Finally, someone has remembered what it means to play for Celtic. Scott Brown, captain and heartbeat of the side came out swinging yesterday, and although he won’t be playing, his inspirational words gave hope that maybe , just maybe, the hoops will be in the play off draw on Friday.
Play the Rocky theme while you read this bit;
“The lads will remember every single thing. Warsaw got a little bit over-confident at the end and celebrated in a few of the lads’ faces.
“The boys will be thinking about that as soon as they go into the game. They won’t want that to happen again. They’ll believe they can be the ones celebrating at the end of the game.
“After every defeat the lads want to go out straight away and show that was a one-off.
“They want to prove they are better than that and can go anywhere and win. If you don’t believe it there is no point turning up.”
Forget the tippy tappy stuff. Forget the bright new ideas, get the sleeves rolled up and , to coin a phrase ;
” Get Right Intae Them ”
Browns words make you wish he was playing, but I’m sure he’ll be in the dressing room before kick off, reminding the players of what is needed, and how it feels when you do it, such as last year against Shaktor Karagandy;
“The way we celebrated at the end was outrageous. It was just a great night. It was one of those things that people only think can happen in fairytales, that you could turn that result around after getting battered in the 90 minutes over there.
“But we managed to turn it around and it’s pretty much the same squad as we have just now. So you have to go into this with confidence and believe you can score three goals.
“It’s a good pitch at Murrayfield, like a bowling green, so we’ll be able to pass the ball and move well. If we start with a good tempo then I have faith in the lads.”
And he reminded us of one thing, one crucial thing;
“They’ve not played in front of Celtic fans or seen what it does to other teams. People like Messi and Iniesta are amazing on the ball but the fans surround you and that puts them under a bit more pressure.
“They think they have an extra second or so to control the ball and we’re right in their faces. It could be a great night and one for our fans to remember.
Then he displayed a bit of faith in his team mates, something no-one else has done yet;
“We have a lot to do and it will be hard but they are not the best team in the world and everyone is due a bad result.
“We had ours last week and we can now try to turn it around at home. I have faith in the lads.
“The gaffer has been giving us video analysis of where we went wrong and has been trying to put new things into practice on the pitch.”
Theres no point in harping on about the board, the manager, the training or anything else we can think of thats led to the situation the team is in at the moment. We’re three goals down to a distinctly average side. Okay, we made an arse of it.
We’ve got an hour and a half to put it right.
And deep down, I think we will.
What we don’t need, and theres certainly no shortage of them at the moment, is former players earning a bit of pocket money by slating the club in the papers. I’m all for criticism, but it has to be constructive, original and imaginative. The amount of ex favourites lining up to state the bloody obvious, such as what Ronny Deila should do, or what Peter Lawwell should do, based on their own experience of, er, telling other people what they should do, is , quite frankly, sickening and embarrassing.
Guys like you and me are supporters first, and we just fire off whatever we feel like firing off, and some will agree with us, and others will think we are using the wrong anatomical orifice to release our feelings.
But, we speak from the heart. Part of being a Celtic supporter is the emotional roller coaster that comes with it. Like it or not, and I suppose we must enjoy it, or we wouldn’t do it, we are Celtic supporters, and what we say is what we feel.
There are others, though, who really should know better. There are times to get behind the team, no matter what else is going on, and times to criticise. At risk of sounding like a Celtic View article , this is when we get behind them.
Alright, sounding and looking like a Celtic View article.
Frank MacAvennie, a player who, granted, scored a few important goals back in the eighties, usually before jumping on a plane to get back down south as quickly as possible-great for team bonding -has earned a reputation as a daft wee boy over the years. For some reason, someone asked him for his opinion on the current side, maybe hoping that he would say something to stir the pot.
He didn’t disappoint;
I’m worried about Celtic’s season if they don’t get past Legia Warsaw. If they don’t overturn that 4-1 loss from the first leg I think they’ll lose Virgil van Dijk and Fraser Forster. And I hear a few more want to leave.
No shit. Some players want to leave a club during the transfer window ? Who’d a’thought it ?
“The fans will only take so much if the club is not investing. I know a lot of people who had hospitality boxes and season tickets at Celtic Park and they’re not taking them out this year. Nobody is going to watch them if some of those players leave.
Frankly, who cares ? Leaves more room for the real fans.
“I’m worried because this is not the Celtic I knew. I don’t even know who Ronny Deila is.”
Thats okay, Ronny Deila doesn’t know who Frank MacAvennie is. Though I’m guessing Frank would rather he didn’t google it.
Then he started on Deila, who , remember, he doesn’t know;
“I hope he is not the puppet some people say he is but I fear he might be,” he said. “What manager comes into a club and is told who his right-hand man will be?
Er, he didn’t. He spoke to Collins before offering him the job. Sure, he might have been recommended to him, but theres little doubt he had the final say.
“It doesn’t work that way. I played with John Collins and we get on well, but he is a strong character. If Ronny isn’t strong, John will take over.
Thats a good idea. Create suspicion at the top. Where there is no evidence that Collins will be anything but loyal to Deila.
“I just don’t know if he [Deila] will still be about. No one had ever heard of this guy but maybe [chief executive] Peter Lawwell didn’t expect to go through [in the Champions League] and he has got someone to point the blame at.
When he says “no-one “, it’s reasonable to assume he means ” Frank MacAvennie. “
“Roy Keane knocked the job back because of the budget but also because he wouldn’t be allowed to bring his own team in. Roy would have attracted more players on a reduced budget than Ronny will.
Keane thought he would walk into the job. He didn’t, so he asked not to be considered.
“He will be shopping in the bargain basement because he doesn’t know anything else. Lenny [Neil Lennon] tried to get a few players and never got them.
Thats what happens in football management. You don’t always get what you want, but you manage with what you have. Theres a clue in the name. Manager.
“You can’t keep selling top players and not replacing them. Eventually you will come a cropper. Hopefully, I am wrong but they could get beat again on Wednesday.”
“Ronny came out and questioned the commitment [of the players after the first leg] and I couldn’t believe it,” he said. “I can’t understand if you are getting thumped and boys are not putting a shift in.
“You need someone on the park getting the boys together rather than going into their own wee shells but that’s what it looked like.
I’m sure after reading this, where MacAvennie more or less calls the players sub standard by hinting that the previous manager couldn’t get the players he really wanted, the players will feel so much better about themselves.
“I have heard about unrest and there could be a mass exodus after this. Winning the league won’t get fans back onside.
“No disrespect to the manager, but no one knows him. I used to look up to Billy McNeill and he gave me countless kicks up the backside.
“Even if he was wrong you’d take it because it was Billy McNeill. John Collins has that but I am not sure about Ronny.”
So, we’ve established that Frank MacAvennie doesn’t know Ronny Deila, which apparently makes him a shite manager.
He also took time out to criticise the club for offering Celtic Park as a venue for the Commonwealth Games, something that was decided years ago, and has benefited Celtic in several ways, and remember, we didn’t make an arse of it at Murrayfield, we made an arse of it in Poland.
“They got the money for it, I guess,” he said. “Mind you, John Barrowman was the best performance I have seen at Celtic Park for a long time!
He’s such a wit. No , really, thats not rhyming slang. Oh, alright, it is.
“I don’t know why they did it and I can’t understand why it’s not ready by now. You will [still] get the support and people will go because of the novelty of Murrayfield but that’s not what you need.
“You need the hard core. You need the Green Brigade in their corner to create that Celtic Park atmosphere.
Whilst not decrying the Green Brigade and their drummer, the other 59,000 Celtic fans have been known to play their part as well.
“Legia are not a great side and it would be a big help. They could still get through – they did it last year – but who knows?”
Certainly not MacAvennie. Thats because he’s an idiot.
I’ve not been a big fan of what I’ve seen so far from Deila, but, he’s got to be given a chance. Its going to be a test of his character this week, indeed this season. He won’t have experienced the way the press behave towards him in Scotland anywhere else. He won’t have had former players having a pop at him in the media either, and he’s never had to shoulder the expectations of so many supporters before. Supporters who are unrivalled anywher eelse for their commitment to their club.
Its probably been a bit of a culture shock for him. He’s had all the shite that can be thrown at him over the last week. At least give him the chance to throw it back.
If he does come through this, we might actually have a decent manager on our hands. Remember, if you don’t make mistakes, you’ll never know when you’re doing something right.
John Collins scored the third goal in a 3-0 win over Cologne back in the days when 3-0 wins over anyone were a rarity.
The hoops also beat another hooped side when they needed three clear goals to win. Who, when, and who was the manager at the time ?
wow, that MacAvennie hatchet joab will take some beating. what an absolute used condom of a man.
all this from a man who has become a parody of himself and we all struggle to work out if it’s actually him or jonathon watson.
he looked up to big billy so much he bolted as soon as the chance came.
must be a week until giro day.
Sporting Lisbon, Frank Connor was caretaker boss, Gerry Creaney scored? Can’t remember who else…?
Celtic beat Sporting Lisbon 5-0.Davie Hay was the manager,Burns,MacLeod,McAdam,McClair and McGarvey all scored.Bhoy hellava lots of Mac’s in there.Glorious night in the pouring rain,if memory serves.
It’s amazing what ex players will say for a wee bawbee from the press, they claim to be for ever supporters then bad mouth the current management and team. Let’s get behind the team irrespective of the result. Show Lawell that we will not buy any team merchandise for two months, that would have an effect!
I think Frank McAvennie was more interested in Jenny bonding than team bonding back in the day.
Great point in the game was lost in Poland, fair shuts the Commonwealth Games moans up.
That,s great we have an idiot manager talkin piss,ten Capt calamity joins in ,this is the pratt that got sent off for a stupid kick at neymar
It just shows what a state were in if thats the quality of our captain
1-0, 2-0, 3-0. Easy as pie.
I’ve not made my mind up about Ronny yet because I’m the type that waits for evidence. Who did Lennon manage before he got the job? That’s right, Ronny did seven years wae an unfancied club, not only here but in his homeland, and took them to honours and into Europe. I can’t abide Frank MacAvennie but he does represent a lot of our support. I’ve made these points before about the weather vanes amongst us.
I’m worried though that we deal wae Ronny in the same wae that them dealt wae PLG. Two cheeks?
How’s about?
Forster
Lustig/Van Dijk/Mulgrew/Izzy
Matthews/Biton/Johansen
Commons
Pukki/Griffiths
I think a fit Stokes would cause Legia more problems than Pukki.
MacAvennie? Wow, what a great mind!I’d hate to think he gets paid anything at all for his opinions.
Support Deila and the bhoys!
C’mon Celtic.
Think Frank’s been on the ‘ marching powder’ to long. When was the last time he saw Celtic play? Why would you ask someone with his track record for an ‘ expert’ opinion.
Being a former decent player doesn’t qualify you to make judgement on someone you acknowledge you know nothing about.
Gordon Strachan started with an absolute disaster in Europe but then took us to the last 32 twice. Don’t make hasty judgements.
Pukka, Balde, Borichter, Lassad, Bogera, Michu, would you have given Lennon more money? Neil did well in his time but did he pick these guys. How much did they and others cost. Why did we let Johnnie Russell go to Derby for a fee much less than what we paid for these guys.
Could go on and on, but let’s just get on with supporting the team and ignore those who sell their soul for a quick buck.
We still seem to be overlooking the talent in our league. St Johnstone want £800k for Stevie May – £800k!!! That’s less than half of what we paid for Balde and May is more than proven in our league. Are you telling me he would rather play for Rotherham over Celtic?
Of course the manager needs time – he’s played 3 competitive games so far. As mentioned about WGS started with a disaster in Europe and then look what he went on to achieve. The press will look for the slightest thing to jump on and bash us, so we need to get behind the team and help inspire them over the line. Its going to be tough, but certainly not impossible.
May could fit the bill for what we want right now, cheap, proven scorer, money staying in Scotland, St Johnstone might be open to our youngsters getting first team experience on loan.
Downside to May signing are, his haircut (lack off), might be cup tied for Europe (not sure on the rule), hes not a big name signing (Lawwell won’t make a lot of money from his name getting printed on tops).
Please ignore my marching powder comment. Was written in a moment of anger about his comments.
Was the interview done by the fake sheikh? The only thing I wan’t to read about Macca is that he’s agreed play Tony in a remake of Scarface.
Aye Scott Brown. He can take a large chunk of the blame for where the team is at the moment, still flabbergasted that so called Mr Superfit managed to pull a hamstring 2 mins into a match. When he is fit again he can go also.
Used to have respect for Frank but have gone off him now thanks to those comments …. that and the drug dealing.
I can forgive the drug dealing …
Does anyone think what would have happened if we had said no to the commonwealth committee ? All those in media that are saying we should not have done it would have been calling us all the names under the sun that we should be banned from any sort of representing Scotland in world football.
17.5 million all in is what celtic have made out of this between the upgrading of the land around the stadium and the rent of the ground also by saying yes we have helped to transform parts of the east end by new houses, roads, train stations, the new velodrome ect.
Has the celtic board supposed to know what was gonna happen when they got asked to do the opening it was about 6-8 years ago when asked.
I agree it was away from home we got beat not murryfield so what’s the point of moaning about it.
Good to see Broony isn’t shirking from his role, still don’t know why some folk gie him pelters. Next Broony needs to have a word with Craig Gordon, if he thinks that shipping 6 goals is a good performance then hes at the wrong club.
Still unsure about tomorrow, I think we can beat anyone when we’ve got a full house behind us and then I remember the games last week and on Saturday and I worry.
Forster
Lustig-Fisher-Van Dijk-Izzy
Kayal
Charlie-Johanson
Commons
Griffiths-Stokes
to be honest sometimes wheeling out an uncle tom or two can have a positive effect.
Seriously…..Discussing the thoughts of Dr Frank McAvennie. Was there not a better use of your time today? He’s just a tit. Leave him alone.
It’s sad that he couldn’t see through the Rectum’s plot to slag us off. But getting in the paper was probably Frank’s first and only thought.
Macca’s alright-just not the sharpest blade in the drawer…I mean nobody really gives a s***e about his opinion but he is a tim and was a pretty decent player for us in his day…let him make a living, I dont think he said anything that most of us… to be honest…haven’t thought already.
Anyway we have bigger and more important things to get worked up about than Macca.
Hail Hail.
C’Mon the Hoops!
We can can do this, we can do this!
Aye, we can DO it. I can never stay angry at our club, its players or fans for very long. I think all of us hate to see our team humiliated, on or off the pitch.Look at it this way. No trouser tenting week in week out with the SPL, but overcoming a 4-1 in Europe is where it’s at bhoys and ghirls. Question. How do we score three without creating too much space at the back? Use a sweeper. Now, who can do the sweeping? I think Matthews is a natural. Anyway…here goes… gulp, 4-0 to the Bhoys! (Van Dijk, Mulgrew, Griffiths and Commons)
C’mon the Hoops!
..says Frank, propping up some early morning dive, half scaled pint of heavy in his paw, slavering away to anyone willing to shout him a bevvy and get him the barmaids number.
HAIL HAIL.
MON THE HOOPS.
In the draw Friday !!!!
Aye sad! we used to be a great united club!
Shame on all the negative comments on Frank. The fact of the matter is he’s right. Only a fool can’t see what’s going on at parahead. This article is one of the worst I’ve ever read on e Tim’s.