{"id":6654,"date":"2015-02-23T10:58:59","date_gmt":"2015-02-23T10:58:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/etims.net\/?p=6654"},"modified":"2015-02-23T10:58:59","modified_gmt":"2015-02-23T10:58:59","slug":"celtic-diary-monday-february-23-focus-gets-the-three-points","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/etims.net\/?p=6654","title":{"rendered":"Celtic Diary Monday February 23: Focus Gets The Three Points"},"content":{"rendered":"

Despite Hamilton reverting to the now outdated ten at the back and hoping for the best system, celtic eventually wore them down and emerged 4-0 winners in yesterdays league game. The result restores the three point and a game in hand gap between celts and nearest challengers Aberdeen, and sets up a game that should provide an early pointer as to where the title will end up when Aberdeen come down to Glasgow next Sunday.<\/p>\n

Goalless at half time, there was always the chance that the Hoops would be caught out in between the two Inter games, either through lack of concentration or perhaps a reluctance to pick up an injury, but they kept going, and were rewarded with four second half goals from the restored Kris Commons, the back on form John Guidetti, and the ever lively Stefan Johansen.<\/p>\n

Manager Ronny Deila was , predictably, very happy with the way it turned out.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u201cIt was a good match again. It\u2019s very tough when you come from the Europa League and go into a league game three days later with a different atmosphere. But we were switched on, and we created four or five chances in first half.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThey sat very deep and I don\u2019t they were once inside our 18-yard box. But when you don\u2019t take your chances, it\u2019s harder to open them up.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cBut in the second half, with all their running, they got tired. We passed the ball quite well, and when the first went in they had to go forward, it opened up and we got four in the end. I was very pleased with the performance. \u201c<\/em><\/p>\n

So was I.<\/p>\n

And its given me an idea as to how we can get a result in the San Siro on Thursday.<\/p>\n

With Commons and Guidetti back, that adds a little more guile up front, and instead of just marking a lone striker, the Inter defenders will have to keep an eye on Commons as well, With the pressing game having tired Hamilton, as it was applied constantly, maybe it will have a similar effect on Inter. Then, with twenty minutes to go, replace Commons and Guidetti with Mackay Steven and Griffiths to use their pace on an already knackered Inter back line.<\/p>\n

Piece of piss this management lark. Anyone can do it.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"mccoist\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Er, almost anyone.<\/p>\n

Ronny also talked a little about his squad;<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a very good squad and I feel comfortable whoever I need to pick to play the game it\u2019s a selection celebration – we need all those players we have and it\u2019s good to have different types of players as well.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIt depends how we see the game and how we want to play and we pick players on that. We get high quality in training when we have so many good players and you see that when we come onto the pitch. We are very fit and it\u2019s hard to play against us.\u201d\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Thats an interesting point about the quality in training, as it mirrors what the former Dundee United lads said when they first encountered the training sessions, indeed they were told to do what they can, and ease themselves into it.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Deila looked ahead to the Inter game, at teatime on Thursday-imagine how the likes of John Hartson would have coped with mealtime kick offs-and seemed fairly confident.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s more important away in Europe, when you play very difficult opponents, to think more of them, at home, we have to attack but away we have to defend better, especially against good teams.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s another football match. We have to be prepared like we were today and Thursday. If we put on a good performance, we will have a chance in Milan as well.\u201d \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

He may call upon Kris commons for a wee bit of help when he sits down to discuss tactics ahead of this game.<\/p>\n

Kris Commons disguised himself<\/h1>\n

to watch Inter thriller sat among<\/h1>\n

Celtic fans<\/h1>\n

He reckons he’s spotted a few things from his vantage spot in the stand. Presumably he turned around after this photo;<\/p>\n

\"Embedded<\/p>\n

That jacket \u00a0looks, er, cosy. He must know someone who is knocking them out cheap.<\/p>\n

\"lennon<\/a><\/p>\n

He tried the hat on at home -it belongs to his good lady-and even the pets were a little surprised;<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Embedded<\/p>\n

“I watched it in the Jock Stein Stand & it was difficult because it was probably the first game I had watched from behind the goal”\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever done that. It was like watching Playstation. You see every pass, every bit of space”\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYou question the guys out there, asking \u2018Why hasn\u2019t he seen that?\u2019 or \u2018Why did he do that?\u2019”\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Or why didn’t he notice he was in the Lisbon Lions stand ?<\/p>\n

Commons does have a point, though. You do see the whole pitch from higher up, and no amount of video re-runs is going to capture the big picture where off the ball movement is concerned.<\/p>\n

Maybe we could get someone to sit up there and feed information back to the bench. Along with the five or six thousand others who sit up there and relay information back to the bench.<\/p>\n

Commons is desperate to play against inter, and reckons he is ready.<\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s going to be extremely difficult – but I think we will get chances out there, I \u00a0don\u2019t think they are defensively great, I think they have shown that the other night.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

‘If the ball had gone our way at times we could easily have scored four or five.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Easy now, tiger.<\/p>\n

\u2018They could probably say that about ourselves. But, if we can cut out the defensive errors and still put them under pressure, we\u2019ve got a chance \u2013 although I\u2019m sure their guys will be saying the same things in their press conferences.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018I can\u2019t wait for the San Siro \u2013 and I hope I\u2019ve done enough to win a place in the starting XI.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018Hopefully the boys have done enough at home to give us a chance over there, so we can go and nick a win.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018I think we\u2019ll get chances. It\u2019s just on the night, hopefully we can keep them at bay and not give them as many chances as they had here.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

\u2018It\u2019s going to be a very difficult task, we know that. They\u2019re a very good team, a very experienced team, and whenever you play away in Europe with your backs against the wall, it\u2019s a tough test.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

‘If we can go out there and get the win, it\u2019ll be a huge achievement for us.\u2019<\/em><\/p>\n

I’m tempted to agree with him. Deilas system is almost designed to be effective away from home in Europe, but there are a couple of things-four or five actually -that need working on. Lets , for the sake of argument, refer to them as the defenders.<\/p>\n

They need to get back to working as a unit. Looking out for each other. Izaguerre was left to deal with Inters top man -Shaqiri-and in the return the shackles need to be applied to the forward.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Not like the shackles that were applied to the lady arrested at the cinema for er, enjoying herself during a performance of that Fifty Shades film. She was arrested and removed from the building, though I can’t help but feel handcuffs were the correct tool to defuse the situation here.<\/p>\n

\u00a0But just enough to frustrate him, and make him blame his teammates for not giving him the ball.<\/p>\n

Another little point worth considering. Inters keeper didn’t look to be of any real quality, so a few long range efforts-Commons, Johansen-and a swift follow up for the rebound could pay dividends.<\/p>\n

For a more detailed, and sensible critique of Deilas system, have a look at this from tictactic, who knows about that sort of thing.<\/p>\n

Deilas system-tictactic<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0Away from the football for a moment, and lets hope that the squad now lock themselves away to concentrate fully on the game, there was a bit of controversy on the Radio Clyde phone in show when a caller described the tricolour flag of Ireland, which symbolises peace between the “green” and ” orange” sections of society as the “flag of the IRA<\/em> “, and the Irish anthem, Amhran na bhFiann as\u00a0“ offensive or lets the club down”<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0Hugh Keevins, the nasal whine of whataboutery, agreed.<\/p>\n

\u00a0The show finished seven minutes ahead of schedule, unlike Keevins career, which has dragged on way beyond its usefulness.<\/p>\n

Radio clyde, which is a fairly low brow staion, financed by advertisers, which should give us a clue as to which products to buy the next time we go shopping.<\/p>\n

A quick glance at their facebook page shows “sponsorship ” from Optical Express and Jet2.com holidays. And their coverage of Motherwell against Dundee is backed by Toolstop.<\/p>\n

\u00a0You know what to do, and if you can think of any others, share them in the replies. Make sure you are right , though.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Clydes editorial policy-such as it is-seems to be along the “both sides are as bad as each other “, which usually gives a clue as to which side is favoured by those at the station-although a quick glance at their “experts ” gives us a clue. Intellectual heavyweights Derek Johnstone and Gordon Dalziel represent the “blue ” side of the city, whilst their “Green ” equivalent are Hugh Keevins and Frank MacAvennie.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Well, in the sense that they are all intellectual heavyweights, I suppose both sides are as bad as each other, with a combined IQ several digits lower than their combined ages, but thats not what the phrase applies to.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Its all about evening out the blame, so that one section of society, the one mired in the late seventeenth century, is just as much to blame as the one \u00a0who didn’t operate a sectarian and racist signing policy until they were forced to abandon it.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Lets examine the evidence,<\/p>\n

\"Embedded<\/p>\n

\"Embedded<\/p>\n

\u00a0Aye, two peas in a pod right enough.<\/p>\n

I can’t think of any reason why Radio clyde should adopt this obviously one sided policy.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, heres a picture of sports controller Lorraine Herbison, and Sevco PR man Keith Bishop<\/p>\n

\"Embedded<\/p>\n

\u00a0I think she’s the one one the left.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Its taken Stan Collymore, a former footballer turned pundit on Radio 5, to draw attention to the issue, and so far, only Willie Miller, former Aberdeen player , manager and assistant referee has publicly backed him.<\/p>\n

Why is it obvious and natural for Chelsea to do right thing & seek to ban culprits, yet here with Rangers desire is to sweep under carpet?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

and he’s issued the most damning and thought provoking statement of all….referring to those in the media who don’t condemnn bigotry and racism when they see it.<\/p>\n

\n

Demand they come out the shadows and explain support for bigotry\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Such as Pat Nevin, who was eager to report on sectarian singing live from the Cup final a few years ago. Nevin once told, in 2011, a committee of MPs that he;<\/p>\n

“Whatever we do, I want to make it [sectarianism] culturally unacceptable and legislation may be needed to do that. ”\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

He also said, at half time in the above mentioned game;<\/p>\n

“I’m going mention it every time I hear it and I don’t care if it’s Celtic or Rangers or Hearts or Hibs or whoever, I will mention it and lets embarrass these teams”. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

So, when Nevin was on Sportscene last night, the Scottish footballing world awaited with bated breath for the Great Crusader to give us his condemnation of the singalong at Starks Park on friday, especially as he has had a couple of days to examine the evidence and clarify it.<\/p>\n

\u00a0We’re still waiting. He said he didn’t see it. Presumably in the same way he didn’t hear those songs at Hampden all those years ago, but in that instance, felt the need to condemn it anyway.<\/p>\n

Have you noticed, that give or take a letter or two, an anagram of Pat Nevin is “two faced cowardly little ratbag ” ?<\/p>\n

Give or take a letter or two.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Celtic v Ayr , from 1977 was our little picture teaser on saturday, yesterdyas diary didn’t appear because i had to take the dog out-two hours-do the dinner-three hours and then continue my study of living conditions in a womans prison, in the excellent documentary series Orange is the New Black, which discusses the problems of living in a confined space in the modern USA.<\/p>\n

\u00a0Today, we have another \u00a0little picture teaser<\/p>\n

\"nevin\"<\/a><\/p>\n

oh, my apologies, I must have typed “tosser ” into my browser.<\/p>\n

Its a teaser. Can you remember the story behind this headline ?<\/p>\n

\"Embedded<\/p>\n

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<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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