From every nightmare there must be an awakening, and from the nightmare that was our Walteresque Champions League campaign of 2013-it didn’t make it into 2014-we have certainly \u00a0been shaken awake.<\/p>\n
Its just a shame that the players out on the pitch last night didn’t have the same sense of alertness. A little effort would have been appreciated. You know, go out fighting, swinging punches as we leave the building..<\/p>\n
Instead, the players put more effort into trying to get the \u00a0shirts from the Barca players at the end than they did trying to get the ball off them during the game.<\/p>\n
Its hard to think of anything more cringeworthy and embarrassing than last nights performance.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
But I’ll give it a go.<\/p>\n
Barcelona became only the third team on fifty years to score six times against Celtic, the others being Kilmarnock in 1963 (6-0 ) and Falkirk in 1965 (6-2 ) .<\/p>\n
Its easy to see why they ended up with six goals against a tired and disinterested looking hoops side. They took the foot off the gas after about an hour or so. Otherwise it could have been so much worse.<\/p>\n
Manger Neil Lennon, having found a system that suited his players and produced some flowing, entertaining and productive football suddenly remembered that he had Teemu Pukki, Georgios Samaras and Derk Boerrigter on his books, and elected to return to the two wide men and no striker style that had already seen his team brushed aside at this level.<\/p>\n
Barcelona didn’t so much brush Celtic aside last night, as sweep them out the door and down the street.<\/p>\n
Kris Commons, who had been on the end of moves instead of at the start was left out, after a poor run of seven goals in four games, as was Charlie Mulgrew and the hard working foil Anthony Stokes.<\/p>\n
So it was hoof the ball towards Samaras and hope for the best , and when Samaras remembered he was playing -at about half past fecking nine, he actually scored, but by then Barcelona had gone home and were watching the highlights on tv.<\/p>\n
If we had lost 6-1 playing the way we had against Motherwell and Hearts, if we had given it a go instead of chucking in the towel before Coronation Street had finished, then it wouldn’t have been so bad, but that last night was just embarrassing.<\/p>\n
I felt for the fans in Barcelona who had probably been looking forward to, and saving for the trip as soon as the draw was made. And I feel for all those fans in Scotland who will have to put up with the jibes from other supporters today, and the champions league you’re having a laugh ditties that will no doubt emerge from fans of our former Glasgow rivals.<\/p>\n
And then theres the media, who will smugly remind us that our defeat is all down to having no serious challengers at home , the very same media who said we did so well last year because we , er, had no serious challengers at home.<\/p>\n
Worst of it for me is the look that colleagues down here will give me. That look where they feel sorry for the guy who goes all that way to watch his team, who play in a league that is the equivalent of the vauxhall conference etc, etc, when he could be watching Stoke chuck the ball to each other instead.<\/p>\n
Actually, I feel a bit better now.<\/p>\n
No matter how bad it gets, at least I won’t have to sit in the ground hoping we get a throw in, and seeing if it will hit one of the planes heading towards Manchester.<\/p>\n
Fortunately, Lennon may be forced into playing the passing style domestically, in order to keep crowds high. Which means he might even adopt it for next years campaign, should we participate.<\/p>\n
The manager was a bit despondent after the game;<\/p>\n
“There were only two or three players that showed anything,\u201d he said, \u201cVirgil van Dijk, Adam Matthews and Mikael Lustig. I excuse the goalkeeper in that as well. But the rest of the team were very, very poor – well below the standards they\u00b4ve set themselves over the past few years.<\/p>\n
“It was nowhere near reminiscent of the performances we\u00b4ve put in previously against Barcelona.<\/p>\n
“There was no bravery on the ball. We started off nervously and it looked like our heads went down at 2-0.<\/p>\n
“We came here on the back of two great results at home and with an idea of trying to finish the group with some sort of positive result.<\/p>\n
“I didn\u00b4t get the performance and I certainly didn\u00b4t get the result. I\u00b4m angry and I\u00b4m disappointed but it\u00b4s something I have to get over very quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I do have a group of players I want to work with and make them better, and they will learn from this experience.”<\/p>\n
Hardly inspiring.<\/p>\n
Charlie Mulgrew was also a little downcast post match, and spoke of the players trying to get the defeat out of their system.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt will take a while. We won\u2019t be able to get it out of our minds for a few days and we won\u2019t sleep well. ”<\/p>\n
Thats because they aren’t tired.<\/p>\n
The team have been granted a wee break after Christmas. May I humbly suggest they use the time to look through a few Celtic dvds and get a feel for the club they play for.<\/p>\n
The club they play for, incidentally, and the accusations that it has moved away from its roots over the last couple of years -mainly from me-will be discussed in a podcast being recorded tonight.<\/p>\n
Our guest will be Jeannette Findlay, from the Celtic Trust. With hindsight, after her passionate speech at the AGM, perhaps she should have given the pre match team talk last night.<\/p>\n
If theres anything you want to ask her, or anything you feel we should discuss, leave a note in the comments section-we do read them, honest-or contact us via twitter, @etims.net .<\/p>\n
Theres probably a whole host of other things going on in the world of football, but frankly, I’m a bit miserable and can’t be arsed looking for them.<\/p>\n
Nice to see UEFA stuck to their prohibition of political banners last night, with their salute to Nelson Mandela. Mandela, the man who went from prison into politics. The opposite of how it works in this country.<\/p>\n
You can tell its nearly Christmas. The dark cloud of misery has descended and will follow me round all day today, like that little rainy cloud on the weather maps. ( Thats how the wife used to find me when i went on my drunken adventures-she’d watch the weather, find the cloud and come and fetch me. With a bat that had a nail sticking out the end. \u00a0)<\/p>\n
I’m not even allowed to go to the Hibs game on saturday, as we have to go Christmas shopping. Which is always a breeze.<\/p>\n
Apparently, I’m becoming more and more tight fisted as I get older, and the good wife has just had a right go at me over it. She’s actually locked herself in the kitchen, and I can hear her ripping up all our plates as I type.<\/p>\n
If you want to feel a little better today, spare a thought for Napoli fans and players. They accumulated 12 points in their group, and still failed to qualify.<\/p>\n
Actually, so what ?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Frank McGarvey headed a goal that secured the cup, and was on his way to St. Mirren before he had a chance to get dressed.<\/p>\n
Celtic lost 6-0 to Kilmarnock back in 1963, but it was quite a significant day in the clubs history-27 March, to be precise, why ?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
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