Tight qualifiers is poor indication of season, win a Bumblebee shirt

191

Since the Artmedia debacle, exactly 10 years ago this week, we’ve had some memorable Champions League wins, but while the subsequent period saw Gordon Strachan, then Neil Lennon, become the first managers to take Celtic into the Champions League knock out rounds, the third and fourth round qualifiers at Celtic Park have been tight.

We drew 1-1 home and away against Spartak Moscow, before that incredible penalty shoot-out win. Dinamo Moscow actually won 0-1 in Glasgow before Tony Mowbray’s team peaked with a 0-2 win in Moscow.

The 2010 tie against Braga was effectively over before we recorded a 2-1 second leg home win. In 2012 we took care of HJK Helsinki but not after a nervy week pondering if the 2-1 home win would be enough. It all came together in the next round, where we beat Helsingborg 2-0 home and away.

2013 saw a tight 1-0 at home to Elfsborg, where Mo Bangura almost stole the show with a shot against the crossbar, before the high water mark, a dramatic 3-0 at home to Shakhtar Karagandy, overturning a first leg 2-0 deficit.

Last season saw us benefit from a forfeit, overturning a 0-2 Legia win at Murrayfield, before Maribor won 0-1 at Celtic Park.

Home defeats to Dinamo, Legia and Maribor, and a draw with Spartak, were at the bottom end of the scale, although only Maribor progressed. We beat Elfsborg 1-0, HJK 2-1, Helsingborgs 2-0 and Shakhtar 3-0, the latter two are the only third or fourth round results which bettered last week’s win over Qarabag.

Clear inferences can be drawn. If you can’t do better than a 2-1 home win against HJK it doesn’t mean you’ll not go on to beat Barcelona by the same score a few months later. Struggling at home to Dinamo or Elfsborg is an immediate concern, but not something which will necessarily cast a long shadow over the season.

We have a hard game ahead this afternoon, but we’re favourites for a reason.

Win a Bumblebee shirt, courtesy of Magners

To mark the release of the Bumblebee shirt, our friends at Magners have offered a shirt to competition winners. All you need to do is answer this question:

In which African country did CQN readers fund the construction of four school kitchens?

Email your answer, with the country in the subject line, to celticquicknews@gmail.com

Competition closes at 14:00 tomorrow (Thursday), so there’s not a lot of time. If you’d like to help towards the next kitchen, you can send a £1, or £2, here. Pile in, you know how effective Karma is in football!

A big Cheers to Magners.

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  1. WITS

     

     

    I read the whole article and was about to podium with Bumble Bee and then thought better of it.

     

    Better to leave it to someone who would enjoy it.

     

     

    LB

  2. Paul67

     

     

    Can you point me in the direction of the Mary’s Meal link please?

     

    Not donated since the new site was unfurled.

     

     

    LB

  3. What is the Stars on

    Livibhoy

     

     

    You are a very slow reader,

     

    I read I,,had a coffee and a Danish,strolled over to the bookies,did a few bets and decided to go for the podium when I got back

  4. Lot of worriers on here today.

     

     

    It’s quite simple.

     

     

    Go out and win and we win.

     

    Go out and lose and we lose.

     

    Go out and draw… (yip you got it).

     

     

    It’s not in the hands of any God.

     

     

    It’s in the Hands of the Celtic Management and Playing staff as well as the Carrier Bags of Azabanthingimyjiggerypokery.

     

     

    So simples.

     

     

    Go out and win and win we will Celtic.

     

     

    COYBIG

     

     

    MWD said AYE. Loyalist unionist Tims are banana’s.

  5. Can anyone tell me the best place to watch the game in Cork city. Would also need the wee mhan (10 years old) to be able to see the game too.

  6. traditionalist88 on

    Careful With That Tax, Moonbeams

     

     

    I agree we will score twice, and we will go through.

     

     

    HH

  7. Good afternoon CQN

     

     

    First chance I have had to get onto the site since last week

     

    Well done the Kano foundation on their bucket collection on Saturday

     

    And a BIG well done to all involved and all who donated to this great cause

     

     

    Come on you Bhoys in Green tonight can’t wait for kick off

     

     

    Hail Hail

     

     

    Mt

  8. Careful With That Tax, Moonbeams on

    Big Nad’s has squandered ‘chance after chance’ in europe ..

     

     

    FFS!!!

  9. Careful With That Tax, Moonbeams on

    TRADITIONALIST88 on

     

    5TH AUGUST 2015 12:26 PM

     

     

     

     

    Confident myself .. They’ll have to attack .. We’ll create more goal scoring opportunities than last week.

     

     

     

     

    They can’t defend set pieces .. That will be their downfall.

  10. I just caught up on the Sportsound clash between tom english and the sons of untruth guy.

     

     

    Its a hilarious debate, worth a listen if your doing nuffin else

  11. Careful With That Tax, Moonbeams on

    Big nad’s has squandered ‘chance after

     

    chance’ in europe ..

     

    FFS!!!

     

     

    ..

     

     

    Chris McLaughlin’s opinion .. No mine .. BBC is a joke ..

     

     

    Let’s be negative as possible about Celtic .. Sevco will love us again .. Boo hooooo!

  12. Quietly confident about tonight.

     

     

    As long as we don’t run about like loonies in the expected heat.

     

     

    Keep the ball and let them do the running.

     

     

    My prediction is 14-0 to us.

     

     

    Bring them on!!

     

     

    C’MON THE CELTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

  13. .

     

     

    For the Record..

     

     

    Not the Daily..

     

     

    BumbleBees have Hoops ALL Around their Body..Not just Wee Daft stripes on their Belly..

     

     

    Boycott the New UnBalanced BumbleBee Sting..Ermm..Strip..

     

     

    Summa

  14. bournesouprecipe on

    You’ll find ‘the if we fail’ and ‘the season is finished’ and ‘the season is a disaster’ posters weren’t going to any games this season anyway, they’ve no intention of supporting the club.

     

     

     

     

     

    If we go through they’ll actually be disappointed they can’t come on to CQN and say ‘they told you so’ and they are sharpening their keyboards already.

     

     

     

     

     

    Never mind they’ll still have politics and their own personal agendas, to upset the Blog.

     

     

     

     

     

    CelticFansAyeInCyberSpaceOnly csc

  15. mighty tim supporting wee Oscar on

    2-0 the hoops tonight. Bhoyata anytime to score.

     

     

    HH

     

     

    KTF

     

     

    Utlr

  16. One goal, just the one goal will do.

     

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    A fluke, deflection or a screamer in the top corner.

     

     

    .

     

     

    Anything will do for me MON the Hoops.

  17. Hope we’ve got contingency plans if we don’t win the tie tonight. That said, I’m keeping the faith.

  18. GlassTwoThirdsFull on

    Saint Stivs on 5th August 2015 12:35 pm I just caught up on the Sportsound clash between tom english and the sons of untruth guy. Its a hilarious debate, worth a listen if your doing nuffin else –

     

    ———–

     

    Heard it at the time. English totally shredded the guy.

     

    Can’t believe he said Rangers didn’t lose ANY cases to HMRC…..

  19. Afternoon all.

     

     

    Must admit to feeling very cagey about tonight’s game. But, that’s the way of things nowadays.

     

    Teams, who 10 years ago, we could have expected to put 5 or 6 past no bother, are now, pretty much, on a level playing field with us. We’ve been restrained by our location and politics whereas these teams from far flung places have had time to catch up, establish leagues, been bought over by oligarchs and are able to attract a sand dancer or two to compliment their sides.

     

     

    We should still be beating them right enough and I hope Ronny has instilled this belief into the players.

     

     

    HH EnnisBhoy

  20. prestonpans bhoys on

    Dropped Sky movies and sports from my package last night. May I ask the reason he said, well no one watches the movies and Tanner and McCann for sports. Oh another one he replied, makes you wonder how many subscriptions are being lost because of those two!

  21. My wish for tonight(apart from a 2-0 win for us)is…..improvisation.

     

    Been feeling we are playing too rigidly, trying too hard to carry out the tactics of working the ball back and forward across the pitch until we eventually get to the final 3rd where we then try to work an opening.

     

    I get the feeling that sometimes the opportunity arises to drive forward into space or have a strike from distance but players seem reluctant to take that opportunity and continue to do what they are being coached to do….or at least i think they are!

     

    Can understand that we are building a way of playing and its all part of honing that system, but i have been finding it quite frustrating so far and at times i just want someone to unleash a shot because they have the time to do so or take their man on in a 1 on 1 or burst forward to take us 20 yards further upfield if there’s a big hole to go for.

     

    Sometimes things just don’t go as planned and i feel we could react to situations a lot quicker instead of waiting for the pieces of what we are meant to be trying to all fall into place.

  22. Afternoon all.

     

     

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    I believe we will score tonight, and not lose.

     

     

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    Wont manage to make it to the ‘Market’ later for the game unfortunately. A big ‘hail hail’ to all the Ayrshire Tims who will be there, and hope to meet up soon.

     

     

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    HH!!

  23. I am pretty sure many many many many CQN’ers will ease their way to a top score in this test.

     

     

    Given their liking for all things Unionist, Royalist, Loyalist and Queens English and all.

     

     

    http://www.merriam-webster.com/quiz/index.htm

     

     

    Might help wither away the hours until KO.

     

     

    MWD said AYE and got a crap score because I speak Scottish. You silly Unionist Tims.

  24. Bournes. Do you really believe those of us who are questioning the people who run Celtic really want us to lose tonight? Really?

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