Celtic Diary Wednesday July 10 2024: A Hint Of Things To Come ?

Alastair Johnston saw his Copa America campaign come to an end at the semi final stage when Canada were beaten 2-0 by Argentina. The Celt was also captain for the last twenty minutes or so, which indicates that he may well step into that role at Celtic, or at the very least be made vice captain in what would be a first for Celtic when it comes to forward planning.

After the defeat, he even spoke like a captain….

And it’s a very similar script to the first time we played them. They kind of score one and then they didn’t create too much in the first half and then we had a couple of big chances.

“Then they score that one and then again, just a little lapse in concentration in the second half and they get an easy one and the game’s really out of reach.

“And even then, we still had chances but you can tell they were they were a lot more comfortable in their situation.

“So it’s frustrating in that aspect because we are getting so much closer. And again, our rise has been rapid over these past couple of years.

“And to think that you are even mad that we’re getting knocked out in the Copa America semifinal by Argentina but at the same time, that’s what you want.

The game was played at one o’clock this morning, presumably to avoid a clash with the Euro semi final between Spain and France, another indication that tv is ruining football.

The SFA are rumoured to be considering making Celtic start their games in the wee sma’ hours as well, largely because it’s already starting to look  like “rangers ” have all but conceded this years title.

In fact, they’ve already started taking the seats out at Ibrox as they will be surplus to requirements by Christmas…

It appears that we are going down the line of presenting all of our signings, such as Bernardo and probably Idah , in one go. That might sound a little optimistic, but it would tie in with some sort of pre American trip send off. Idah may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but as they say in Geordieland, he’s certainly nae drinka watter, which is a complimentary way of saying he’s a bit of a handful.

With Kyogo Fuhruhashi wearing out a defence, who better, when you think about it, than Idah to come on and finish things off ?

Norwich have already knocked back one bid for the hitman, which given his popularity among Celtic fans, seems like a bit of a calculated risk on their behalf, and their manager has even stated he wants to keep him.

It’s not difficult to see what they’re trying to do, and perhaps even a little naive of them to try, as they could easily end up with a disgruntled player and Celtic could move elsewhere.

With the media simply going through the Rothmans Yearbook to pick some names out, a familiar pattern is emerging, and it’s likely a few deals are more or less done.

Celtic have kept their cards close to their chest when it comes to signings, and it may well be that it was Canada we were waiting to exit international competition……

Birmingham City have expressed an interest in Bosun Lawwell, who is no relation to Peter, and probably spelt differently, which is a curious revelation.

Perhaps he’s going to be one of our new signings as well….

Derek Clark, a journalist of sorts, has joined the BBC Sportsound team, in an attempt to strike a balance between rabid “rangers “fans and more coherent ones. His addition to the team means they need roughly forty coherent ones.

In a recent podcast, he went down his usual pre season route of claiming that this year will be their year and all the usual guff, indicating that….

‘I’ve a lot of optimism and belief that he’s the man to bring the league title back to Ibrox’  

Optimism and belief ? You’re either optimistic. Or you believe.

English is not only his co host, but it seems it’s his second language.

There appears to be a late runner coming up on the rails for the vacancy of CEO over the river, with one fan throwing his hat into the ring…a unique achievement in itself as he appears to be simultaneously talking through it….

His solution to the current steel crisis ?

He clearly hasn’t thought it through…which certainly fits in with the job requirements at that place.

Not quite sure how that quintessential plane would pick the steel up from the ship….

and here’s what it looked like after it parked up…..

I’m thinking of applying for a job over there, although I’m not quite sure I can prove that I’m a high level candidate, like, for example, Nils Koppen, their new head of recruitment.

This visionary has outlined his plan to take the club to another level….

This will be framed and placed in his office, under the title of “Statement of the Fucking Obvious ”

Although the bit about “Stronger contract management ” is interesting, as they do seem to let a lot of players run theirs down….perhaps the word Stronger is a little superfluous here, and they just need contract management,

Yesterday, we had this…

Today….