AEK Athens v Celtic, Live updates
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A fiver for your thoughts-
You’ve pretty much hit the nail on the head there.
Spend some of our money on building a statue of Mikael Lustig. That’s what he is.
DONTBRATTBAKKINANGER
It’s the Grim Reaper I’m worried about these days,not the sparing or bountiful one!
But aye,got what our pre-season planning deserved.
AFIVERFORYOURTHOUGHTS
Hubris leads and nemesis follows. Or summat. Ancient Greeks thought that,modern Greeks proved it.
I’m normally quite circumspect in these situations but the wider reactions to last night have me very worried.
If the club don’t make some quality signings before the window closes I fear there will be serious repercussions on and off the field – to add to the serious one that happened last night.
This poor week could be a positive turning point if the club act. Middle to front we have a team capable of performing at a high level – we still need another wide player and dead ball specialist though. Two good defenders, right sided, and we could yet have a memorable Europa league season.
Two bites at the European cherry,first bite sour taste.Now we are dining at another table hopefully we can enjoy what’s left on offer.On the domestic front we have three pieces of silverware to protect,let us not allow the vultures to swoop.
SWEET AND SOUR CSC.
Not a massive surprise that we have failed to qualify, its a perilous route and things were close to going wrong in both previous years qualification campaigns.
Fans are right to be angry because we didnt give ourselves the best opportunity to qualify by strengthening the team when we had the chance.
There was almost an outpouring of joy on here when we beat Rosenborg which proves that some of our fans don’t understand football very well. You’re also not allowed to point out weaknesses because what do they matter if Motherwell or Dundee are not good enough to capitalise?!
The Boyata debacle is ridiculous on so many levels you just have to laugh. Firstly, hes an absolute dud anyway and if this is what £9m+ gets you in England we can recall our scouts from there now. Secondly, we apparently turned down the £9m! Thirdly, his contract is up at the end of the season and he could decide to sit it out.
Hopefully, we will be in the Europa League where there are many potential ties of interest and opportunities for our younger players to develop further and learn more about the European game, and the greater possibility of European football until February/March.
HH
playing Lustig was crazy…. he takes ages to get up to fitness. obviuous after first leg he wasn’t ready… What has gamboa done wrong? 3 games in a row we lose goals because everyone is ball watching
Willie Wallace was asked why he scored so many goals. he said he just stood away from defenders…he would have a field day agains our current team.
Buy now for next seasons CL qualifiers … No stupid excuses about how its hard to buy players. get rid of Comperr an Gamboa Ralston any player he doesn’t like…they just clog up squad and make it look like we have a large choice… BR would rather play unfit players he likes than fit players. Punt Boyata now…. Admit we made a mistake not having his replace here BEFORE start of season. JMcG should have been in day after cup final.
and buty a CF who is fit…. we shouls always have 4 CFs plus any youths.
GARY67 on 15TH AUGUST 2018 7:42 AM
Yes, if you dont include qualifier – Hamilton game will move to 26th ?. Then return Thursday before Huns game ?.
Huns will be away that Thursday ?
HH
just in case anyone is in any doubt what the main priority of a ceo is
greedy rastards
Why would hoopslegend Mika Lustig not be ready?
He’s been playin’ in the ole Mundial, not kickin’ an ole beach ball around on Skanör-Falsterbo
I dont put all the blame on Lustic for the first goal. He delayed the ball crosser long enough for the defence to be ready for when the ball was hit across goal.
For the most part ,in both games , we played good . Even dominated ……but gifted 3 soft goals and not ruthless enough in attack.
These days the CL is only attractive because of the £££,s. We cant compete with the mega-rich clubs elite but we could do well in the Europa . Just need a settled defence and a more positive vibe around the place.
Slept on it and still can’t reason why we did not add quality players, something not right at Celtic scunnerd I am 40+mill gone
if you bring in inexperienced young players you must have top quality coaches to nurture and do what they are getting paid for ‘coach’ , it seems that our defensive coaches have failed miserably again , if we are going to recruit new players. we must have the best dedicated coaches to carry out their duties. I’m not referring to the team manager but the ‘dedicated’ defensive coaches , i have seen no progress in any of our defenders and includes KT who imo now plays the safe pass backwards or sideways.
It is over so let it go we were never a Champions league side and I dont believe we have the quality to do well in the Europa league either.What we need to do now is focus on the domestic game.This season I believe we face a stiffer challenge at home than in previous seasons 8 in a row is not a mere formality we need to get our house in order sooner rather than later as it is a shambles at the moment why that is only the people working at Parkhead will know but we the fans are not blind we see that the team is weaker than last season we also see the reluctence to try to strengthen suddenly the Partick Thistle becomes a big game. H.H.
Celtic CL qualifier CB pairings
2016- eoghan oconnell and efe ambrose in Astana
2017- kris ajer and nir bitton in Astana
2018- hendry and simunovic in Athens
We just pushed our luck way too far after getting away with it for the last couple of years.
Interesting to see what happens over the next 3 weeks?
For me it will be period of reflective silence to concentrate on more important matters — like real life and boring stuff like that.
However I will leave with the following comments:
Succession planning — new captain in 10 months time.
New attitude in the changing room with more inclusivity and fewer cliques.
SB needs fresh challenges because he is not getting any younger playing wise, the injuries are mounting up and squad dynamic is very stale and uninspiring.
We managed to survive PMcS hanging up his boots and that was a much bigger and more traumatic parting.
The need for more pragmatism on the park.
Some of BR’s thoughts and stratagems are beyond the mindset and capabilities of too many of the squad. Better players will help but smaller steps and more freedom will also help.
SB is not a DM — we have needed a DM since VW left.
NB has shown some promise but now we need reality not hope.
The 12 month financials will be an interesting read.
The 2018/19 financials will shock quite a few as the T/O drops of a cliff.
I expect a big sale in the next 6 months — might even be the next 6 days.
PL will hang about like a bad smell.
DD will keep his counsel and start inviting more young managers out for golf.
Wage bill needs pruned — we are becoming a bit flabby / fat and happy.
We cannot give everyone in the squad £20K basic pw plus club bonuses.
History tells us that managers hoard players when they expect no one to come in.
See MON in 2003/05.
Now we seem to have a similar mindset.
The away support needs a new songbook.
We laugh at “Sash bashes” and the like but degenerate into a Reb Sesh the minute we leave London Road. Self indulgent and infantile by a cohort who glorify the past because they do not have the imagination to generate a future.
In days gone by they could only dream of “active service” — their limits would be making the tea and going the messages. I do however laugh at the rampant hypocrisy that glorifies physical force republicanism and amateur gangsterism while decrying all forms of nation state milaterism.
Wider allocation of away tickets would be a good start — from the outside they are starting to look like a club within a club.
Finally no more singing about 10iar.
I can remember 1974/75 and that was not a pleasant experience.
It generates and publicises a sense on entitlement that is not us at our best.
Every season is a challenge — this one particularly.
The MIB Ludge have their dander up — we need to be up for the challenge.
That is where our focus should be — winning the league.
LETSALLDOTHEHUDDLE
Business Matters,overnight on R4,was scathing in its condemnation of those figures. That included input from the host in London,and financial journalists from the US and Singapore.
Simple greed was the verdict.
Maybe CELTICROLLERCOASTER can refresh our memory about PL bonus schedule to 2020.
I wonder how the meeting with Paul67 and PL is going about today’s blog !!!!
I am being cynical – If anyone has read any of my infrequent limited post’s you will know I am both a fan of PL and Paul67 – their work is inspiring yet for them probably not very rewarding as the critics have a ready punch bag
HOWEVER
Without anyone falling on your ceremonial sword I do think a bit of hard core honesty is required to cement all parties back together
Peter has failed Brendan – there are probably some very real reasons for this failure – but he failed none the less
Paul67 has defended Pater – I respect Paul 67’s position and I am grateful for it as I believe CQN is the best media for real Celtic issues – but fake news is easy to write and with it comes a real loss of credibility
I have lived through paranoia honest mistakes and move along Timmy nothing to see here
But please don’t give it to me on CQN
Still a Celtic fanatic this morning and forever
67ECW
Excluding the MoonhowlersCSC, I think most of us are sufficiently rational to recognise that qualifying for the Champions League is a fraught business.
The Champion teams from 41 UEFA nations scrap it out over 4 rounds, at the conclusion of which just 4 teams are left standing.
For Celtic, while there ought to be little risk in the first qualifying round, the subsequent three rounds represent our most difficult opponents of the season, and the luck of the draw plays a significant role in just how difficult they might be.
Those who are apt to gamble can run the accumulator, but successive ties against the Champions of the likes of Norway, Poland, Greece, Croatia, Holland, Romania, Austria or Switzerland represent discouraging odds.
In that light, our disappointment at a failure to qualify in a given season is tempered by the knowledge that it’s a longer shot than many recognise.
And if that was the sum of this season’s qualifying experience, we’d all be a little less exercised this morning.
There is though a tangible regret, a sense that our fate in being knocked out was more of our own making than that of the opposition.
Our squad for qualifying this season is weaker than the squad which completed last season. We’ve sold Armstrong, Roberts has returned to Man City, Musonda – his replacement – didn’t work out and was promptly papped back to Chelsea.
In parallel, two of our first choice defenders played at the World Cup and returned to preseason training weeks after the qualifying rounds had kicked off.
All of this is simply a matter of facts. The squad which kicked off qualifying for the Champions League in June was weaker than that which had won the treble the previous month.
But the lingering regret this morning goes beyond the inability to recruit new players thus far.
At the very moment when the club has never been so well resourced, it’s the behaviour of the club at large and of influential individuals that causes me most concern.
From the quite obvious friction between Manager and Board played out in public last week, to the toy-lobbing pram evacuation of Boyata, the behaviour of key individuals has served to undermine the collective.
And frankly, that sucks.
When the club needed to concentrate most keenly on the football, minds were distracted by tittle-tattle, one-upmanship and self-centrism.
Yes, we need an upgrade at right back. Yes, we need capable central defenders. Yes, a dead ball expert would be welcome. Yes, we need alternatives in the wide areas. It’s like this every summer. What’s new?
What’s new is the desertion of professionalism, the emergence of competing self-interests, and the subsequent and inevitable impact on performance.
Embarrassing stuff.
Huddle;
Everyone,well most everyone,know the Celtic board are on a very,very good wage,last year this year and the years that follow.Celtic players are on a decent wage,but money has been spent on some woeful signings,that can not be denied.Every big club, and yes we fall in to that category,will want the best in their field.Im not trying to be funny by the way,but if you were to be paid top dollar alongside your peers would you accept the salary on offer or reject it.BR stated the defence let us down,but it’s a collective burden that saw our champions league travels halted.
Next stop MARYHILL hoping there will be a murder!!!!
AEK realised after the first leg that Lustig can’t stop crosses. Simple. Why does our manager continue to bear a grudge against Gamboa?
An amateur team could have defended that free kick better. Lawell to blame for that?
Not the ole distractin’ tittle tattle
The Battered Bunnet on 15th August 2018 9:50 am
That’s what I was going to say ;-)
From papped out, to paps out.
DBBIACSC
The worst part of last night is we were the architects of our own downfall.
Qualification is now fraught and played out at a time of year that is far from ideal however if we had defended 1 of the 2 simple cut backs they scored over the 2 legs we would be looking forward to a far simpler tie to reach the group stages.
This is unacceptable.
The defensive issues are not new, even on the back of a treble last year we could all tell you where the team needed strengthened. Centre and right back. For us to enter our season defining games without adequate personnel, considering our resources, is scandalous.
So who carries the can?
Was the need for defenders not identified? (Management)
Were the suitable, in budget, players not found? (Scouts)
Were the identified players not signed? (Board/Negotiators)
Questions need answered very quickly and problems need remedied even faster.
Out of interest I had a look on transfermarkt. Right now 2 Centre Halfs jump right out, that are without a club and would improve us.
Diego Reyes. 25 years old. Mexican international. Left Porto last season. No club. Fenerbache and Newcastle in discussion. A considerable upgrade on anything we have.
Philip Wollscheid. 29 years old. 2 German Caps. Champions League experience, 115 appearences in the Bundesliga. Another upgrade.
Both of these players have been available since the end of the season.
How many centre halves will there be playing at top division level in continental Europe? 100? 150? Considering the resources we have available we are to believe the best we could get were Simunovic, Ajer and Hendry for our qualifiers?
Prior to this game the AEK fans were upset as they sold their best Centre Half to Anderlecht. Vranjes, a Bosnian international, went for 3million Euros. He was better than either of the 2 very solid centre halfs they played against us.
Something is rotten in the state of Denmark.
On the positive note, if you look at our current problems it won’t take a lot, relatively, to iron them out and get us motoring again. Middle to front we are almost fine.
*The biggest problem seems to be signing CB’s of the required quality. Given our recent signings in this area we may need to look at the criteria, rip it up and redefine it. Too many boxes to tick regarding all sorts of things from personality to family to language etc. Most importantly – can he defend?
*Complete Arzani deal.
*Loan/sell fringe players/fillers.
*Get rid of Boyata.
HH
All we need now is for Declan to pop up with Dick Byrne’s wallet and the ole gang is back in town.
THEBATTEREDBUNNET
They can go on a Beano.
I think during his sabbatical Declan has perhaps managed to get himself a role somewhere high up at Celtic. Will probably explain a lot!
Ole Dick’s wallet doesn’t shrink for inferior bhlogs
ooft…that was predictable wasn’t it.
I think we need a fresh broom….too many players in a comfort zone.
yes they have won the double treble but that was last season and the season before
all the signs were there in the vast majority of our home games last year that this
team was waning….
where does it go from here…is it down to the lake I fear
Does everyone understand the concept of ‘operational gearing’?
Say a football club generated £100m of revenue and paid wages of £52m during a season. If for some reason revenue falls by 20%, profit would fall by c.42%. If revenue falls by 30%, profit would fall by c.63%. If wages rise by 10% and revenue falls bt 30%, profit falls by a whopping 73%.
Of course when I say ‘profit’, it’s actually profit before all other expenses, which are considerable. This very simple example shows the inherent volatilty of a football club’s P&L and how easily it could get in to trouble.
Joe Fil
100% spot on. When are we going to realise that we are a small club financially in Europe added to the ridiculous CL format, all out to ensure the big boys make money.
As a team we don’t seem to be able to crack a defence open when teams come to put 10 men behind the ball.
To me we desperately need an intelligent playmaker, a Luboesque type. I was talking with my mate and he saked if I could name a British player of the David Siva, Modric, Messi in the UK. Therein lies the problem methinks.
Concentrate on the league
a hacked off KINGLuBO
It’s imperative that Celtic pull out the stops to recruit well, any kind of sticking plaster for a broken leg type deal will push us closer to the edge of unprofessional shamblesism…
Now everyone at Celtic needs to earn their big ears of corn before it rots any further…