Brendan Rodgers clearly announced who is really in charge at Celtic with the announcement of his assistant manager yesterday, and it was certainly his own decision.
CELTIC Football Club announced today that it has appointed Chris Davies as assistant manager. Chris will join Celtic on June 1, 2016, from Reading FC where he is currently first-team coach.
Chris, has worked closely with Celtic’s new manager Brendan Rodgers over a number of years, joining him at both Swansea and Liverpool.
Celtic manager, Brendan Rodgers said: “I am delighted to bring Chris to Celtic, he is a magnificent coach and someone I know will make a hugely positive contribution to the club.
“He is ready and prepared for the challenge at Celtic and I know that Chris, like myself, can’t wait to get going next season.
“He has worked with me previously, he is someone I know and trust and he will be a great addition to my team and to the club.”
Chris Davies added: “Celtic is huge club with such a special place in world football. It is a great honour and a proud moment for me to be named assistant manager.
“I saw the scenes at Celtic Park on Monday and there are not many clubs or fans in the world who could have put on such a show.
“We know what Celtic fans bring to the club and we want to reward our fans every week with entertaining football that gets results.
“I have worked with Brendan over a number of years, as a player and a coach, and it will be fantastic to team up with him again. I know all about his affection for Celtic and his appetite for taking on this great job.
“I am looking forward to meeting all the players and staff and working with them to give the supporters a team to be proud of.”
Despite talk that Neil Lennon, John hughes or Mark Warburton would be installed, to offer advice on the Scottish football scene, Rodgers has put down a marker from day one that he will pick his own backroom staff, probably giving one or two others a sleepless night or two into the bargain.
The importance of this cannot be underestimated. Rodgers knows he can trust Davies, and it eliminates any of the kind of talk that surrounded the Deila / Collins relationship where even if it was entirely straightforward, there was always the rumour that the two didn’t work as closely together as they should have.
Deila didn’t stamp his authority at the beginning, which is the only time the manager really has the control to shape his own environment, and paid the price. The more experienced ridgers isn’t going to allow that to happen.
What do we know of Davies, the man he’s bringing in to help him ?
Davies signed a professional scholarship with Reading, aged 16, where he captained the youth team coached byBrendan Rodgers.[1] He was also capped for the Wales Under-17, 18 and 19 team.[2]
Despite appearing regularly for the Reading reserve team, Davies was forced to retire from professional football in 2004, at the age of 19, due to injury.[3]
In 2004, Davies started at Loughborough University, where he studied Sport Science,[4] while undertaking his UEFA coaching licences and various youth coaching roles. Davies graduated with 1st class honours in 2007.
In 2007, Davies then went on to be a youth coach in New Zealand for three years. Most notably with Hawke’s Bay United who were coached by Bobby and Jonathan Gould.[5]
Upon his return in 2010, aged 25, Davies was recruited as an assistant coach by Brendan Rodgers, who was the newly appointed Swansea City manager.[6] In their first season Swansea City were promoted to the Premier League.[7]
Davies moved with Rodgers to Liverpool as one of his assistants in June 2012.[8] In January 2014, Davies was accepted onto the UEFA Pro Licence Course and completed his UEFA Pro Licence in 2016.[3] Davies left his position at Liverpool on 8 October 2015.[9]
Davies rejoined Reading on 1 January 2016 as their first team coach.[10] At 30-years-old, Davies became the youngest first team coach in the club’s history.[10
In 2007 he was arrested for climbing up a statue of King William in Torbay, Devon in a drunken attempt to place a green and white hooped scarf around its neck. When police arrived he sang two verses of the Wolfetones “Helicopter song ” before jumping over the promenade fence and shouting “you’ll never take me alive coppers. ”
Oh, wait now.
That was me.
Look, he’s obviously a good coach. And we should be glad to have him.
But he’s dull. Which is good, I suppose. He’s obviously conscientious, which is a shame, forcing me to look up the correct spelling, dedicated , hard working, and any other words you would want to see on someones C.V. , but everyone needs to go out and break a few windows from time to time.
however, if the stories about Brendan Rodgers and that transvestite are true, then perhaps its a matter of balance.
The working relationship, that is, not any frolicking.
Theres a video of how him explaining how he goes about his job online somewhere, which I’m sure will be riveting.
Rodgers is the man manager of the two, Davies the technician. Thats how it should be, the two should work together.
Charlie Mulgrew , out of contract this summer, has spoken about a chat he had with the new manager…
“It was brilliant to take a call from the new gaffer .I’ve always said I’m happy at Celtic, that I love playing for the club, and that I wanted to get things sorted out. That hasn’t changed, so it’s great to have Brendan Rodgers tell me directly he wants to keep me.”
“He texted me late on Tuesday night, and then we had a conversation on Wednesday afternoon which was fantastic. Nothing has been agreed, we still need to sit around the table and agree a contract. But we had a good chat, and hopefully we can now get things sorted out,”
Celtic are short on experienced pro’s, and Mulgrew is said to be the only one of those who didn’t turn on Deila, so its no surprise Rodgers wants to keep him. He’s loyal, hard working, experienced and someone the youngsters can look up to.
He won’t be allowed to take them out anywhere on his own though, in case he forgets to bring them back.
The summers big friendly has been announced;
Albion Rovers are delighted to once again welcome Celtic FC to Cliftonhill Stadium, a game that sees a return to the Jock Stein Friendship Cup for the first time since 2010.
The game will take place on Thursday August the 4th, and with it being the 6th meeting since the first clash in 2006, player/manager Darren Young is very much looking forward to the challenge of the Hoops.
“It’ll be a good test for the boys, we’re still looking to get four or five new faces in but I know that all the lads at the club are looking forward to it. ”
He added: “It will probably be a Celtic Development side, but who knows, it’ll depend on what Brendan Rodger wants to do.”
And the good news is that the Republic of Coatbridge is lifting all visa requirements for the day!
One wonders of this is the start of a working relationship between the clubs….
Whilst Charlie mulgrew is keen to stay, and Brendan rodgers is keen to keep him, the fire sale at Celtic Park looks set to go ahead..
Arsenal are reportedly confident of sealing a transfer move for £7million-rated Celtic midfielder Tom Rogic.
The Australia international has emerged as a surprise target for the Gunners ahead of the summer transfer window after something of a breakthrough campaign in Scotland.
Rogic, 23, scored ten goals from midfield in all competitions, and could help fill a problem position for Arsenal as they bid farewell to the likes of Mikel Arteta and Tomas Rosicky.
Although not the big name many Arsenal fans will be craving, The Sun report that Arsene Wenger is keen on the player and confident of bringing him to north London.
Someone else might be worth watching during the Euros, as he enters the shop window after a fairly unimpressive twelve months at Celtic;
Celtic defender Dedryck Boyata has been dubbed “too nice” by Belgium boss Marc Wilmots, despite landing a spot in his squad for Euro 2016.
The 25-year-old, who boasts two caps for the full national side, has been named in the final party for the summer showpiece in France, with the Red Devils manager lauding his technique and speed.
Nevertheless, Wilmots wants to see him unleash his aggressive side and strike fear into the hearts of opposition strikers.
If he went onto the pitch in possession of a sub machine gun he couldn’t strike as much terror into opponents as he does to the Celtic support when he’s in possession of the ball.
“Dedryck is someone I have followed for many years and he enjoyed a fantastic season at Celtic – after getting regular first-team football, he did not disappoint.
“He is technically superb, he is fast and is an excellent passer of the ball, so there is no doubt about his quality.
“But sometimes he is a little too nice for my liking! I love to see my central defenders cause a bit of fear for the other teams’ strikers.”
He hasn’t watched him, has he ?
Whatever you do, do not write “Belgium To Win ” on any bookies line. Under any circumstances.
right, time now for the little section on new Glasgow rivals “rangers “, and missing manager Mark Warburton has agreed in principle a deal to double his money at the Ibrox club.
Of course, there is no confirmation of that, no quotes from the club, and certainly no quotes from the man himself, missing since Saturday after Hibs scored their late goal to win the scottish Cup.
Davie Weir, the assistant manager, is not saying anything, well apart from “Warby, Warby, where are you going, take me with you…”
The word on the street is that Dave king isn’t honouring his side of the bargain, a deal that would double Warburtons money, and Warby has walked. Or is threatening to walk.
Of course, that is nonsense, as Keith Jackson claims in the Record;
MARK WARBURTON is set to double his Rangers salary after thrashing out a new contract with chairman Dave King.
Record Sport understands the Englishman had been hoping to finalise the terms of a new deal before facing Hibs in last Saturday’s Scottish Cup Final.
It’s anticipated that Warburton will put pen to paper on the new contract when he returns to Scotland to oversee pre-season training next month.
Of course he will. Though if its all sorted, why not a big press conference , a lot of publicity and a huge push to sell season books ?
Keith Jackson is putting a lot of stories out there, and it looks like some of them may come back to bite him on the arse, off the radar style, in fact , he’s going to need a bigger arse.
Which is ironic really, because if stories are to be believed, thats where he’s getting his info from;
The Diary, as you know, is quick to criticise the press, and point out their little faults.
So when someone stands up and does the right thing, in the right way, he deserves applause.
Step forward Neil Cameron of the Herald, who published this today;
Tax Justice Network author insists controversial report
‘focuses more on SFA than Rangers’
Maybe that will help people understand what its about…it’s an interview with one of the authors, and Cameron has promised follow ups.
Well played for getting it out there, and hopefully the follow up will be with Stewart Regan….
Another journalist who deserves praise is Jane Hamilton, of the Record, for pulling off a difficult piece which also breaks ranks with the alleged Level 5 line of reporting, whereby no-one can say anything bad about “rangers”, their support or their finances.
Cops claim mob rule outside Hampden stopped them getting in to deal with
battling Rangers and Hibs fans.
This would have been an incredibly difficult article to do.
You have the police, you have the “rangers ” official line, and you have the Records editors…
For the author to have come out with anything here is a tremendous achievement, bearing in mind she is dealing with three different sets of a type known as “bloody liars “.
Worth a read, and there is a sense that she’s actually dug out more or less what has happened;
The Resolution 12 adverts did not go live yesterday, but I am reliably informed that they will be out next week. There is a good reason for the delay, but nothing to worry about. They had to wait until UEFA were contacted, and getting the wording right took longer than planned.
They know what they’re doing. I’ll let you know if i hear anything else.
The idea of an Etims night out seems to have gone down well. All we need now is to put it in practice.
We’ll do it in stages. First, when should it take place.
I’d be happy with the day/night of the Leicester game, which i think is July 23. Thoughts ?
As for a place to go, well, Haringey is out… they amuse themselves in a different way down there;
In other news, we now know why no “rangers ” player has commented on the attacks of last weekend from hibernian supporters. It might affect their claim;
Every day I find another reason to fell sorry for that lot;
Escape goat ?
Heres a combined caption competition winner, from andybhoy, pic, and monti, caption.
Bricks Out !
Whereas the real caption from yesterday… half fool again, with his remark about Auchenhowie always attracting the best young talent, though he was ran pretty close by charlies caption, which pointed out it was actually another of Graeme souness;’s unique interpretation of sporting integrity.
Today, we have what could be the most disturbing image I’ve ever seen in my life…
Oh, by the way, if Warburton does leave “rangers”, we hear that Alex Ferguson and Louis Van Gaal are ready to form a new dream team;
Caption: ‘rangers’ youth conveyor belt has dug up another gem.
Well done to Monti and Andybhoy,Bricks out,was brilliant,a worthy caption winner.
Brendans work begins,Assistant,back room staff and negotiations begin with Mulgrew,i am pleased about that,you just know that he kens fitba players.
An E-Tims shindig,Celtic v Leicester 23july.
Celtic v Barca 30july,i think 7pm K.O.
Celtic Park venue is my choice and i would be willing to help set up,Drinks tick,Dinner let me ken and numbers,let me ken.
The parking should be safer there,no Drivers will be permitted a swally. Pensionerbhoy will provide the ambulances hame.Escorts nae chance.H.H.
think the LC game is the 30th, could be a shout, hit the town after the game 🙂
correction, it is the 23rd…..
Caption: Police Scotland sniffer dog and her pet!
Caption: So, Mrs Greig, what did John do after he gave up football?
He signed for Rangers…….original Co.
Caption… ‘I don’t mind him dressing up as a doggy, but fuck this shitting on the floor malarkey’.
Caption: Keith Jackson interviews Gimp the Dalmatian from Motherwell, has wealth through the woof apparently.
Taxi.
Caption… Is this what happens when all your friends think your wife’s a dog? If you can’t beat her, join her.
Gazza regularly beat his wife…..
In an attempt to hide the embarrassing fact that her husband plays for “rangers”, liz gets william to dress up as a rubber clad gimp. Far more sociably acceptable.
Just when the you think the huns can’t get any worse they are comparing the article in the daily Rager with the events of Hillsbrough,saying the the police are lying and the truth will come out. utter scum.
Watched Brendan Rodgers’ presser on Celtic TV earlier. Really impressed given the total shite he was being asked (apart from a couple of guys later in the presser who were OK). I know nothing of his assistant, Chris Davies I think he’s called, but I’m still buzzing about the appointment and you must trust Brendan to get it right with his backroom staff. Roll on the new season.
HH
Caption
“Has anybody spotted that dog I ended wi’ last Saturday night?”
Vinnie, like all good assistants,they are the trusted lieutenant of the man in charge. They do their work with the players and are the go between to be the calming influence behind the scenes.
I had never heard of Stevie Walford,or Gary Pendry before either,but it didn’t stop us winning.
This is something which I’m sure Ronnie will have learned,take your own back room staff,then there is no chance of board involvement in team matters.
I would like to see someone like Roy Aitken brought back,to help the spirit,or Willie McStay who was a fantastic reserve team coach,and a true Celt, any of that type to help Brendan and the bhoys along.
HH
Jimmy, oh, for another like big Roy.
‘I only know the first two lines of ‘The Sash’ because after that we’ve usually scored.’
Roy Aitken on Celtic v Rangers games in the 1980s
HH
Caption:
”So Mrs Warburton . . .still no sign of your husband anywhere you say!” Hmmm . . .
Caption:mark Warburton tells his wife “with the greatest respect i would rather hide and live like spotty dog from the wooden tops than go back to sevco”
I thought spotted dick was a pudding?
With the Warbo’s family still not joining him to live in Scotland, tells you all you need to know about his ‘commitment to the cause’.
Congratulations of the ‘Bigoted Herald’ is ‘beyond the pail’. as the question and answer format of the article left the reader none the wiser, does Mr Cameron not have an opinion at the unprecedented scale of the SFA malpractice.
As with all articles regarding RIFC the details can normally be found in the comments section, by some well meaning and informed ‘TIMS’ who will not give an inch when It come to seeing through the unnerving lies of the SMSM. HH
Caption; What kind of country do well live in, when in every city, town and even villages has their own temples, that partake in the ‘ritual ceremony ‘ of drinking of goats blood. Prefer a bit of black pudding myself.
I would like to be at the etims night out
Caption: Joey Barton shows how he changed from wild boy to good boy with the help of behaviour doggy classes whilst inside.
Ruff I know.
With the inflated price they pay in england and money they have its time celtic told them where to shove there derogetary 7 million pound bids. They pay 20- 25 million for players from other countries im sixk of them offering peanuts in english terms for our stars. Arsenal are loaded and they should be told twenty million or fuck off
Spot on, Delbhoy.
Delbhoy,
Well said!!
Rock on Delbhoy
So tell me, George Galloway, how do you plan to top your last appearance on reality TV?
I could do with a dogsbody for round the house, where dae i get wan..HH
Whats everyones opinion on cifti , i think if rodgers going with two up front he would be good. Never fitted in ronnys style but was a hell of a player for dundee united and still a young boy , he actually done well with the team he went to
Delbhoy, there’s a big clue in his 1st name, Nadir.
(effectively, the pits)
He had plenty of chances before Griffiths made the position his own. My fair and balanced opinion: he’s fuckin’ useless.
I believe Cole’s contract has been terminated, so add on Ciftci, Scepovic and Kazim-Richards for the exit door. Harder to work out who should go from Mid, but we’ve got too many options for sure. Ambrose, Boyata must go at back but not sure who else. Simunocrocked has to prove himself if/when fit. Erik looks OK to me as does Charlie, but need a solid C/B. Got a feeling Brendan will be better at this than me, though.
HH
PS there was talk that Scepovic was going for £1.5 mill. I’d take the loss on him, another diddy signed by ?? (another diddy).
HH
delbhoy look no further than his last club D Utd,how long was he there? and if he is a good player why was there no other interest in him?
Caption… so Mrs Murray you say David has lost one of his wooden leg’s, well dont you worry, Alastair here is the best sniffer dog YOUR MONEY can buy….
Delbhoy i think i can safely say that Ciftci will not be part of BR plans. if we want to move up a level then we need more quality up front and Ciftci is well, a second rate striker at best.
July 23rd sounds good, the game is a 5.30pm kick off time i think which gives us plenty of time before and after the game for lots of booze
Watching a couple of interviews with Brendan Rodgers this morning, I was pleasantly surprised about his knowledge of the Celtic squad he is inheriting.
We must build from the back and I think at least one top central defender must be signed to push Simunovic, I like the look of Sviatchenko and when he get’s a full press season behind him, we will have a top performer at the back.
Simunovic has it all to prove again and I’m 50/50 about him, he needs to toughen up.
It looks like Brendan wants to keep Mulgrew so there is the cover at Central defence.
Boyata, Ambrose and Izaguirre out!
GMS, Allan, Christie, Henderson, Rogic, Brown, Bitton, Forrest, Armstrong and Roberts should be battling for midfield places, maybe bring in a big signing winger/creative type.
Johnson and Commons out.
Griffiths speaks for himself, Ciftci, Cole, Kazim Richards and Scepovic out!
Tempted to give Stokes another chance but unsure.
A big signing up front to play beside Griffiths is a must.
HH
Johansen out
..fkn phone!!
Monti,got to disagree m8 on Johansen.
When he first came,he played in a midfield role to support the front 3 of Commons Stokes and Griffiths.
He was the player of the year, Ronnie then decided that one up was the way to go,and out went Stokes and Commons. Johanse was then asked to play a more forward role, which he told Delia he wasn’t that type of player. His performances struggled thereafter.
I think Johansen is the right player for us in the midfield,I thought him and Armstrong were fantastic against Motherwell, in both their natural positions.
Armstrong is another who suffered under Ronnie,as has Mackay Stevens, I think Johansen has it in him to be a driving force for us,and I’d put him in against Barton any day. His goals in his first season excellent. But like too many players under Ronnie went backwards under his guidance.
HH
Jimmybee,
Johansen was site last season, I thought he was excellent in his first season tho to be fair.
I would get rid, just my opinion m8
monti Christie/Allan pos the rest are not up to it,Stokes ffs you have to be kidding,absent from the cause for circa 3 seasons.
John young,
I think the rest are up to it, Brendan will get more out of them m8
remember our catastrophic collapse in Europe monti,these players were part of that debachle,they are bottlers to a man we should get fcuking rid of them.
John,
I hear you but I still have to disagree, I think the whole squad will get a lift from Brendan managing them, I think you will see a marked improvement on last season, next year.
Brendan will bring in a few of his own players I believe.
Keep the faith m8, we are on the one Road again…
Good luck to Tomas Rogic v England on Friday
How many more players will be linked to Celtic that have been played under Brendan? Today it’s Danny Graham. Maybe we should do a sweepstake
Approximately 237, give or take few.
Caption: Winner of the Daily Record “Spot the Dog” Crufts competition is underwhelmed by prize
Caption: Fans unhappy about impact of budget cuts on The 101 Dalmations Tribute Act
PS: 49 years ago today – on 26th May 1967, a family member of mine led the parade of the Lisbon Lions around Celtic Par,k. I wrote about this before in an article on E-Tims (30 July 2015) but as there were a few techicnal glitches getting the relevant pictures inserted (I think Ralph was half-cut 🙂 ) I’ve re-posted it online with most of the missing pictures :_
https://wordpress.com/post/carljunglebhoy.wordpress.com/19673428
Looks like Ralph is still half cut,i can’t open it.
Caption, taking dogging to a new level. Or Albion’s mascot Rover, ready for the cup….being the ‘Brig he’s trained to sniff out buck fast.
“taking dogging to a new level” – Mike Anus?
(Sorry Mike – I couldn’t resist 🙂 )
Fucking quality
Up da ra
Once more I thank you Ralph.
In terms of the team, I really believe that all we need are 3 quality players at CB, DM and CF, and a clear out of the deadwood, and we will be good to go for next season; or maybe bringing in Lustig from RB to CB might be the better option – and get in a new experienced RB.
Caption:
Not the Doggy Style on the couch she was hoping for.
Vinnie im unsure about cifti because i dont believe he was given a chance, he had fleeting appearances up front on his own which was never his position . Dont thinj we should be so quick to boot people out
Spotted at Ross Hall: Ross Barkley!
Interesting to note that the polis are now turning against their fellow blue brethren as the truth continues to out. Sevco will regret making their petulant “big bad green boy did it and ran away” heat of the moment statement on Saturday (AND Sunday) now that we see the reason more reinforcements weren’t in the ground to protect the superstars from vicious assaults.
Whilst I can’t wait for next season to start from a Hoops point of view I get the feeling that we can expect a lot more behaviour like we witnessed post-match Saturday and possibly a lot worse. My only hope is we don’t get dragged into the gutter with them as all hell breaks loose, and it will if they have a shit season. Is this what Peter and Dermot really wished for?
Great comment, Frank. I totally agree. They’re vermin and should’ve been allowed/encouraged to just die. We don’t need them, don’t want them.
PS, I refer to the flies. The shite IS dead.
HH
I’m loathe to put a dampener on what has been a fantastic week for all of us Tims, but I get a repulsive feeling in the pit of my stomach at the thought of ‘thems’ being anywhere near Paradise next season. That’s before we even begin to comprehend the scenarios away from the stadium. And some numbskulls reckon that this fixture is the selling point that Scottish football has been missing for the last few years?
Anyway, we should be more concerned on the pitch about Hearts, Aberdeen and Caley rather than Zombies FC. Come on Brendan’s Bhoys! Bring it on!
Yup got the same feeling. Renewed my season tickets, but won’t be going to that game.
HH
Well played Jimmy. Whilst I would never dream of telling a fellow Tim which games to attend or not the 1st match against ‘thems’ next season will be the final airbrushing of the last 4 years as if they didn’t happen and everything is returned to ‘normal’. That said, obviously like every other Bhoy and Ghirl I want to be there cheering on Brendan’s Bhoys every kick of the ball. I would also like to be rid of ‘thems’ so that I can stop using so much ‘punctuation’ in my posts!
The squad:
Goalie: no change
Back four:Lustig/Sviatchenko/Simunovic/Tierney
Keep Janko/Mulgrew/Ambrose!/keep Izzy: we need a back-up left back
Midfield: Bitton/Brown/Armstrong/Allan/McGregor/Henderson/Rogic/Johansen (definitely)
Front three in a 4-3-3
roberts/Griffiths/Stokes
Use Christie up front too, keep Forrest
Don’t need Cole/Ciftci/Scepovic
Develop Aitchison, Nesbitt
Brendan can bring in 3-4 players and we’re set
Armstrong and Johansen should be played where they are most effective, not where Ronny had them. I’m optimistic. 23rd July sounds possible for this auld yin.
Devoy,
Ambrose is a fucking donkey.
If anyone hasnt read it look it up on media.com an article by scarlet lady, a rangers fan talking about sevco and the troulble last saturday, give it a look. Brilliantly put by a self confessed sevco fan
Caption: And they called it puppy love
with the stunned look on her face i think she got caught dain something to that dug
Looks like she was chewing on the bone.
ha ha
Renewed the day , havnt been that much this season i was a bit disallusioned with the clubs lack of ambition and the football under delia, i think the board have stepped up the mark with the rodgers appoitment tho and im looking forward to signings and getting back to paradise. When do leicester tkts go on sale ?
Caption…”Well I think this proves that he isn’t a dobber man?”
HH
Sue
thank god yer back sue that halffool guy is running a mock in here
Caption: Lee Wallace shows off his bruises after the attack by Hibs fans.
Caption Ronny delia meets peter lawell’s wife
Was meant to say peter lawell takes Ronny Delia to meet his wife lol harsh I know
Uncalled for you should be banned for that.
HH
Only kiddin
Caption:
After the demise of Dalmatians 101 in 2012, most good folk know there is an impostor around; but some in the darkness claim it is “Same Dug. Same Dug”.
Caption: The ‘Missing Two’ of the Sevco bench from the cup final,are revealed.