{"id":15962,"date":"2020-08-18T07:49:47","date_gmt":"2020-08-18T06:49:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/etims.net\/?p=15962"},"modified":"2020-08-18T07:49:47","modified_gmt":"2020-08-18T06:49:47","slug":"celtic-diary-tuesday-august-18-just-like-starting-over","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/etims.net\/?p=15962","title":{"rendered":"Celtic Diary Tuesday August 18: Just Like Starting Over"},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s difficult not to be a little nervous ahead of tonight’s first round qualifying UCL match.<\/p>\n

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It’s been a strange season so far, and there is always that risk it could get even stranger. A one off European tie that isn’t the final ?<\/p>\n

Played in a vast empty cavernous arena…<\/p>\n

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Still, some things don’t change. Leigh Griffiths has a ” calf strain “.<\/p>\n

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Make of that what you will, but when you factor in that a loan deal to Hibernian won;t be happening as their manager reckons he’s not worth the hassle, then there is obviously something amiss.<\/p>\n

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Albien Ajeti hasn;t got a calf strain, but won;t make his debut in case he gets one, having not played first team football for a while, he’s not match fit yet, and probably won;t be for a couple of weeks.<\/p>\n

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As a result, we can expect the usual starting eleven from manager Neil Lennon, although there is a possibility that he will ponder a Ntcham for a Christie.<\/p>\n

Christie offers the energy and the tempo, whereas Ntcham has a wee bit more guile when it comes to varying the play. I’d put both in and hope the referee doesn’t notice.<\/p>\n

Of course, he could start both, but the only real option would be to drop Scott Brown, and only bring him into the fray if the rest of them need a kick up the arse.<\/p>\n

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Ahead of the game, the manager allowed himself time to dream of the group stages, and the importnace of being involved at the top table….<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe big European nights brighten up the season\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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They are important for the gravitas of the club and the development of the players, individually and as a team, to come up against the best and the Champions League is the best competition in the world.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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\u201cFor myself as a coach, it would be amazing to go back there, but it\u2019s not about me. It\u2019s about the likes of Jeremie Frimpong,\u00a0Chris Jullien and Hatem Elhamed who haven\u2019t experienced it before.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cAlso guys like Ryan Christie and even Odsonne Edouard, who haven\u2019t had much football at that level.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIn terms of their actual experience as players, there is nothing better than the Champions League.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI was late coming to that party. I was 29\/30 when I signed for Celtic. I\u2019d played in the Premier League, but the pace, intensity and quality of the Champions League was fantastic.\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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\u201cI want these players to experience that, but we need to do the hard work first and these are difficult games to negotiate.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s always important for the club. We missed out on the group stage in the previous two seasons and we want to go one better this time.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

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A further bonus is that of Lyon don’t win the UCL, and it’s hard to see past Bayern Munich as winners , Celtic will be in pot 3 should they qualify.<\/p>\n

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As ever, concentration will be as important as tempo , and the enforced lay off could yet play a part, but Lennon thinks he’s ealt with that..<\/p>\n

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\u201cObviously, we would have liked the games under our belt going into this one, but the players are just itching to get back on the pitch and get playing again.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, it\u2019s about us and how we approach the game. We\u2019re at home, we know it\u2019s only one leg.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

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Any win will do, it’s all about progression, but a comfortable win and a good performance would help not only fans, but players get over the Kilmarnock game.<\/p>\n

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As an aside, “rangers ” didn’t perform at Livingston at the weekend, and it appears the plastic pitch played a part in that game too. The issue seems to be that the host side don’t water it , which affects performance.<\/p>\n

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Artificial pitches hold more heat than grass, and the prospect of sliding along on that surface to win a ball isn’t pleasant. It’s worth noting whilst manufacturers claim several layers of cushioning help prevent injuries, the reality is they don’t, but we seem to be stuck with it, until a player suffers a long term or career ending injury, and his club sues the pitch owners.<\/p>\n

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Maybe thats\u00a0 why Griffiths has a bad leg….artificial grass…<\/p>\n

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As for Celtic’s opponents tonight, Knattspyrnufelag Reykjavikur, to give them their full name,\u00a0 Kristinn Jonsson and Krystian Floka Finnbogasson are injured and not expected to make the trip.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Thankfully they have no more injuries, as its bad enough trying to spell our own players names correctly.<\/p>\n

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The game is available on the telly, with Premier sports, but you’re quite likely to find a stream somewhere.<\/p>\n

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I’ll probably be out and about and may have to try to pick it up on the radio, which is always a far better alternative when you consider some of the pundits on tv.<\/p>\n

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At least the one’s on the radio don’t appear to take themselves seriously, and as far as i can see there’s an ongoing competition between the west of Scotland’s big two, EBT sportsound and Radio Clyde’s Superscoreboard , to outdo each other in dopey presenters.<\/p>\n

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For instance, Alex Rae cranked up the stupidity bar again last night with this line….<\/p>\n

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“Folk are going on about Rangers not scoring against Livi but with all the world class players Celtic have they couldnt score against Killie”<\/em><\/p>\n

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They did, as we know, but Alex forgot to do his research again.<\/p>\n

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If there is a phone in tonight,\u00a0 could someone try to get him to pronounce that long and difficult name for a laugh ?<\/p>\n

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Then get him to have a shot at the Icelandic one.<\/p>\n

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With computer and video game technology improving all the time, maybe there’s a possibility that one day we won’t have to pay for tv subscriptions, maybe one day we will just have someone telling us what’s happening and it could be instantly transferred into images, maybe even viewed through a virtual reality headset.<\/p>\n

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In fact, I’m going to start work on such a device, or application, as they are called, and I’m going to set up a You Tube channel where I’m going to re-enact the match as it happens, with the aid of the latest in football gaming technology…<\/p>\n

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\"Image\"<\/p>\n

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Surprised no one else has thought of it.<\/p>\n

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After all, we can’t trust the media in it’s present form…<\/p>\n

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\"Image\"<\/p>\n

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Overwhelmingly, the mainstream has shown it doesn’t give a toss about the game itself, it just wants something to fill space on it’s pages, regardless of quality, veracity or objectivity.<\/p>\n

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Thats why sites like this exist, to point out the bits where they are lying.<\/p>\n

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To attempt to differentiate between what are facts and what is opinion.<\/p>\n

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Well, thats just my opinion, but you get the point.<\/p>\n

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Over on Twitter, Highland Paddy found something to take you back….which I found just a wee bit hypnotic….<\/p>\n

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https:\/\/twitter.com\/i\/status\/1295096085518712840<\/p>\n

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Yesterday, we had this….<\/p>\n

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\"Image\"<\/p>\n

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Eddie<\/em><\/div>\n