It’s not so long ago that the Celtic support would anitcipate with glee a statement from the other side which would dance around an issue and point out that everythings fine and not to worry and oh, by the way, have you bought your season book/new top/deat for life yet ?
We got our own version yesterday.
From the CQN site;
RESOLUTION 12 is all about what happened during season 2011/2012 with regard to the administration and monitoring of UEFA licenses in Scotland.
Yes, we know.
It is the football and governance topic some want to ignore, deflect and cover up at all costs. It makes them uncomfortable. It asks awkward questions, some of which have now been answered by UEFA in a formal letter addressed to solicitors acting for a group of Celtic shareholders.
Ah good. A letter.
Had the letter been addressed to a football association or indeed a member club then there would have been no need to take the counter measures we saw yesterday.
Today Resolution 12 is in the news. Apparently it is over. Apparently it was about Rangers. It’s not and it wasn’t.
Yes, we know.
Resolution 12 is about the SFA administration of licensing (as we should all know by now). The same friends in Glasgow media circles have been used to try to spike what is coming. Jaws would have been on the floor when Uefa’s letter was read. The PR panic button would have been sounded.
Would have ? Or was it ?
Damage limitation was the order of the day. They had no means of controlling or attempting to control those with the letter and with a right to reply to UEFA.
They don’t need to control them. They’re keeping it to themselves anyway.
Yesterday the Resolution 12 guys could have responded. They nearly did but it wasn’t the right time. They were helped by the reaction from a Celtic support, and indeed supporters of many other clubs, who are now seeing this stuff for what it is.
When is the right time ? tomorrow ? The day after ? The end of the season ?
They have posed legal questions to legal people and have formally received answers which have led to further ongoing communication.
Ah, fantastic. We can talk some more.
Its reminiscent of the committee in the Life Of Brian movie…the one which immediately calls for further meetings to discuss what to discuss at the follwing meetings.
If you have something to say, then just say it.
Imagine for a moment that the following has been established, so far, with more to come:
If UEFA have refused to back Stewart Regan’s formal stance to Celtic.
If UEFA contradicted Regan’s publicly stated definition of the duties of the SFA.
If UEFA have failed to endorse the SFA’s stance on being unable to report.
If UEFA refused to say that Rangers were compliant at 30th June and 30th September and instead identify compliance requirements but stopped short of saying they complied.
If UEFA have stated clearly that there is an OLD CLUB and a NEW CLUB and that the two are separate legal and footballing entities!
If UEFA have stated clearly that during season 2011 Rangers did not comply with the necessary criteria to hold a UEFA licence.
If UEFA have stated clearly that during season 2011 Rangers were non-compliant with UEFA licensing requirements, but refuse to identify, when the non-compliance was identified, when the SFA reported they were non-compliant, and merely sum up by saying they were not granted a licence for season 2012/2013?
Imagine all that! In ONE letter from UEFA! The first, we suspect, of many.
What a story that would be!
Yes. It would be a great story, so if this is what has happened then for fucks sake tell the story.
Just remember, Persistence Beats Res12tance!
Maybe, but by the time it does it will be something of a pyrrhic victory.
And as for the club not saying anything, well, they’ve got their money in the bank now.
As we said last week, they don’t give a toss any more, and so therefore the Resolution 12 guys, and CQN, who have done incredibly well to get this far, and no-one can take that away from them, are left to deal with it themselves, with the constant threat of legal action.
Sometimes though, you have to just say balls to them.
If its time to fight, then lets start swinging.
( Oh, and by the way, anyone who thinks that I’m sitting here just criticising or any thing else, they’re wrong. There’s more than one way to skin a cat, and myself and one or two others are looking at another avenue. A surprisingly simple on ethat should have been explored some time ago. I’ll let you know if we make an arse of it, but if it does work, you’ll know about it. )
As billy McNeill once said, when talking of the Feyennord defeat,
“It was a classic case of climbing the mountain and falling over the molehill at the top. ”
The Res 12 guys have climbed the mountain. Don’t spend too long looking for the molehill.
Meanwhile, Private Eye are back on the case this week.
Maybe a grown up journalist will see it…
Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Brendan Rodgers poured cold water on Etims next pish stained rumour;
I can’t go out and get Luis Suarez, I know that.
Or did he ?
Er, yes.
But there will be no-one telling him who he can or cannot buy-even if it means breaking the current pay structure at Celtic and paying above minimum wage…
“Yes, absolutely. All I ever want is the highest quality. It’s not about numbers. I need quality over quantity.
“When you have a level of two or three players that can really lift the group, you find they raise the bar. Of course, you inherit a group high on numbers that needs to be cut but you need to bring a couple in who can improve the squad.
“I don’t know what happened before. All I can talk about is my experience. Every club will run on affordability and availability. I understand the market as well.
“But I know the club will push to get the best possible player we can and that’s what they have done. The club have been brilliant.
“I’ve spoken about a couple of targets and Peter and Dermot have been great in trying to progress those. I’d hope they could be done but it will take time.
“None are determined on whether or not we qualify for the Champions League .”
One of those targets is Joe Allen, currently playing out of his skin -not literally, he’d be freezing-for Wales as they storm towards their first ever major international trophy. ( You think I’m kidding-wait and see, its like watching Celtic under O’Neill, with Bale playing the Larsson role )
“Joe is a wonderful player. I always look at all my former players.
“I understand all clubs have a model. The no fear of youth is great and I love it but I also like the experience.
“I would hope to do business before the first Champions League qualifier.”
Unfortunately, however, Southampton, having grown tired of paying over the odds for Celtic players when they could have got them earlier, are trying to cut out the middle man this time, and have offered him more than the £40,000 a week Celtic are rumoured to have offered him.
Yeah, and you thought our rumours came with a coating of crap.
The manager also hinted that he would like to cut the first team squad, if only so they will all fit on the bus to games;
“I know what I ideally need to work with.
“Obviously not all the players are back at this moment, a majority of them are back.
“Certainly I know what I want to work with and everyone would agree, and people within the club agree, that the squad is way too big.
“It’s not about the players, it’s about the quality of the work you can do.
“You can’t work well with a group that size, you can’t work with quality.
“So hence the idea of having to cut it while also assessing the players.
“I’ve come in and I’ve worked with the players and I think they have been very good in the first couple of days.
“I have to respect them because they are the champions and they showed that last year, it’s just out of a way of working.
“That process started a few weeks back and that will continue.
“I have a way I want to work but it takes time.
“I work with a small group of players but I have to respect there are players under contract.”
It would be nice to know what he’s really thinking, as he seemed to be at pains there to choose his words carefully.. however, we are lucky enough to have a man pretending to be painting the fences and washing the walls down at Lennoxtown, so we asked him what he’d seen or heard..
” Fuck all. I’ve been painting the fences and washing the walls, ” he said, clearly having not understood what he’s supposed to be doing down there.
don’t worry, we’ve put him right, and soon we’ll hear all about why the team are putting in double shifts, why Charlie mulgrews been offered a reduced contract despite being told he was wanted by the manager, which is why he and his wife were in heated discussion the other night in a restaurant…
But we already told you that…
On Mulgrew, Rodgers said…
“There is no progress that I am aware of.
“He is a player I have spoken to and a player we would like to keep, of course. But that depends on how contract talks go.
“We had a really good conversation and I’ve always liked Charlie, watching him from afar. Good balance, looked a good professional, a Celtic fan from what I hear, so the club means a lot to him.
“I think everyone respects as well that he is at a stage of his career where it could well be his last contract.
“I always respect that with older players at 29 or 30 years of age.
“This is arguably the most important contract of their life, so they have to take their time to assess that and look at that. But I am sure his agent is talking with the club.”
The manager, however, isn’t….
He’s going, isn’t he ?
And he won’t be the last.
Despite winning the title last year, Rodgers is merely paying lip service to the players, and he’s beginning a process now which will see a virtually unrecognisable Celtic by this time next year.
As long as we secure the sixth in the quest, then I’ll be happy either way. As far as I can see, the club is about to move forward in a big way.
Hopefully, they’ll see the last four years as a wee break, and now get on with the job properly.
As an aside, look at the size of the big Norwegian, Kristoffer Ajer…and he’s still growing..
Over at Ibrox, missing manager Mark Warburton, fresh from his three week annual leave-according to those rather relieved and delighted he’s shown up again-addressed the issue of his contract;
“We opened discussions and then I had to take some family time. I’m sure in the coming days we’ll sit down again.”
Meantime , the deflector shields went back up as Dave King asked fans to think of a new name for Auchenhowie, the traing complex that used to be called Murray Park, until the previous owners club died.
Season ticket holders will be asked to vote on renaming Murray Park as either the ‘Moses McNeil Academy’ or ‘Davie Cooper Academy’.
Oops. Wrong tweet, that one was from July 2012, the last time the deflectors were on full.
One suggestion for the new name which should be the clear winner-
@Richiestoke @TheClumpany @Chris_Jack89 What about Auchen HoweGonnaPayOurDebts
No prizes for winning the caption competition, as all the companies we spoke to wanted us to mention their porducts and carry adverts, which unless they are worth us having, we’ll stick to our principles.
Caption – run lads the rangers are coming!!
Today, we have a chat between old friends…
