I’ve heard a lot about Patrick Roberts. He’s burdened by enormous expectations, compared to the greats since shortly after his 17th birthday. Manchester City moved 2 starts and 17 substitute appearances into his Fulham career – £12m on the basis of 399 minutes football.
He’s here to force his way into the team between now and the end of the season, and be ready for the European challenges ahead. I think we’re going to enjoy watching this lad.
We saw around 80 minutes of Erik Sviatchenko on Sunday. As I said yesterday, he’s probably our best defender, not that that is taking enormous liberties. In Virgin van Dijk we managed to recruit a dependable defender who wasn’t scared of the ball, and was first to organise those around him. If Erik’s near that standard, he’ll do well.
Ryan Christie (20) is a No. 10. We need a No. 10. He’s 12 years younger than Kris Commons, the only comparable player in the first team squad. Kris has been our MVP for more seasons than anyone else currently on the books, but we’ve been far too dependent on him, which has become acutely evident recently, when he’s out injured.
There’s an argument that we could have done with another No. 10 during our European campaign but it’s far from clear Ryan would have got his chance. We’ll see a good bit of him before the end of the season.
Many of the things I could say about Colin Kazim-Richards I alluded about Carlton Cole when he signed. He’s a physical presence, not easily intimidated, should be an effective foil for Leigh Griffiths.
Colin joins with an actual rap sheet. Online comments yesterday recalled the reaction the day Griffiths signed. At the time I wrote that it’s important for Celtic to affirm positive values in Leigh’s life. The player hasn’t looked back, he’s every inch a positive role model. It’s now important the club and Colin work to ensure a similar result.
Aidan Nesbitt (18) is also a No. 10. He’s the player you’re most likely to hear development and youth coaches talk about. The next stage of his development required him to play against men. Four months in the Premiership playing for Partick will achieve this.
Farewall Nadir Ciftci, who is off to Turkey until the end of the season. I described Nadir as less like a Ronny Deila player than any other I’ve watched and known Celtic to be interested in. He has a touch and is a better player than we’ve seen, but he was built from different material than practically all other Deila signings.
Last month’s business will hopefully mean we have a settled and secure defence for the qualifiers, something missing at the beginning of this season, something missing on Sunday afternoon. The Kazim-Richards signing could go a number of different ways. The player will get his chance to live up to his own expectations.
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An odd transfer window really. Another international; centre half is a positive but we didn’t get the defensive midfielder. And more comings, goings and controversy with attacking players. Still, young Mr Roberts is worth watching by all accounts.
We have a fair few young players out on loan now. The gulf between development squad action and first team makes this a necessity. Good luck to young Aiden at Firhill. He looks like he has a real chance in the game.
Big game up at Pittodrie tomorrow night, The hacks will have the crisis headlines written, but am authoritative performance and we can go 9 clear and back on track for the prize that matters most. After a setback I actually prefer a difficult game to a supposedly easy one.
Morning Bhoys from a wet dark windy Central Scotland now we brought in three players during the window which I know nothing about however unlike some on CQN I am prepared to give them a chance.Wednesday nights game will be tough our defence need to stand strong as Aberdeen will test them a defeat wouldnt be the end of our league challenge but could drive another nail into Ronnys Celtic future. H.H.
KEVJUNGLE
I only have to think back to McDonald losing form, us not signing Fletcher in January and subsequently failing to score in our last two games to eventually lose a League that was in the bag, lessons learn’t ? Leigh has to keep the form up
HH
WEEMINGER on 2ND FEBRUARY 2016 9:37 AM
lionroars67 on 2nd February 2016 9:33 am
Yes i agree the difference in the reality of me sitting in North stand lower on a Saturday afternoon as compared to the nonsense in the media reports on football matches is staggering, i see no violence, no racism, no sectarianism……………..i seem to be missing all the fun :-))))
Unfortunately the SPFL board will play the MSM game, this appointment is playing the media game
Winning Captains
Good post. The one flaw in your comparison is that both previous managers had better players at their disposal.
Our plan (until the football landscape changes) is to grab early projects at home and abroad and mould a team. The ongoing waste of our limited funds is the biggest glaring issue at our club and needs addressed.
Sacking Ronny will still see us pursue the same signing policy, with the same promise to young european hopefuls that we are a gateway after a couple of seasons.
That’s not going to change, regardless of the Peter Lawell hating cabal here boring us every day with that mantra. His successor will have the same brief because there are little or other viable options when the game’s a bogey elsewhere and we are in a land of no competition, poor officials and a rigged game.
Winning captains on 2nd February 2016 9:43 am
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That was a grand post sir – Hail Hail
As for the trap about trebles….maybe Ronny isny cute enough for this neck of the woods ?
A prerequisite quality for a Celtic manager is that, he must be capable playing, ‘hunskelping mind games’….imho.
MO’N’s – “Rangers are the benchmark etc…”
I know that I’m probably the only one on here who’d like to see Big Mark McGhee as Celtic manager but, he’d monster the huns with his own ‘hunskelping mind games’…it would be grand.
He’d have Celtic players walking 10ft tall, running through walls etc…..
Can Ronny do any of those things ?
I think that Ronny hung his nickers out for everybody to see with yon daft ‘Ronny Roar’ stuff ah mean, wtf was that all about ?
Kris Commons called him and his, management team out in Molde….do you think he’d ever be seen again if he tried that with Big McGhee ?
Anyway…thanks for being you.
Hail Hail
CARRIGAN on 2ND FEBRUARY 2016 9:47 AM
Paul67, how can we get a settled defense when teams are allowed to run straight through them. Until RD gets it into that stubborn head of his that his tactic is flawed it will get worse.
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We’ll see. The new guy and Scepovic haven’t even played together yet. Don’t write them off yet!
THEMAESTRO72 on 2ND FEBRUARY 2016 9:09 AM
Roberts and Nesbitt are the same age.
If Roberts can come to Celtic to “force his way in to the team” what kind of message is that sending to young Aidan Nesbitt?
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Nesbitt is going to get a chance to play in the same division as Celtic. He has every opportunity to make a name for himself in the SPFL (without having to worry about moving away from home)
Thistle will probably stay up. We will be able to review it in the summer.
Twentyfirstofmay1979 on 2nd February 2016 9:55 am
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As I said it’s a scandalous state of affairs.
Maybe, Ronny would be better going the Craig Leveine way and, playing with no strikers and, 6 midfielders ?
A cute manager could do it….is Ronny that guy ?
Hmmmm ?
HH
Winning Captains.
Agree with all of that but especially the point that a treble is a must.
Where did that come from but the idea that the only club that can compete with Celtic for a TITLE is the one at Ibrox?
The reason for that is simple . A bigger wage bill means more resources to overcome injuries or loss of form over a whole season.*
Over 90 minutes that advantage means nothing. Cup ties are settled over 90 to 120 minutes not a season. As Saturday showed anything can happen and did.
The “mustness” of the treble is a charge against Celtic and RD born of envy. It is insidious, it is poisonous.
Anyone who drinks it is poisoned by it. Why would anyone do that without thinking?
Morning Celts.
This is what id do to strengthen the team.
Gordon in goal …KT RB..Izzy LB,..Shev and Mik Lustig Central defence.
Now…here…i would play Scott Brown in front of the defence tidying up….not centre -mid.
Id have Calum Left-mid…Nir…Centre-mid….Paddy R Right-mid.
Leigh and Kris or Kazim up front.
Right cmon…slaughter my selection for tomorrow:)
HH
Comparisons to MON are a waste of time.
It was 15 years ago and football was different. Do you think we could sign Chris Sutton nowadays?
KEVJUNGLE. Fella go away and have a look at Mark McGhees managerial record it is terrible never a Celtic manager. H.H.
WEEMINGER on 2ND FEBRUARY 2016 9:32 AM
I can all but guarantee that the folk criticising the decision to loan Nesbitt out for 1st team experience would be howling to the rooftops about depending on laddies if we played him and lost.
– See more at: http://www.celticquicknews.co.uk/january-transfer-window-2016/#comment-2766991
Would that be the same folk criticising the decision to play Tierney? Tierney is younger than Nesbitt.
Still no critique of yet another capitulation in a big game,same platitudes from the manager,under performing players,baffling substitutions…………must be a Bobby Ewing moment…..
Looking forward to tomorrow night.
Please replace Lusting and Gordon. They’ve both the captaincy recently, but I have lo faith in both of them.
Árd Macha
The * above was to make a point.
When was the last time we played same team two games in a row?
How many changes were down to injuries some during the game?
I don’t have any stats but when I see the line up before most games I wondering why isn’t xx in the team.
If it takes say 5 games for a back four to settle how often have we started with the same back four through choice?
Without that wage bill the cost of churn by injury and loss of form might have seen us going into the game v Aberdeen 6 points behind not ahead.
Billybear on 2nd February 2016 9:52 am
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Yeah, I hope yer right and time does tell us that, Colin is a guid yin.
Colin is an, underdog type…that’s guid…ah like that.
HH
the_huddle on 1st February 2016 5:43 pm
traditionalist88 on 1st February 2016 5:39 pm
Your point was that Ronny doesn’t know “his best 11″, you’ve contradicted yourself each time by constantly posting about Johansen not being good enough “in your eyes”.
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Players are being accomodated where it is not merited. eg Johansen yesterday, Armstrong on the wing like the classic square peg in a round hole.
McGregor and GMS are in and out, flavour of the month then banished. Why does the same rules not apply to the likes of Johansen when on the available evidence on the pitch he has been FAR from one of our best 11 players for an extended period now??
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Because Johansen is in Ronny best 11
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No he isn’t, because he is not being judged by the same criteria others are. Hardly a fair contest.
Billybear on 2nd February 2016 9:52 am
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Yeah, I hope yer right and time does tell us that, Colin is a guid yin.
Colin is an, underdog type…that’s guid…ah like that…
HH
Our Captain, is the defensive midfielder we are looking for.
Im surprised he hasnt been played further back.
Neil Lennon role…breaking things up deep…sweeping just in front of the defence….making the link to midfield.
Try it Ronny.
HH
the_huddle on 1st February 2016 5:31 pm
Your point was that Ronny doesn’t know “his best 11″, you’ve contradicted yourself each time by constantly posting about Johansen not being good enough “in your eyes”.
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Is that a direct quote because I didn’t say that ya balloon.
Learn how to use quotation marks and maybe stop fabricating quotes if you want to be taken seriously.
The Maestro,
Yes.100% my friend.Doesn’t matter what age they are.If they are good enough get them in.Bin at least 5 of the hopeless cases who embarrassed us on Sunday…
My friends in Celtic, Paul 67 Et Al.
Let’s give our new signings a warm welcome to Paradise.
I know that our fans who make the mega effort to go to Aberdeen will. I have lost count on here the amount of posters advocating withholding money or boycotting games at Parkhead until each of their individual conditions are in place.
I am absolutely in favour of a boycott. A boycott of streaming devices like Kodi, Mobdro etc. We the fans have power. We can choose to use it constructively or negatively.
We have the power to act negativity. We can moan about how bad things are, tune into Sports Devil then batter away at our keyboards, glass half full comments while selectively thinking how good things used to be in the old days
Or we as Celtic supporters can act constructively. We can give our new signings a good welcome and ask them to create their own destiny. We can consign the streaming devices to the bin on Celtic match days and make the effort to get up to Parkhead.
We can create or destroy the atmosphere at Parkhead. We the supporters have that power. Nobody else.
Yes we can look enviously down south at the money involved and dream. But is that really what supporting Celtic is all about.
Make the effort guys. You know it makes sense.
Hail, Hail.
I think I can say without any fear of contradiction that I could not sit beside at a game, on a bus going to a game, in a pub after the game, or befriend at least 75 % of the Celtic fans (?) who come in here, Why? Scroll back.# petulant CSC
Joe Filippis Haircut on 2nd February 2016 10:02 am
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Hail Hail fella.
Well, Joe….I believe that, Big Mark McGhee would be a ‘destiny’ Celtic manager, as would Roy Keane….imho
Only problem being….they’re not puppets…so, useless Ronny will need to lead the Tims into uncharted territory next season…..hmmmm.
HH
WINNING CAPTAINS @ 9:43 AM,
Good post, very good points…
I don’t think Ronny is a match day Manager, he may be a good coach but if you can’t perform on the day including improving the teams performance motivationally and tactically then it kinda makes you a #2.
This has been evident on a number of occasions, we saw it again on Sunday.
You are correct in the big game scenario, percentage wise we are not going to win many of these games, which means under performing trophy wise and in Europe, things that are key to the current Celtic set up.
Hail Hail
The Green Man on 2nd February 2016 10:08 am
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Hail Hail fellow Celt.
Nail on head 100% agreement.
HH
‘Do you think we could sign Chris Sutton nowadays?’
Hoopslegend and deluxe hunskelper Chris Sutton is 42, and has only one good eye.
Still more likely to ping the ball in the ole onion bag than some of the multitude of false #9s we’ve got clutterin’ up the squad.
http://www.celticquicknews.co.uk/celtics-cash-windfall-as-michael-ohalloran-drops-into-lower-league/
Greenpinata
Spot on mate and a great post. ‘We’ choose how we want to act and react.
And before the anger vents up that doesn’t mean people can’t choose to critique or oppose.
GREENPINATA on 2ND FEBRUARY 2016 10:10 AM
Great post
Personally, I see Celtic getting their ducks in a row.
I believe we will do the double. I believe we will qualify for the CL and I believe it’s going to be a hell of a ride.
My only regret is I can’t go to Aberdeen for the game.
TD67
Cash windfall. I hope it’s in readies.
HH.
Transfer lunacy of the EPL in a tweet
Frankie Boyle @frankieboyle
Your club has bought some journeyman midfielder sexcase for the price of a hospital
I thought big Virgin/ Lusting made a great centre back partnership typo thing.
Tony – Can we make them hand that cheque over in a large paradise windfall manner at the next home game ?
then….
from stage left can we invite the face painting company onto the field, the owner with a sad face clown look and hand it over to them as an act of our goodwill to the community…
Smile…say cheese…click….
Greenpinata on 2nd February 2016 10:10 am
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A rebellious Celtic supporters group would, have to be revolutionary within the rules of law…which is almost, nazi-like today, thanks to collusion from the Celtic board.
The 1st port of call for a rebel-group of fans would be to, win the hearts and minds of Celtic supporters to…support…a move which would effect the change which is need, long over due…imho.
The thing is…as the land lies just now, Sunday was a bad day, one of many but, again….I think that things will have to get worse, before a lot of folk actually wake up tot the fact that, through Desmond….Celtic FC are merely O## F### toys.
I have often thought that, it’ll take a season of mibbery-assisted-cheating at the hands of the died huns when they return….before Celtic supporters realize that, this has to be stopped and that, only a rebellious Celtic board will stop it, not sit at the back of the bus and, kowtow for an easy life by, sacrificing the Celtic supporters to the cops…after, taking they’re SB-money…..that, is a scandal worse than anything at ibrokes….imho.
I like what you say better…your more, sophisticated.
HH
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/scottish/celtic/celtic-weighs-up-move-for-northern-ireland-boss-oneill-after-euro-2016-34415658.html
Take this with a huge pinch of salt, it is the Belfast Telegraph after all.
GREENPINATA @ 10:10 AM,
Good post, some very good points.
Hail Hail