Celtic Diary Wednesday July 20: Celts Romp to Seven Goal Victory

I’m running out of ink so have decided to use the same title two days in a row.

Well, it’s here.

As you can see above , its on the telly.

Premier Sports. Which I actually have on my new media system….so to speak.

The first of the season defining summer games is upon us as Celtic attempt to overturn a one goal deficit incurred in Gibralatar against Lincoln Red Imps. There’ll be nerves, there’ll be excitement and tempers may become frayed.

It’ll be just as bad on the pitch, as the players are forced to stand up and be counted. They must hate this part of the season, and most of us aren’t keen on it either.

First things first, Celtic must win by two clear goals this evening.

Ordinarily, a game against a much lesser side should not be a problem, but these players have shown they can make it so, with the Hampden debacle against “rangers ” springing immediately to mind. And last weeks first leg.

What we need from them is focus, determination and goals. the former two should lead to the latter.

What we didn’t need is the distraction of the league flag being unfurled.

That should have been saved for the first home league game, or even one of the friendlies.

Perhaps we could pretend it isn’t working and send the guy who thought of this one uo the pole to fix it, whilst making sure there’s plenty of grease on the top bit.

Manager Brendan Rodgers has a decision or two to make. Lets hope he’s better at that than others at the club.

How does he play this one ?

There will be a need for caution. The Imps have shown they can break away and score, so all talk of a 3-5-2 is out of the window, for me anyway, as if they do score, especially of its the opener, then the panic on and off the pitch doesn’t bear thinking about.

Celtic need to score first, and score early, say around twenty past four.

We’ve seen in the past that ho hup and at em doesn’t work in Europe, at least not without US air support, so whilst we need to “get intae them” , its important not to leave the back door open. Which could be a serious contender for yesterdays caption competition, come to think of it.

Craig Gordon will start in goal.

If fit, Mikael Lustig at right back, if not, then it’s a toss up between Saidy Janko and Darnell fisher. Neither fills me with great enthusiasm, but Fisher edges it as he more reliable,  more familiar with the surroundings and is less likely to be caught out of position.

On the left will be Keiran Tierney, for obvious reasons, unfortunately edging out Emilio Izaguirre, and showing its a shame neither of them can play right back.

Erik Sviatchenko will be one centre back, and perhaps Kristoffer Ajer alongside him. Efe Ambrose, however has pace, which will be needed, but if the crowd get on his back, and anything goes wrong, he’ll get the blame, which is not how it should be, but its how it is. I’d go with ambrose, as he dominant in the air and can get back quickly. but its likely that the manager won’t. In fact, Rodgers may use Lustig in the centre…

“If I felt it could benefit the team, then I would play Mika at centre half,”

“There are players I am finding out can work in different areas. Mika, for me, can play centre half in a lot of games, if required. He has that quality and international experience.

“He can serve the ball, he is aggressive and I’d have no hesitation playing him there if that’s what the team needed.”

And now to the midfield.

After the ponderous performance of the Brown Biton axis on the rock, its clear that one of them has to go. Scott Brown, as captain, will be picked. Biton, showing less and less interest in each passing game-that can, and in fact, does, have a double meaning- shouldn’t even make the bench.

Alongside him, or in front of him, should be Stuart Armstrong and Calum MacGregor. Pace, energy and an eye for the pass. They will run at the defenders, and theres likely to be about a dozen of them, and not spend eighty minutes playing side to side and back again, before realising nobody’s scored yet.

Add Patrick Roberts or James Forrest to that and we’ve a wide option.

I can’t choose between the two for now. Forrest has pre season games under his belt, whilst Roberts has done little, but arguably can offer more on the park.

I’d start with one, and bring the other on when tiredness fatigue sets in.

Up front, and here’s controversy.

Nadir Ciftci bullied the Imps last week, and was unlucky not to score. Leigh Griffiths too, was unlucky not to score.

The former looked like he’s hungry, and the latter is usually starving. Put these two up front, and send the ball towards them at every opportunity.

Moussa Dembele, the new guy, hasn’t done enough yet to warrant a place.

So, Gordon, Fisher, Sviatchenko, Ajer, Tierney: Brown, Armstrong, MacGregor, Forrest, Griffths Ciftci.

And that way we’ll start the home season the way we finished the last one, with a resounding 7-0 that will get everyones confidence back.

Ahead of the game, Brendan Rodgers spoke to the press. He didn’t want to , but its contractual..

“I am working with a group of players who are so humble and have no ego. This is my first experience of up here in terms of coming in for pre-season and you have your most important games right at the front.

“I was disappointed with the result, of course. Everyone was. Results will always spark a reaction. For me, it has always been about getting the job done. The question is I embarrassed by the players – no I wasn’t.

“I have come into here and found they are a group of real good guys. They are doing their best, they work hard, they need help and support, and that’s what we are trying to give them.

“As a manager I’ve never been on to get too carried away with a win. I never get too disillusioned when I lose. When I have players such as this group, and they do need some help, but at this period of the season when they are fighting for fitness, and the games are frontloaded, they are giving me everything.

“Apart from last week’s result, they could not have done any more since I walked through the door.” 

That first line might actually show he’s found the problem. They should have an ego, not too much, of course, but when they pull on the shirts and then walk out onto the pitch, their chests should rise to fill the shirt, and they need to remember that they are good enough to be wearing it, despite what they read on forums , in the papers or hear from the stands.

Wearing the hoops tonight will help, especially if the players have no ego’s. The shirt will do that for them. Or it should.

Rodgers again;

“You can be as nice as you want off the field and we have enough players who can be aggressive when we go onto it and can play, I talk about ego in the nicest terms.

“I want my teams to go into the pitch and play with arrogance, with dominance, have hunger.

“We have that, but the group are giving everything at this moment and I think they will show that tonight.” 

He’s spotted it, and he will be trying to do something about it. It is never easy instilling self confidence and a wee bit of ego., but it makes a difference to any player when they have it.

If Paul McStay had just a wee bit of the cheek of Charlie Nicholas, a great man once said, and he was right. McStay was a great player, but a touch of arrogance would have made him genuinely world class.

Nicholas had his moments, but he wasn’t the best sriker in the world. but he thought he was, so nothing else mattered. Leigh Griffiths is similar, but with a much better work ethic.

And what does the bold Leigh think about tonights game ?

“I can definitely say that it will be a totally different ball game tonight, There will be a lot of people there tonight supporting us and hopefully they cheer from the first minute to the 90th minute and we give them something to go home happy about.

“They are used to playing on astroturf and after seeing the pitch on Saturday, it was in great condition. It will be watered, everyone will be enjoying it. The ball will be zippy and I think we will have the bulk of possession, but it is all about being patient until we break them down and when we do that then hopefully the chances will fall and we can put them away early doors.” 

He’ll get four himself tonight.

This talk about patience is annoying me a little. Celtic should start at one hundred miles an hour, and gradually increase the tempo until they are about five in front. Then, and only then, can they ease off.

The board have decided, it seems , to wait until tomorrow before announcing signings. Or trying to make some. Or ringing round the agents again to see who’s available and of there’s a fee involved.

Which makes this line, in bold, from the manager yesterday, worth recalling;

“Ideally, we would want to try and at least have one more in by the deadline, all being well,”

“I want it now – but it doesn’t always work out that way. Is it realistic? I would hope so. It won’t be the fault of this club if not. The club are looking to do everything they can to support my needs and what I want.”

A cynic would say he’s been told to say that, in fact, we ‘d all have our suspicions, but such is the attraction of Glasgow and the SPFL, hen maybe the players are indeed holding out to see what happens, which in my book would end the negotiations right there.

“I don’t want a player, I want the right player who can give us quality,” he said. “I will never stockpile players for the sake of it because we have a good bunch here anyway and are current champions.

“For us to take a step forward, we need to cut numbers and then I need to add a little bit more to it. At clubs like Celtic, it’s not about getting them in, it’s about keeping them out.

“There are enough people wanting to come, wanting the calls we have had. But it’s always about the right availability and affordability and it’s also about timing.”

Yep. We’re stuck with the guy at the bottom of the list again. Are we still using the agents lists, or is Rodgers identifying players ?

So far, it seems to be the former…

In other news… from the BBC…

Rangers fans have been left angry after discovering the iPhone personal assistant says the club was founded in 2012.

The question is a source of taunts from other clubs after Rangers came through liquidation and relegation. (sic )

When the Siri voice-activated assistant is asked “When were Rangers formed?” it replies “Wednesday, December 19, 2012” instead of 1872 date Rangers began.

Siri is taking its information from the Wolfram Alpha search engine.

The 2012 reply refers to the initial public offering on the stock exchange.

Other variations of the question do bring up web searches with fuller information on the history of the club.

The Siri response has seen fans exchanging banter online. One posted: “Siri might not say so, but FIFA and UEFA still say we’re the same club….”

Google’s voice search returns a date of March 1872. 

You’ll note the BBC didn’t ask when they went into liquidation. Or how they came through it….

Altogether.. sing a long….Siri sems to be the hardest word….

And liquidation appears to be an even harder word, at least for those at the BBC who struggle to understand its meaning.

I’ll help…

Winding up of a firm by selling off its free (un-pledged) assets to convert them into cash to pay the firm’s unsecured creditors. (The secured creditors take control of the respective pledged assets on obtaining foreclosure orders). Any remaining amount is distributed among the shareholders in proportion to their shareholdings. Liquidation process is initiated either by the shareholders (voluntary liquidation) or by the creditors after obtaining court’s permission (compulsory liquidation). 

The assets were bought, and collected in a big basket, by Charles Green, who used them to form another club, with the word “Rangers ” in it. He got away with this, so far, because he changed the name of the old club to RFC, or something, removing the offending word from the title.

He got them on the cheap, and thats why the police got involved.

Rangers didn’t come through liquidation. No one ever has, no one ever will.

However, they’re still going through the process. when its complete, they will have died.

The club which was newly promoted to the top division is not Rangers, for the reasons outlined above.

You’d have thought the BBC, formed to educate, inform and entertain, would know that.

Of course they do.

As does the audience, which makes the whole pantomime pathetic.

If you fancy a bet on tonights match, or any other, here’s a bookie,skybet,  you can probably trust more than the rest of them, and certainly more than the BBC…

The only time I’ve seen any outlet or business refer to them by their proper name…I’m proud of them.

So much so I went down to their office to congratulate them on their refreshing courage and commendable honesty..

Know what?

I’m going to take up gambling . With Sky Bet.

It looks like it won’t be as warm today as it was yesterday, which is a relief.

I got a little burnt while having a lie down, perhaps due to not putting enough sunblock on.

However, the doctor has given me some ointment and I’ll be back to my best in time for Saturdays night out.

Yesterdays caption competition, taken from the Rangers News Spot the Goat Challenge …

but without the goat in the picture, as Diary author Ralph Malph continues to try to upset as many readers as he can…

Oh wait, here’s something…by all means criticise the Diary, whats in it, who wrote it and so on, but yet again I’m having to draw a line at the personal insults to other readers. . Each person on here has as much right to an opinion as anyone else. you must also be prepared to take a bit of stick for it but you do not have to be abused or insulted. And it stops. Now.

Personal insults are unacceptable and will be deleted.

Grow up.

anyhoo,  back to the bad taste section, and there were a fair amount of replies with a fair bit of quality in there, so I’m going to let you all be winners, because we are all equal, and I’m going to treat you all fairly and then we can all be friends again.

In fact, for those who demand equality, just to even things out after the picture of a young lady in a state of undress, here’s a picture of a man with a big cock.

Remember, don’t take this Dairy, or each other, too seriously. I don’t.

Todays picture -well, you tell me…