instead of doing mass he was out boozing with hookers!!! IF something does happen now then obviously it will not be mon and keane until the summer, and i would agree that starchan would be the man to seal 5 in a row and the cup… gone would be the attitude of johansen and in would be allan or christie… we do not need a massive change in personnel for the ucl, just a man that knows what hes doing and how to defend! this 4-2-3-1 with our current team does not work, and we can honestly say we need 4 goals to be sure of a win!! you tried your best ronny, thanks for the effort, but you must return to stromgodset where the fans love you and losing 1 in 4 is acceptable!!
mon the hoops!
Great post Bgbhoy!
Aberdeen needed 4 goals to win last week no cunt cracked a light.
That would be the Aberdeen that’s not put 3 past Celtic since Lenny left incidentally.
On losing games with our System we have only lost 3 this Season in the League.
That’s 2 to the second best team in Scotland and one to our long term bogey team Motherwell.
If it’s scoring goals that concern you then it’s probably just as well we have scored 90 plus this season already and more goals in the opening 23 games of this Season than in the previous 10.
Conceding them has been the issue.
As I have been stating all season this was always going to be the case.
Tom Boyd agress with me btw 😉
That’s Tom Boyd -Ex International Defender.
Now taking into account said defencive issues all season we are still top of the league having conceded 5 leass goals than the much lauded Aberdeen side who sit below us.
Why do they sit below us?
It’s simple…
We have score 20 more goals than them
Have conceded 5 less than them
And lost 1 less game than them.
Without playing well due to injuries and suspensions.
Tom Boyd agrees with that too btw.
Sacking the Manager right now would be foolish.
Like Tom said are we now sacking Mnaagers at Celtic because they don’t win trebles?
Because Ronny has a double in the bag and possibly another on the way.
What Manager in their right mind is going to take that on without having millions pumped his way?
And if we are having millions pumped his way does this mean we go back to buying success?
Are we a Club like no other?
Let’s find out I say.
so by bringing in a proven manager were buying success? and tom boyd gets the ambassador role and all of a sudden comes out in defence of the manager? hmmmm coincidence?
were sacking a manager because he asked to be judged in europe and its been apalling, ross county could of scored 5 and aberdeen should of scored 6!
cmon now charlie, you admitted there has been no progress, the stadium is half empty because fans do not like this guys style of football, boring side to side nonsense
are you and tom boyd correct and 30k paying fans wrong?
He said that prior to losing Denaayer and Van Dijk.
He said that prior to Mulgrew Lustig Janko Brown Johansen and Commons sustaining injuries.
He also said winning the League was his primary objective.
1 down 1 on the way.
There were less than 30,000 regularly in the 80’s bud.
Playing the style fans wanted.
Tom Boyd also brought up the fact even Martin O’Neill’s side won ugly plenty times.
Tom boyd is spot on.
Some fans ae not being realistic about where we are at right now in Football.
Winning a double is no longer the remit?
Fs catch a grip.
thats all well and good charlie but if we win the league this season, and at the moment its a big if then with the resources available its not good enough…
we have a budget ten times out nearest rival, yet we fail to beat a kilmarnock side who has shipped 6 goals to dundee in 1 game!! we have just beaten a JUNIOR side without scoring from open play…
we lost a 2 legged tie to malmo after leading the game 2-0 after 15 mins… then we continue to carry out the same mistakes over and over and over again
managers cannot be blamed for the odd individual mistake, but when we lose goals the same way over and over again we know something is wrong… this guy was a defender ffs!!
for the first time in our history we failed to win a game in a european group stage!
we lost the semi final of the league cup to fucking ross county 3-1!!!
you will say lennon did the same and lennon was removed for not winning the treble!! that is a fact
the experiment is over, we cannot afford another 2 wasted seasons in terms of PROGRESSION… winning the league goes without saying!! you use the term a blind man, well a blind man should win the league in charge of this celtic team
For the last time.
Budget has nothing to do with it.
We are not spending millions on top level quality.
We pay more for less because we are Celtic and we operate in an expensive market thanks to the fact we operate next door to the richest League in world football.
The fact we pay Stuart Armstrong 3 times as much as Dundee United did does not make him 3 times the player.
If it did he would be playing for Man United and not Celtic.
Charlie Saiz,
I would settle for a double any season…..on the back of the club showing up well in Europe.
Charlie Saiz,
Do you promise that is for the last time?
While you are not wrong that they don’t instantly become better players I can think of 2 that have had a year.
@Monti
Europe is never a given and we have underperformed this Season no argument from me on that it wasn’t good enough.
But that issue lays with the Boards reluctance to financing the capture of players already good enough for Europe.
The signings this season are not proven yet.
Armstrong Mackay-Steven Ciftic may well have been great at Dundee United in the SPL but this is a jump in quality even the likes of Molde Malmo and Maribor would pump these sides in the SPL if they played here.
Good as Van Dijk & Denaayer were they were still not that great in Europe over the piece even though they sauntered in the SPL.
I want what you want in Europe trust me on this but what I dont want is to go in there get humped and simply make up the numbers because there is a large gravy boat for Lawwell and chums to tuck into?
Of the £60m we took in from 2 Seasons Champions League and Transfers of Wanayama Hooper Foster etc how much went back into the side and what QUALITY came back in the way?
I would say very little on both aspects.
That’s why I expected us to struggle when both Denaayer and VVD left.
An average European Team suddenly became less than average AT THAT LEVEL.
What success have either of them had in the last decade while spending fortunes, in the last decade? You no the answer is NONE. Football has moved on and left these two behind. HH
Ah, but it could work with players in their strongest roles, a tweak here and there or actual technical training for the players.
Go watch the training drills on Celtic Tv plenty technical work goes on.
A players form peaks and falls throughout their career sometimes from Season to season sometimes even week to week.
Deila has had 3 maybe 4 key men suffer from indifferent form all at once.
That’s out of his control they are not robots.
Charlie I see a lot of half paced training. I do watch the training on Celtic TV. That is why I am so angry too much half paved running and zero technical training.
Correction there is technical training for the central midfielders and CBs, but everyone is doing it. Yeah our boys to cross with their weaker foot if you want to play them as inside forwards.
*teach
Bgbhoy,
Good post. I agree that a Ronnie type appointment was the correct way to go. Perhaps as a number 2 he would have been succesful. Initially I thought the basic flaw was playing a 4231 formation, but it has become apparent that it is more than that. I do not wish to bang on about these aspects since it is someone’s job at stake.
I Watched the Man City vs Leicester game at the weekend and the former played 4231. It is not a formation that I like but it was interesting to see it applied properly. The FB’s bombed forward and got the ball into the box, not by crossing it, but by slipping pass inside to a player who had moved into the edges of the box. When attacking there was usually 3 players in the box and not just the lone striker. I actually thought MC were the better team in the first half.
Usually when we play this system there is only one player in the box and he is asked to out jump the defence for the crosses that are launched in. Surely the players in the forward 3 are coached to get in the box when we are attacking down the wings? Related to this is the role of the secondary striker. We just acquired one, CKR. Maybe things will improve now. However, when RD came in we already had an effective secondary striker, Commons, coming off a very successful season. Did the manager play him in this role? Nope, he did not play him at all, initially. Then he was used as our most creative player, not astriker.
If RD goes and we look back on what went wrong, perhaps the orackle will tell us, he tried to change too much, too quickly.. Somethings were working before he arrived, better if he had left some of them in place.
Bgbhoy, if some of the things about RD’s behaviour that you reported are true, it is shocking and totally unprofessional.
Rebus
think that the mon /rk combination would be a masterstroke from dd as it would bring the fans back in there thousands, with the tribute act a certainty to come up it would put another 5,000 on the season tkts therefore paying the wages of mon and rk, as you said monti, the squad is decent with a few more experienced players and the passion, desire and heart the management team would bring,i think that it would work, lets face it could not be any worse…. cue charlie
Torrancetim,
Celtic Park should always be buzzing and pretty much full to the rafters, the old place needs lifting, that can only come from Dermot and the board, if they get it right on the park, leave the rest to us!
Like Bgbhoy was saying, I wanted Ronny Deila to succeed, it was fresh and looked like we were doing something right in terms of the longer view.
But the team looks leaderless, passionless and lethargic, the stadium is half empty for heavens sake.
The Celtic football club should be doing better, I don’t wish Ronny anything other other than good luck in his new job.
Torrance,
One of the benifits of that combination would be access to a bigger pool of Irish players,who would play for the jersey and another would be that D.D.would open the purse strings more.
Mike,
I agree about the Irish players, there should always be an Irish presence at Celtic park. In the boardroom, dugout and Pitch!
Nonsense Monti, IMO opinion pure sentimental nonsense. Race /Creed/Colour/ Jersye doesn’t shirink etc….
That’s how a Forum works bud you post something we all get to respond.
That aside… The squad is average on the whole with a few exceptions who are above average.
When those who are above average are not performing at their best or are out through injury or suspension our side then becomes very mediocre indeed.
Any real quality we have signed has been very quickly sold on for profit.
The time we hold onto them now has decreased too so we get even less time with them.
Van Dijk is a prime example of this.
If Erik has a great run in interest will be shown in him too.
That’s how it is now at Celtic.
The master plan is a failure and if anyone should be getting punted it should be those that formulated such a plan.
Deila has delivered 2 pieces of Silverware thee are 2 more waiting to be won.
Several of those better than average players have come back into the side (Brown and Mulgrew) several others will do soon (Johansen and Commons).
So you think DD eventually taking an interest in ‘The Mighty Glasgow Celtic’, because he’d getting ‘slagged’ at the golf is a good thing. ‘IF’ he is a real Celtic man why no reaction to the LNS debacle, why no reaction for the cheating against the club for over a decade. No DD only takes an interest. because he is getting it tight from his golfing buddies. We are not worthy. HH
Schoosh,
Very good point!
I concur bothe…. shit rang site …. ♫ ♫ (joiners whistle)
It’s called Delegation.
As Roy Castle said organising his final gig .. ♫ Delegations what you need … ♫
TBH Schoosh ah think Ralph was being facetious writing that aboot DD getting slagged. You’d need a few crackers in yer arsenal trying ti slag a billionaire….and for them ti care ( although Trump springs ti mind )
monti,
I agree paradise should be, but for a long time now it has not been, like the team it has went backwards, poor attendences, shite overpriced grub and a lack of atmosphere most of this is down to the product on the park, which has been poor so people are not going to spend there time or vast amounts of money to watch, this is not all ronnies fault indeed the attendences were down prior to RD sadly whether we like to admit it or not this is partly because the pigmy fuckpigs are not there, but they will be back next year in there current form, so we need a packed celtic park, we need a team fit for purpose which I think we have we just don’t have the right guy leading it, good luck to Ronnie in his next position, but DD seize the day
Lovely thought as it is and it certainly would unite a fractured support and give the whole place a lift I’m afraid it ain’t gonna happen. Our imperial masters will more than likely give us Stubbs or Hughes. Due to lots of different factors I’m giving serious thought to not renewing me and sons season books. Sad days.
Indeed it is, Goose!
Torrancetimebomb excellent posts today am sure we would nearly all agree that Ronnie can’t be blamed for taking the job and we wish him well on a personal level but its just not happening for him . The sooner change happens the better.
The only benefit of O’Neill coming in as far as I can see would be the return of 3-5-2 which is my favoured formation.
I can see Keane taking myself though if you think the dressing room is at odds the now wait till that time bomb explodes inside it.
Trying to imagine what he would have done with Commons after his outburst ?
Hooked back over the North Sea no doubt without the aid of jet propulsion.
What will be will be up until it happens no complaints from here about the current boss.
His season has been hampered by multiple issues out with his control.
A blind man could see this.
the problem is charlie, there would of been no outburst had keane been there, he would of had the players respect, the current management team dont, the lads would be too scared to fart with these 2 around, exactly what this bunch of prima donnas need
if they dont like it then they can go, just like ronny and johnny should of done from day 1
Keane is a time bomb.
He’s 2 beers short of a 6 pack bud.
maybe exactly what this passionless, scared team require!!!
The get Conor McGregor in as fitness coach at least his aggression is controlled and calculated.
Charlie Saiz,
Keano is a fucking God, and to see him rip up the likes of Neil Mccann would be box office!
Keano in!
His man man mangment ‘skills’ are shite Monti, ‘no man biger than the club’ ah think RK would think Celtic beneath him. Wouldnay let him near London road never mind the dressing room.
Bondi,
You know fuck all about Roy Keane, just keep muttering to yourself.
Ah Monti yer deluded. But carry on.
Charlie,
Agreed. RK ‘s influence could go either way.
Rebus
Bgbhoy,
I agree, this squad needs it’s baws booted!
There is a difference between Fear and respect , what has Kean done in management to gain the latter.Bgbhoy? ☘☘☘
Fair point Dan.
Aye with all of our solid defenders.
Impossible to read this as I keep getting told I’ve won a free app,and it is taken off the page.
Just thought I’d mention it.
I got as far as Liverpool-insert own joke here…
Five Big Cups in the Kitchen and some scally has nicked the tea bags?
Down load Ad blocker.
I checked my settings Chaz,all in order, it only pops up when I access the diary??!!
That could be down to folk uploading dodgy links 😉
Don’t open anything your not sure about bud.
Same with me Monti, the website has been hacked, can someone stop mobtraffic.ca from popping this annoying app??!!??
same here. some shite appears ( am no talking about posts ) every 30 seconds or so.
Just inadvertently touched a button and whole comment vanished. Shit. I’ll try again. Anyway, another brilliant read and a big pat on the back for continued quality. Don’t know how you do it.
I’d be over the moon if MON was returning and if he’s happy with Keano as his No 2 then so am I. If big Billy, Davie and Tom were stand-ins till the end of season I couldn’t argue with that either, or wee Gordon. The ‘letter from Tennents’ is a corker as is the whole post. I feel a whole lot happier and sense a really positive, necessary change. Cheers.
My wee grandson will wonder what on earth has got into that ‘grumpy old cunt’ when I pick him up later.
Caption: “Can ah watch yer motor Mister? Ye don’t know whit could happen tae it roon’ here if naebdy’s watchin’ it fur ye, if ye, er, get ma drift”
You can twists stats to suit any argument. Yes, we might only have lost 3 games but our performances throughout the season have been, by and large, insipid and boring. It’s getting to the stage now that I’ll only watch us on tv/a stream if I’ve nothing else to do.
Ronny seems a nice guy but his choices and decisions are baffling. I’d rather we took some drastic action now, when we can still win the double, than afterwards when we finish the season trophy less.
Were the performances boring last season?
The reason I ask is because we had our key men fit and firing we had a solid defence to build on and once we got the new Formation sorted we had our shit together?
Ronny Deila has not had that to fall back on this season so far due to players leaving and players form and injuries kicking in.
As a DIRECT RESULT form and consistency has been affected.
Caption:
Can we watch yer car fur a fiver mister?
Naw son ma dug can dae that
Can yer dug put oot fires?
I liked that!
I thought Lubo already did a bit of scouting for us.
If not, why not.
Common sense and Celtic rarely meet and mix.
He was probably asked to find 16 year old, but had to come in and explain. “Sorry Deila has made Celtic a laughing stock in Eastern Europe so you will have to take the slow and steady kids that might make it 1 day.
That will be why he signed Šimunović from Zagreb for £5m because we are a laughing stock….
Lol 5 million
Many reports have suggested £5m now whether that’s true(I doubt it) or not that’s all we have to go off.
The amount is not the issue however in this conversation.
Were did RD go wrong, well for one he never got ‘RID’ of the doubters and naysayers quick enough, we all know who they are and I think their belief that they are ‘Real Celtic Men’ is without foundation. I also believe he didn’t promote the youths quick enough, who would have bought into ideas and philosophies, ‘It’s easier to bend a young branch, than an old tree’. We all know what RD was trying to achieve with his system, but for whatever reason he was unable to get the ‘PLAYERS’ to achieve this, through them doubting his methods and having ‘NO’ respect from the man himself. The ‘PLAYERS’ need to take quite a bit of responsibility for this season as it ‘THEIR’ level of performance that have let the club, the fans and themselves down. It has became pretty clear that we ‘DO NOT’ have the quality of player that can compete in Europe and able to put in 3 top quality performances in any given week. And this brings it to the crux of the problem and RD biggest fault, was that he had ‘FAITH’ in these players, that they ‘Could’ go and compete with and against European teams while standing ‘toe to toe’, he never made us difficult to beat.
If it is O’Neil & Keane I’d say pfffft. Football has moved on and left these 2 behind, it would be uninspiring to say the least. The only good points I’d see in it, would be SMSM will ‘GET’ it tight, which has been long overdue, as will the ‘Board of Directors’of CFC. It will be an end to the ‘Moneyball’ experiment and there is no way these two are coming without putting the ‘CLUB’ in more debt again. Hanging ‘THE CLUB’ with another £20,000,000 ‘DEBT’, so that DD doesn’t need to take ‘A RIBBING’ from friends at the golf, is not an acceptable practice. Is it not the case that rather than pay ‘BACK’ the loan from O’Neils first term, DD has been taking £650,000 ever since, with the loan never actually being repaid(?), ‘EVER’. If it is these 2 you might as well shut down the academy today, as the team will be straddled with battle-hardened ex EPL journey men looking for a swansong and a game in Europe.
For me as regards the football side of things, Id like to see the club return to the philosophy of ‘The Celtic Way’ and there are only 2 managers who are presently employed and conveying such an ideas and method will getting results, on a ‘tight string’budget. They are Mark McGee and John Hughes. ‘Two Real Celtic Men’.
Only ‘MY’ opinion. HH
Were did RD go wrong, well for one he never got ‘RID’ of the doubters and naysayers quick enough, we all know who they are and I think their belief that they are ‘Real Celtic Men’ is without foundation. I also believe he didn’t promote the youths quick enough, who would have bought into ideas and philosophies, ‘It’s easier to bend a young branch, than an old tree’. We all know what RD was trying to achieve with his system, but for whatever reason he was unable to get the ‘PLAYERS’ to achieve this, through them doubting his methods and having ‘NO’ respect from the man himself. The ‘PLAYERS’ need to take quite a bit of responsibility for this season as it ‘THEIR’ level of performance that have let the club, the fans and themselves down. It has became pretty clear that we ‘DO NOT’ have the quality of player that can compete in Europe and able to put in 3 top quality performances in any given week. And this brings it to the crux of the problem and RD biggest fault, was that he had ‘FAITH’ in these players, that they ‘Could’ go and compete with and against European teams while standing ‘toe to toe’, he never made us difficult to beat.
If it is O’Neil & Keane I’d say pfffft. Football has moved on and left these 2 behind, it would be uninspiring to say the least. The only good points I’d see in it, would be SMSM will ‘GET’ it tight, which has been long overdue, as will the ‘Board of Directors’of CFC. It will be an end to the ‘Moneyball’ experiment and there is no way these two are coming without putting the ‘CLUB’ in more debt again. Hanging ‘THE CLUB’ with another £20,000,000 ‘DEBT’, so that DD doesn’t need to take ‘A RIBBING’ from friends at the golf, is not an acceptable practice. Is it not the case that rather than pay ‘BACK’ the loan from O’Neils first term, DD has been taking £650,000 ever since, with the loan never actually being repaid(?), ‘EVER’. If it is these 2 you might as well shut down the academy today, as the team will be straddled with battle-hardened ex EPL journey men looking for a swansong and a game in Europe.
For me as regards the football side of things, Id like to see the club return to the philosophy of ‘The Celtic Way’ and there are only 2 managers who are presently employed and conveying such an ideas and method will getting results, on a ‘tight string’budget. They are Mark McGee and John Hughes. ‘Two Real Celtic Men’.
Only ‘MY’ opinion. Hail Hail
So scoosh would you rather of allowed rangers to win every title back then? And not o had the memories of the road to Seville? Because we went into debt? It’s time to get real. Most successful football clubs go into debt to achieve this. We’re no different
I agree a Club our size should be able to operate comfortably with £20-30m of debt.
Problem is we have sharp suited men declaring debt free and debt is dangerous as they skim £500,000 in bonuses off the top every year?
3rd time lucky?
Were did RD go wrong, well for one he never got ‘RID’ of the doubters and naysayers quick enough, we all know who they are and I think their belief that they are ‘Real Celtic Men’ is without foundation. I also believe he didn’t promote the youths quick enough, who would have bought into ideas and philosophies, ‘It’s easier to bend a young branch, than an old tree’. We all know what RD was trying to achieve with his system, but for whatever reason he was unable to get the ‘PLAYERS’ to achieve this, through them doubting his methods and having ‘NO’ respect from the man himself. The ‘PLAYERS’ need to take quite a bit of responsibility for this season as it ‘THEIR’ level of performance that have let the club, the fans and themselves down. It has became pretty clear that we ‘DO NOT’ have the quality of player that can compete in Europe and able to put in 3 top quality performances in any given week. And this brings it to the crux of the problem and RD biggest fault, was that he had ‘FAITH’ in these players, that they ‘Could’ go and compete with and against European teams while standing ‘toe to toe’, he never made us difficult to beat.
If it is O’Neil & Keane I’d say pfffft. Football has moved on and left these 2 behind, it would be uninspiring to say the least. The only good points I’d see in it, would be SMSM will ‘GET’ it tight, which has been long overdue, as will the ‘Board of Directors’of CFC. It will be an end to the ‘Moneyball’ experiment and there is no way these two are coming without putting the ‘CLUB’ in more debt again. Hanging ‘THE CLUB’ with another £20,000,000 ‘DEBT’, so that DD doesn’t need to take ‘A RIBBING’ from friends at the golf, is not an acceptable practice. Is it not the case that rather than pay ‘BACK’ the loan from O’Neils first term, DD has been taking £650,000 ever since, with the loan never actually being repaid(?), ‘EVER’. If it is these 2 you might as well shut down the academy today, as the team will be straddled with battle-hardened ex EPL journey men looking for a swansong and a game in Europe.
For me as regards the football side of things, Id like to see the club return to the philosophy of ‘The Celtic Way’ and there are only 2 managers who are presently employed and conveying such an ideas and method will getting results, on a ‘tight string’budget. They are Mark McGee and John Hughes. ‘Two Real Celtic Men’.
Only ‘MY’ opinion. Hail Hail
What was that?
SSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?
Awe Well That will be that. True Celtic men, I have my doubts. HH
Caption… Monti and his wee mate Andybhoy… Ah fuckin telt yeez ah wid get Ronny oot. Didn’t uh?
Well that was really funny…….
Nice to get back to a more upbeat diary! We need to lighten up and enjoy our team.
Clearly there are some really big problems to be fixed but we will do that while still winning leagues. It will either need a change of management or the current team consistently performing well and giving us the confidence that the current ‘experiment’ will work.
If the Board don’t plan management changes before the end of season at earliest then they should formally state this and our job will be to support the current regime to ensure we maximise their success. I am on Tom Boyds side – and that is always a good place to be!
I also believe that stability until at least the end of the season is out best way of ensuring our fifth title in a row. With a Board statement we could then be united in our focus for the team.
When title is secured we can all reassess the best way forward.
HH
Napoleon (not the UNCLE one) only appointed lucky generals to run his battles for him. There seems to be an arguement being made that RD has been unlucky in his battles. Injuries are part of the risk of playing the game and if key players are affected the team suffers. The question that I would like answered is what ever happened to the fitness regime? I think Bill Shankly took the view that training was important but not to the detriment of playing competitive matches. In other words your energy should be preserved for the game.
HH.
Philip,
That is a very good point,everyone in every field requires some luck to succeed.
As for fitness or lack of it, i always think of the Lions among others who liked a pint,perhaps a throwback to the past but i believe if you have the talent you are 80 percent there.
Celtic have played over 100 games in 19 months.
We have had 7 weeks off in the Summer.
Aberdeen have played around 20 less games in the same time scale with 5 1/2 weeks off in the Summer.
The remainder of the League have played even less not having European action or extended runs in cups but have had an entire Summer to recharge and energise tired legs.
I sometimes wonder if anyone bothers their arse taking notice of these factors when looking at a problem?
Can I also ad we have International Players also playing games for their Countries on top so some of them ar eplaying even more games on their down time.
“There goes CHarlie and his Stats again …tsk” 😉
But we have the bigger squad to cope with the extra games. With over 200 midfielders on the books, we ought to be able to cope, surely?
As for internationals, Ryan Gigs got it spot on. The club pays you, tell your country to whistle.
Yes we have 12 Midfielders but then we play with 5 in a
4-2-3-1 Have had first picks Brown Johansen Commons Armstrong in and out through loss of form and injury.
Fatigue is as big a problem as injuries in a player.
So we actually have double midfielders all of whom should be CL class very quickly so realistically we have only played 50 games.
Stop talking shite mate.
I am just talking what the Sensi has said and putting it into context.
Sounds like another excuse to me.
Philip,
I think that I read early in RD’s tenure that he was shocked that players only trained in the morning. Did he not introduce afternoon sessions? I think this was overdue. RD certainly has some good ideas, even if he falls down on the most important ones.
I recall that early in Jock Stein’s tenure he went on a tour of the best European teams, Real, Milan etc and checked out their training. He brought a lot of this back to Celtic. One that comes to mind, which I have used, is running a game where at any one time, a player can only have two touches of the bal. more than that, they give up a foul. So, one touch to control the bal, and one to pass. It certainly improves both ball control and movement within the team.
Rebus
Bal is really a ball!
Rebus
We played these games as kids on our local rec up the scheme and on the street.
One touch and two touch depending on the size of the area you used.
Certainly used it at various levels so would be really suprised if modern coaches and Professional outfits weren’t?
That circle drill they do is one touch with the 2 heidless chickens in the middle Celtic certainly use that it’s on nearly every training vid they shoot.
As is Shooting ,Jeeping and crossing.
It boils down to producing it on the day and some due to lack of form have been struggling all Season.
NOT DEILAS FAULT.
That’s out of the coaches hands and in the lap of the gods.
two-touch gatie, middle of the street, tennis baw ( aye, that long ago ) unless we aw chipped in for a ‘mitre’ then it was 15 aside in the park. Hail rain snow or shine.
Boom.
Mibbie that’s why ah emigrated!
HAIL HAIL N aw that !
We used to play a game called Heidy Fitba…
2 a side or 1 a side played with a tennis ball you start off heading it to the opposing player he could chest it or head it once before shooting.
You could save it using your chest or head (no hands then you had to shoot back.
Difficult at first but after a few weeks the heading ability got better as did the use of the chest.
Obviously the lower you kept your shot the less chance he had of blocking it.
3-5 goals the winner winner stayed on.
We used to play it in the school shed area perfect sized pitch with a roof.
Us “Kafflik” bhoys always had the advantage having spent all our primary school years playing indoor with benches turned on their side for goals…
You had to hit the bench between the rubber bolt covers to get a goal other wise it was deemed over the bar (10 inches high ffs) or wide if outside the bolt rubbers.
Proddies used to get very animated after getting gubbed day in day out 😉
Rebus,
Some of the younger supporters talk as if R.D.invented fitness and science to football he did not.Where is the evidence of the teams fitness, there is none ,quite the reverse.
Ede Havalange the Ex MALMO coach said that his team could barely last an hour and he was correct.
If he was such a demigod things would show after 19 months its not there,we are going back at a fast pace with him in charge.
It wont get any better till he has gone.
Nonsense, it could get a whole lot worse, sitting at the top of the league, still in the cup. How much better DO you believe it can get, especially if the player DON’t want to work twice a day. RD didn’t ‘invent’ football science, but unlike NL he takes it on board. How do you explain how RD was able to drops NL squad by fifty, yes 50 kilos within months of taking over. HH SACK the BOARD
Where is the evidence of this faster,fitter team its you thats talking pish,the team is playing rubbish,i witness it every week,do you?
Neil lennons team was better organised,had a much better shape and the proof of that was both in the style and in the titles that he won and with the same budget.
Caption: The two bairns are the very reason Celtic exist, and the reason Ian Livingstone should get out of my club!
Monti? my club you say…..don’t make me laugh you couldn’t find Celtic park on a map
cheers Maryhill from one Maryhill bhoy to another
Now ,Now you two no fraternising on here,we leave all that to Partick Whistle fannies.
I will always support the club but I believe and have always said that there is a great team bursting to come out, and when you consider that our great club took notice of their potential and signed them accordingly, then in steps the management team…playing or not playing them in positions they are not familiar with….do I need to go on…
Honest Hoops,
I am totally with you on that,there is a very good team waiting to come out with a good young development team edging its way to maturity.
Put a good management team into the mix and there is a bright future ahead.
There is already a management in situ, just because the team has been lumbered with NL ‘CLIQUE’ has made his job twice as hard. HH
Scoosh can you provide empirical evidence of the ‘NL clique’ or is it just gossip?
The only clique on here is the Deila apologists that know nothing absolutely nothing about football.
Honest Hopps,
I totally agree. We have players and the youth for a bright future. In fact, given the number of midfielders we have enogh for two good teams.
If a manager cannot use the adequate resources at his disposal then no amount of time is going to fix that.
Rebus
The caption : looks like the two wee boys who famously asked the ice cream girl
” gonae gies a swatch au yer fanny?”
I take it the Rangers version of Momopoly doesn’t have the community chest card offering a tax rebate?
MON and Keane? Wow! But never Keane on his own. MON would not come back, could not come back, would not know what to do with the players we have, and that includes the good ones.Keane on his own, Lord have Mercy! That’s very good news about Tom Campbell. When Tom is back to full fitness,maybe he can guest a column on this forum? Hector, Ralph,make it so please! However,the anti-Ronny brigade won’t like what this wisest of Celtic men has to say about their panic and desperation. I’m pretty sure TC would advise calm and caution because he has a long memory. He would probably say let Ronny finish his experiment…which is the only reasonable option at present. If Tom Campbell says otherwise, I would give that a good hearing too. I might even change my mind.
well said Devo.
Caption:
“Who needs a plastic bag fur a Messi tap?”
Sorry but when did mom become a bad manager????
Not a bad manager by any means but not what Celtic need at the moment. Surely we wwant to be implementing a plan for the long term rather than a short term fix which is the type management MON has a record of giving to a club…….usually at a fair cost!
We tried that ad it’s failed
So you try something once with one manager and call it a failure after a year and a half without considering trysing something new again? What exactly has our plan been over the previous 40 years that’s brought us long term success?
Now is not the time to try another experiment. 10 in a row Is within our reach. The ultimate bragging and it will never be repeated. Who knows how far it could go
Sorry but when did your mother become manager?
When he spent hundreds of millions on ‘DUDS’ when in being in charge of his last two EPL club managerial positions. You been asleep for a decade. HH
testing
Failed!
Out of the car, Stirling!
ha ha whit the fuck is wrang wae this site today
caption
lets batter that new norwegian exchange student whitshisname??? ronny aye thats it!!!
Ralph,
Another great read. I find I look forward each day to reading your stuff. Since I read it, I have been asking myself why I feel somewhat underwhelmed by your predictions.
Firstly, on the interim side of it, I’d be more comfortable with WGS rather than the triumvirate that you mention. To my knowledge, TB has no experience og management and Hay has been out of it for a long time. i do not know how active McNeil would be at this stage, but he certainly has a lot of experience both sides of the ball.
Secondly, Keane will certainly shake up the dressing room but not in a good way. He has no track record of success at club management. MON has a recent track record of failure at the club level…..Aston Villa and Sunderland. So, I do not know how it will go. Here in Canada, we had an election, and a new government came in with Trudeau replacing Harper. Some say that the biggest thing Trudeau has going for him is that he is not Harper. I have a similar feeling if your scenario comes to pass.
Although I have been anti-RD for a good year, I agree that the way forward in Europe for Celtic is the development of youth. I never believed that RD had exclusive rights on that….other management teams could do it. All it takes is to put a good, progressive youth coach in place and for the manager to factor youth development into his thinking in the first team pool. If the new mgmt team do not do this, we shall have a bumpy future in Europe. Incidently, I’d be very happy seeing Celtic perform well at the Europa level, with the odd flurty into the CL. That is our level, until factors outside our control change.
Rebus
Great post rebus!! HH
This is the best post of the day so far. I would only want to see Ronny replaced if someone is gonna come in and implement the changes to the ethos of the club that Ronny has at least started.
The likes of Strachan would be no good for the club. He took us backwards in his 4 years in charge and was extraordinaly lucky to win 3 titles. There’s nothing that MON has done in his career to suggest he would do the club any good in the long term either. As for Keane, I assume people are having a laugh if they want him involved.
And agreed, the Europa league is currently our level at best. I would rather see us go toe to toe with teams in there than sitting with 10 men behind the ball against the big guns in the CL, hoping for the odd fluky result every 10 games or so. No development to be had to the team that way.
Celtsfan and KTF,
Thanks for the credit but there are a lot of good posts on here. Honest debate is the real # 1.
Rebus
Rebus,
I wouldn’t include whoriskey in that credit, he sounds like John Brown on university challenge.
KTF also spot on.
Development is key patience is king.
Unfortunately some do not possess the latter.
“some” being about 25-30,000
Was patience the issue in the 80’s Monti?
When there were an average of 20,000 going to watch 4-4-2 in a Stadium that held 67,000?
Charlie,R.D.did not start our Development Team,he only carried out P.L.orders.There has been and will continue to be great youth coaches long after he is gone.
I want C.L.football at Celtic Park primarely for the coffers of the club,something despite being given funds and no preseason travelling he has failed to deliver,for 2 seasons.
It was Tommy Burns dream and vision through the teaching of Guy Roux, to start the academy. NOTHING to do with PL, MON or WGS it is only a fact, that KNOW we have a manager who believes in taking player from the school yard to paradise and after watching tonight’s match he is defiantly on the right path and should be given his full tenure of his contract to see it through, no matter what anybody on any blog believes. Pished stained or not. HH
Yeah it was tommys dream and who made it happen,
It certainly was not R.D.but hey you watch his youtube video and believe that he is the man.
It is great to have a vibrant and succesfull youth set up and if they can progress to the first team,brilliant,but like Leguen he will dissapear into oblivian when he leaves our great club.
BTW he is like our past Managers in that he has a rolling yearly contract,which finishes at seasons end.
How much of the £60m we raked in over 2 seasons of Champions League and Transfer windfalls was ploughed back into the team?
Very little in terms of quality.
Who is suggesting he did?
He at least is giving some of the younger players a good crack at it.
Kieran Tierney and Callum McGregor have played 18 and 53 Games respectively between them under Deila both seasons already.
Under Lenny they would have been lucky to get a third of that.
Izaguirre got picked if fit as did Commons.
If they are good enough they will get a start it’s that simple.
test
Great post on the money.
HH
I would be great to see Martin back, but he would be a fool to come back as it could taint his previous spell. Also with the budget and wage structure we have i dont think he would be interested, the same goes for Moyes or anyone that has recently worked in the premiership. As for Strachan he is under contract with the SFA and i do not think he would pull a Walter and ditch Scotland. Part of me would hate him if he did take the Celtic job over Scotland. It is also doubtful he would be aloud to take it till the end of the season by the SFA.
I have not seen one single realistic candidate to replace Delia mentioned anywhere, sacking someone who is top of the league with no replacement lined up for the rest of the season would be suicide.
Paul G,
Replacing RD without having a ready replacement would be suicide, I agree. I do not think this would happen.
Ideally, I like to see a management team put in place which generates its own successor. This is part of the problem that we have at the moment. There is nobody within the current team that could replace RD.
I was hoping for someone like Alex Neil of Norwich. He is young, has had some success in both Scotland and England. Trouble is he would require a buy-out from his current club. By the way, I know that Norwich have slumped to third bottom of the Premier league….i still think he is a good manager, working with relatively limited resources.
Rebus
That would make sense.
Rebus,
He just spent £8m on Naismith, ” limited resources “?
MA thoughs N aw PG tips
the wee bhoy wae the box a matches in his haun smiles ans says this is the wrang street to be wearing that sash numbnuts
Mon & Keane…..Jeezuz feck….why look forward when we can look back…..IMO…If MON hadnt left he should have been sacked. One thing is for sure….the next manager better not be a rookie…..we need an elder statesman who’s been over the course and distance before…..who that is……not a feckin clue.
Jim,
Happy to help in every way i can,BOOM BOOM.
Don’t say it…Click here to cancel reply.
Oaft that was close.
CHEEKY CHEEKY BASSA.
Mike,
My post was in reply to Jim.
O,K. got a bit up ma ain erse the day.
Must be the sun,every time it comes oot i start to get up masel.
Mr. Sandman How are you,Mr Sandman are you a coo.
Oh Mr Sandman,well you get the rest.
@Mike
Enter Sandman…
https://youtu.be/uY3LAFJbKyY
Thank you Charlie I think I enjoyed that.
I lasted a full 24 seconds of listening to that and that was more that enough for my Sense and Sensibilities. 🙂
Always wanted a Troller.
Original post went missing but, to sum up, this is the best post of the day. Youth development has to be the way forward if we’re operating withing our financial constraints. If Ronny is to be replaced then whoever comes in has to carry on what he at least tried to implement. Neither Strachan or MON have any track record in that type of development. I’d eat my head if MON came back to the club anyway. Never gonna happen.
And agreed, I’d rather us go toe to toe against teams in the Europa League than sit with 10 men behind the ball against the CL teams hoping for one fluky result in every 10 games or so. A team can’t develop that way.
Rebus67 post by the way
Sake KTF, though it was mine. Ragin.
KTF,
Sorry but that view just does not sit well with me.Everyone and I believe especially the younger supporters talks as if R.D. was the coach that invented a youth system,he wasnt,our coaches in the development team have been doing a sterling job for years,Nobody is a bigger advocate for youth football than I,but we have a Huge budget compared to the rest of the SPFL,why cant we have both a great senior team as well? as for the C.L.I want access to it,primarily for the money it generates for our club and RD has twice failed to get us there.H.H.
Again ‘Nonsense’ do you forget that the ‘Mighty Glasgow Celtic’ let go of 19 yes Nineteen academy players a few seasons ago. You talk total and utter ‘PISH’. So who are these players who have come through the academy over the last decade for the sterling work that has been done. JF who wont renew his contract I might add. HH
Not sure how I feel about this possibility – O’Neill was my absolute hero first time around, but does he really have the appetite for the Celtic job or full time clun management again? I’m not so sure, and would worry he would be more of a Director of Football, with Keane (who has said he wants to get a club job after the Euros)as the actual manager. Keane wouldn’t be my choice and his track record doesn’t suggest he has mellowed any (didn’t he leave Villa under a cloud?). It might work, but I can’t see how unless we are loosening the purse strings. Makes FLetcher on a bosman in summer a done deal I guess, seeing as MON signed him for Sunderland.
Interestingly, in all of the ROI’s games in 2015, they played 4-5-1 in all but one game. And not a particularly attacking 4-5-1 as he had 3 proper central midfielders (Hendrick; Whela; McCarthy). Surprised me, given they have Keane; Long; Murphy; and Walters as options up front. I guess, using the current side, we could expect to see a line up looking like:
Gordon;
Lustig; Simo; Erik; Tierney;
Forrest/GMS; Brown; Bitton; Mulgrew; Johanson/Commons
Griffiths/CKR
Not too shabby a side, though I’d have Brown wide right (like he played under Lennon) and Commons behind Griffiths. But that’s because I think Forrest is insufficiently disciplined enough to track back – rather he loses the ball, waves his arms in the air, starts to lightly jog back, and (a la Barcelona in the 2-1 win) lets the Left back pop up and score.
Let me get this straight ROnny Deila gets panned for playing 4-2-3-1 goals a plenty now we are it’s fine O’Neill comes in and plays 4-5-1?
You couldny right this shite honestly?
If your reading this Mr Lawwell please reconsider this is what your up against.
🙂
BGBHOY
Nae offence,but the following phrase is damning of the players more than the manager.
‘ronny deila style appointment at the time was the CORRECT move… we had to try something different… sadly, the man we brought in was not up to the job… he lacked leadership qualities and the players have treated with him with disdain almost from day one’
I said after the Legia game that they weren’t playing for the manager,and they need reminding that their pal Lenny has gone. The club pays them,the fans provide that.
They should show some proper professionalism. It’s like performing poorly in an exam because you don’t like your teacher,self-defeating. There are a lot of fans who won’t forget the lack of application and support some players have shown for RD.
Hope yer fine and dandy,btw. Back up next month if you fancy a swift pint or six.
Mick how you doing. Yeah no bother give me a shout. Football players imo respond to respect. Not taking away chips and ketchup from the menu. He has lost them from day one
BGBHOY
I think there was some story about that wi AVB at Spurs,did the same.
Redknapp walked into the canteen on Day One,planked a bottle of HP on the table and said that things will change.
So did his squad,btw. There are as many players in Harry’s list of signings as there are grains of sand outside his rather nice beach-hut in Sandbanks.
I’ll call you nearer the time. Off to Dublin wi my Dad for six days for a wee anniversary over Easter. Fair crowd of us going.
Dunno how many will return,mind!
How about Nigel Pearson ex Leicester boss bit of a hard man,he wouldn,t be long in getting shot of the weaklings.
Pure sh1te
Err, what?
Give him a 2 day section first see if he passes.
PMP!
Above in reply to BGBHOY 928 post.
Caption: Well, young Peter, this is what we call ‘The biscuit tin’: never let anyone else open it for you.
And please, not Roy and Martin. Please.
MON back to Celtic?? the auld analogy of never goin back oot wi yer ex spirings ti mind. Its never the same, after a brief honeymoon spell it back ti the bickering.
caption the big bhoy says to the wee bhoy keep smiling wee man the daft cunt disnae realise he is beng dipped probably a hun ha ha
i think ronny should stay till the end of the season but if he goes i wish him well whereever he goes if he goes i would go for paul hartley wae davy hay advising him till end of the season COYBIG
good luck to the wee hoops tonight
Even if you think Martin and the bampot are right for us,we cannot wait till july,we need change right away ,or we won,t even have to worry about Champions League qualifiers,we may be second in a one team league
MON was my hero first time round, but not sure how I feel about him returning. A few questions for me – firstly, would he be the manager or, at this stage in life, be content with more of a Director of Football role with Keane being the head coach/manager? If the latter, not for me thanks.
Secondly, how confident would we be about success on a limited budget? Since his Celtic days, he’s not been short of transfer money at Sunderland and Villa, so not sure how he’d handle the level of spend he’d have here – bargain basement signings weren’t really his thing first time round (Agathe being the exception) and with both Sunderland and Ipswich Keane didn’t really show that talent either (he only bought players he played with during his succesful period at Sunderland – it’s when he had to look outwith that limited pool his shortcomings became obvious). . Unless it means we’re loosening the purse strings? But would that be sustainable, or are we looking at another 3 year splurge followed by a decade of tightening our belts again? Still, I guess it means FLetcher is a stick on for next season…
Final point, even with Keane, Long, Walters and Murphy as options, MON played a 4-5-1 for ROI, so we’d be looking at a team (current players only) something like:
Gordon;
Lustig; Erik; Simo; Tierney;
Forrest; Brown; Bitton; Mulgrew; Johanson/Commons;
Griffiths
Personally I think that looks pretty solid, but I’d drop Forrest and move brown wide right, putting Commons in the middle, more of a 4-4-1-1.
I haven’t thrown any names out there as alternatives to Ronny, who I think everyone accepts will go between now and summer, so here goes: Nigel Perason – built the current Liecester side (with the exception of two first team players) on a relative shoestring (basically about the same money ROnny has spent), instils a good team and work ethic and willingness to fight and scrap to the end. Has had reasonable success (two league title wins – League 1 and Championship down south), and went on a brilliant run at the end of last season to stay up, finishing 14th in the end. SLightly tainted end to his time there, so may be willing to take on a job outside England, and has a real “don’t mess with me” attitude. And we could get him in now.
Charlie Saiz: and why not a 3-5-2?
Gordon
Simunovic/Sviatchenko/Mulgrew
Lustig/Brown/Bitton/Allan/Tierney
Griffiths/Kazim-Richards
subs: Bailly/Ambrose/Izzy/McGregor/Christie/Armstrong/Mackay-Steven (Commons)
I like 4-2-3-1 when it is working well however I think the 3-5-2 with 3 defenders staying back and two wingbacks taking turns to bomb forward leaves us less exposed, especially getting hurt on the break, which even smaller teams have learned to do against us.We also need to spring something different on Ross County. They deserve a right kicking from us. A real Celtic team in the past would make sure they get it.
It’s my preferred formation.
Could Go:
……………..GORDON
……SVIATCENKO SIMUNOVIC MULGREW
LUSTIG …………………………TIERNEY
………BROWN…………ARMSTRONG
…………….JOHANSEN
.
……….COMMONS
…………………..GRIFFITHS
Charlie does my head in, Lustig injured as well as Janko,we needed a R.B.but all we seem to Buy is Midfielders and then we do not play them.Please someone do not send out our young boyhs on loan especially when we need them Darnell,Please someone plan better.
Darnell has only played 9 times for St Johnstone. Don’t know if he has been injured or they just don’t fancy him. I thought he was superb in the friendlies at St Mirren park at the start of the season.
Stats figures and a descent argument while never make no sense to someone with a turnip for a brain, are you Worzel Gummidge. HH
Why an arse Mike?
Sorry, I left out wee Roberts. I’d like to see the lad in action. Why not Saturday?
Gentlemen you do realise todays posts are full of semi-rational football suggestions, team line-ups etc and that’s just with Ralph suggesting Ronnie is on the way out?
Roll on the happy day!!!
Ps sorry Charlie