On Friday, after the Sparta debacle, I predicted, “There is worse to come”, it did not take long. Losing at home by two goals to Ross County is worse than losing by three goals away to Sparta Prague. If you were surprised, you have not been paying attention, Ross County were a punter’s dream. Celtic are dysfunctional, vulnerable to anyone prepared to put their bodies in the way and take their chance at corner kicks.
The biggest concern I have is the message the players get from persistently overhauling roles and tactics; going from four at the back, to three, to four and back to three. Add to this how Christie and Elyounoussi play a variety of roles: wide, middle, off the striker, and we shuffle between one and two up front.
If you are a player, you interpret this as, “We have no faith in our plan and we don’t know what to do about it.” At least in this respect, the manager, players, you and me all believe the same thing.
When will it end? Soon, I hope. St Johnstone visit in six days and they are more potent than Ross County.
Reports of missiles being thrown at our players outside Celtic Park yesterday evening beggars belief. Across the world, on a variety of issues, you see anger whipped up in online echo chambers. This has consequences: some bring that anger into their personal interactions, some gather to demonstrate.
A smaller percentage of them have no boundaries. Fuelled by the echo chamber and the crowd around them, they resort to violent acts, which Mr Angry behind his keyboard can condemn. The violence is a consequence of entitled anger and together they make it more difficult to resolve the situation. Imagine how you would react if you were a player?
A football team has come off the rails after winning a record 11 consecutive domestic trophies. For a club that has known so many hard times, it was a pitiful bookend to this historic period.
