Paul foot, the great Private Eye owner and investigative reporter said his role was simply waiting for someone to tell him something and then writing it down.

Carlton Cole’s knees have gone. and in a show of solidarity , the rest of his body has gone with them.

So that’s that.

Well done to whoever decided to give him an eighteen month contract.

but we cannot dwell on such matters of trivia. The arse kicking can wait until the league is won, and that particular quest begins, in earnest, tomorrow at Firhill.

Captain Scott Brown , in another PR triumph for the club, has been ordered to put some drive back into the team.

Still, at least he’s focused on the Partick game, and not that bloody semi final;

‘It’s six weeks away. It’s obviously a huge game for us, but we’ve got so many other games before that while, of course, Rangers are the same,’ 

‘I think both teams will just be focusing on what’s immediately ahead, Rangers winning their league and us ours. Everyone’s been on the text (about the semi) already. It’s been lovely.

‘Of course, the thought of the game excites me. It will keep everyone on their toes, everyone will be fighting for places. We have a big squad, so the gaffer will use it if need be. We’ve got a lot of big games coming up, big occasions. But that’s what you want.’

Tomorrows game, for Celtic fans at least, is now sold out, and its crucial that those in the ground off the park do their bit, as we haven’t seen anyone on the park willing to help the players lift themselves a gear or two.

Come to think of it, i’m hoping the relative silence about the game means they are focussed, and they are up for the challenge.

Partick are, as manager Alan Archibald points out;

“There’s no longer the same trepidation facing Celtic that you used to feel when they had Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton and John Hartson,”

“Celtic still have a bigger budget than everyone else but things are a bit more even because the other clubs have improved.

“There’s always something to fight for and that’s made a real difference this season.

“I’ve never known a league to be as tight as it is now. In our first season back up the bottom half was congested towards the end but it was nothing like this.

“You now need to be in the top six at the split to guarantee avoiding relegation, which is strange. 

An intersting summation, echoing what many of us think. We’ve downsized, everyone else has upsized and we’ve now met in the middle. Perhaps the thinking behind buying so many scots players wasn’t to improve them, but to weaken their original teams.

And make a few quid when they’re sold.

Its hard not to be a cynic these days, unfortunately, and its up to Celtic to prove us wrong, and that must start tomorrow.

Six Celts, Gordon,  Tierney, Mulgrew, Brown, Forrest, and Griffiths have been called up for Scotland, who have a couple of friendlies coming up, and its a great chance for the lads to work with Gordon Strachan, a chance denied to them when the Scotland manager turned down the chance to stand in as manager at Celtic Park until the end of the season.

Maybe he can give them a wee list of things to do to take back to Lennoxtown with them.

It’s unclear why Strachan turned the temporary gig down, but thats because I forgot to ask.

The point is, however, Deila is here and everyone needs to get behind him.

For Keiran Tierney, inclusion at international level is just another step forward for his career. and a well deserved one too.

Strachan has been criticised for including him, but if Scotland are to compete in major tournaments again, then he needs to change a few things. The introduction of youth is a great move, and can only benefit the player and the team.

The criticism, unsurprisingly, came from the media who felt that Lee Wallace should have held that berth in the team, but when he’d finished laughing, Strachan explained his decision;

“Don’t talk shite. “he told reporters. Probably.

Mind you, he must have been thinking about using that particular response.

Instead, he went with;

“We’re actually well off for left-sided defenders. It’s not bad, if you look at it. With Lee Wallace, he would be getting a game if it wasn’t for Andrew Robertson and Kieran Tierney,” 

Reading between the lines, its fair to say Strachan would have picked Wallace if he hadn’t got anyone else.

“Lee is a good player but I have to look at these two for the future. You have to remember where we are strong and where we are weak. Remember where we need to look. There are loads of people who might think they should be in the squad but this is the best squad, I think, for Scotland.” 

Cue Mark Warburton complaining about about a lack of respect etc….

Speaking of a lack of respect, Chris Sutton, who seems to delight in winding as many people up as he possibly can, has asked the question no-one else dare ask…