Do you remember the Green and Whitewash season? In 2003-04 Celtic dominated the league. After drawing their opening game away to Dunfermline they won their next 25 consecutive league games, beating every team in the league home and away. Across all competitions, they beat Rangers five times in four league and a Scottish Cup meeting.
This was as dominant as a team could get but there were vulnerabilities. Not only was Henrik Larsson out of contract, much of that team were in the twilight of their careers. Paul Lambert, Neil Lennon, Alan Thompson and Chris Sutton would never command the same on-field fear again.
The team that completed nine league wins in a row on Wednesday night could not be more different from the 03-04 vintage in one important aspect; only four are older than 23-years-old and none of them are veterans: Brown, 26, Samaras, 26, Mulgrew, 25 and Ledley, 24.
With an average age of just over 22 years this team will continue to improve for years; we can see evidence of progress. James Forrest has made a huge step up in form from last season. Victor Wanyama is almost unrecognisable from the player who arrived in the summer. Big Fraser, 23, still young for a keeper, inspires a lot more confidence than he did last season, and the baby of the team, Adam Matthews, is a scarcely believable 19-years-old. He’s so new to this environment you have to wonder if even the lad’s father knew he had a performance like Wednesday night’s in him.
Ki, 22, Stokes, 23, Izaguirre, 25, Kelvin Wilson, 26 and Mikael Lustig, 25 all fit the same profile. They are a squad full of improving players with the appetite you only get when your career is in front of you.
Rangers, and the rest, should be very afraid. Wednesday night might be as close as they get to the coattails of the young Celts.
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Logically, a generation of domination looked inevitable. Rangers were technically insolvent years ago, which is why David Murray had to get some friends of his (DM Hall) to sign off on a book value for the Brox of £120 million. That was September 2003.
That wasn’t sustainable and Rangers were clearly in urgent need of remedial financial action.
Instead, Rangers kept cooking the books and spending money they didn’t have. This brought them trophies that they had no right to win, but it has also brought them to where they are today, on the verge of extinction.
Madness. Utter madness.
.
STV reject QPR’s bid for Jelavic.
Is that..Rangers Mentioned 3 Times in 6 Words..STV/QPR/JELLYLEGS..
Summa
Repost from last thread
Probably posted earlier, Sion have been deducted 36 points for fielding ineligible players by the Swiss FA.
SSN
HH
Paul and all
Season’ s Greetings(Not talking about the guy from Perth),
Has there been anything else on Whyte and his approval from the SFA in being allowed to run a football club, even one as bad as them’s?
Is there anything else happening in regards to the SFA allowing them’s a licence to play in Europe last year and what about this year?
It all seems to have went a wee bit quiet or have I missed a trick?
bankie
Ole <a href="Google is good for Googlies “>Google is good for Googlies
Paul67
Apologies but you’ve made these sort of predictions before and they haven’t come to pass.
We are far from firing on all cylinders at the moment.
Celtic_First,
I think it was ARROGANCE, UTTER ARROGANCE.
They thought they were untouchable.
Latest from STV Twitter:
Ally insists he can’t lose SPL hero Jelavic for any less than £12 Million #bargainbuybasement
0 mins ago
STV cameras to be used as goal line technology experiment #don’ttellUEFAplease
3.14159265 mins ago
aldersyde avenue –
welcome mate – doubtless Wee Phil McCall will have his troops as fired up as Morton’s rolls…. not
dontbratt –
naebdy got back to me on the tax thing; festive feliciwhitevers tae you and you and you
Paul67 –
we forget many things, the green-and-whitewash is not one of them
WhitewashGemmell,ML2turtledoves
myboysnowatim
Arrogance was part of it too, no doubt. They are the people, after all.
Paul67’s previous predictions were based on what appeared to be the only option available to Rangers, to live in the real world. Rangers appear to have preferred to bring about their own demise. How was Paul to know they would do that? It completely defies belief.
BSR
Thats the one…….
Anytime I try it tho’ the link is longer and taller than one of Billy Backstory’s byzantine plot lines………
I’m stumped.
;)
HH
Reading Paul’s leader, I was reminded of a piece I wrote from a sun terrace overlooking Monte Cassino in early July. Much of it made the cut for issue 1 of the CQN magazine, but I thought it might be worth a re-visit.
———–
Legacy of Mowbray’s Hapless Appointment Stalks the Talented Mr Lennon
Tony Mowbray’s peculiar appointment was unusual for Celtic in recent years only insofar as it precipitated a rapid deterioration in the club’s position in all key respects: Football results; financial results; and the expectation of the support. All of these took a hammering during a hapless slapstick in the classic style, unfortunately appropriate for the Keystone role at any football club. It does though provide us with an important perspective as we look ahead to the coming seasons, presenting as it does a clear example of the interdependence between football results and financial performance.
Talent
Tony Mowbray was recruited against Celtic’s by then well established successful ‘Manager Profile’: A British Manager, late 40’s, English Premiership experience. O’Neill had set the mould, and Strachan fitted it in these respects and others, but Tony Mowbray, while presenting many of the requisite face value credentials and experience, lacked one singular quality: Talent.
There is a terrific book published some 10 years ago, but which remains relevant today. First, Break All The Rules was based on a unique survey by GALLUP over 20 years of more than 80,000 business leaders and one million employees, and sought to define the leadership factors that were common amongst the most successful companies and managers.
Amongst other startling results, the analysis demonstrated the folly of recruiting staff based upon qualifications and previous experience. While these are useful, and indeed prerequisite in some jobs, the fundamental difference between the top 10% performing businesses and those hitting run of the mill numbers was a focus on recruiting talent, not profile.
Martin O’Neill and Gordon Strachan may have had similar professional credentials, but the thing they had, which Mowbray lacked, was the intrinsic ability to manage Celtic. Poor old Tony had to muck along as best he could with what the Good Lord had given him, filling in the gaps with sheer hard work and determination. His experience had taught him that when things go wrong, he needed to “take it on the chin”. There was little else for it.
The leadership of the club seemed to recognise this, and tried to compensate by increasing the available budget. Whereas Gordon Strachan took on the remit of matching O’Neill’s achievements with a 20% budget cut, and a flat £4.5M to play with each summer, Mowbray was permitted to spend £12M on his arrival, with assorted sales in January of Strachan’s old guard balancing the books, while wages were found to pay for the likes of Keane, Kamara and Braafheid one mental day in February.
A Fine Mess
Putting a mediocre manager into one of the toughest jobs in European football, and bankrolling him with £12M of free funds, brought us in jig time to crisis. In trying to compensate for Mowbray’s lack of talent with cash, the inevitable and entirely predictable outcomes followed: A Championship lost to a Bankrupt Rangers; Humiliation at the hands of assorted lesser clubs; and Open hostility towards the club’s Leadership from the support. This calamity was reflected in the financial situation, where turnover dropped £10M in the season, the club reported a loss, and debt increased to cover the shortfall, creating a legacy that demanded immediate remediation.
This precipitated a profound change of approach at Celtic. The long established ‘Celtic Manager Profile’ was binned, and instead we embraced precocity. Neil Lennon was offered the job at Celtic with only the thinnest evidence of his credentials: A year coaching the reserves under Mowbray following a year as a first team coach under Strachan. Moreover, Lenny had to live with the consequences of the Board’s Hope Strategy with Mowbray, and which continues to constrain his efforts two seasons since.
Lenny got the job as the top earners at the club were moved out, when the top players were sold on, when the first team required to be built from scratch on a shoestring, and the biggest single outlay was the settlement of the terms of the dismissed Mowbray team.
That is worth repeating: In Lenny’s first year more was paid to buy out the terms of the previous management than was spent on buying a single player. Mark Venus was more expensive than Emilio Izaguirre. How expensive is mediocrity!
Gone were the top earners. Boruc, Fortuné and McManus followed the likes of McDonald, Robson and Caldwell out the door 6 months earlier. In came a Gala Day procession of colourfully painted kids from around the world, and within 4 weeks of his appointment, The Neil Lennon Show was pushed onto the stage.
Predictably, they fluffed their opening lines, losing to Braga in the Champions League qualifiers. A dismal loss to Utrecht in the Europa League qualifiers followed. Celtic, with no Euro income to speak of mid August, needed to fill the financial gap. The gap was filled in large part by Aiden McGeady, whose £9M transfer fee was a one off contribution to the financial mess that was the Mowbray folly, with a further £4.2M gained on the sale of other players. I don’t doubt that Aiden was bound to leave us sooner or later, but it is hugely frustrating that his sale contributed nothing more to the club than paying the wages for 3 or 4 months.
Another Fine Mess
In a short number of weeks, Celtic will publish the Annual Report for 2011. While the departing Chairman will doubtless look forward with great expectations, the report will show the worst set of results for over a decade. Turnover will come in below the £57 Million low tide of 2002. The trading losses will be covered only by the sale of McGeady. You’ve got to hand it to John Reid and his team. From the £75M turnover business he took charge of in 2007, he and his colleagues have managed to drive that down by 25% in only 4 years, the greatest deterioration being in the last 24 months, coinciding with their appointment of Mowbray.
As the figures above indicate, excluding the sale of McGeady and the others, Celtic will be posting a trading loss of some £10 Million, up there with the O’Neill years in terms of losses, but without the deliberate growth strategy that O’Neill’s tenure represented. Looking ahead to the coming season, it is unlikely, even with Europa League football, that the club can much exceed £62M turnover, ensuring the legacy of the Mowbray’s short lived appointment in 2009 extends at least to 2012. Failure to qualify in August will condemn the club to relive the 2011 results, without McGeady to flog. [NB. Since writing this, we managed to qualify via the back door for the Europa League, and the positive consequences of this good fortune on the make-up of the football squad ought to be recognised.]
While every business suffers a periodic bad year, the figures above indicate a sustained and alarming contraction in the business, headlined by exclusion from the Champions League in three successive years, but also indicating an inherent aversion to generating new sources of income. In my view, the failure to capitalise on the demise of Setanta by buying out the club’s overseas rights from the SPL collective deal is but one example of an approach that simply refused to consider innovation outside of the tried and trusted.
New Model Celtic
The appointment of Neil Lennon last summer was not simply an instinctive punt by a desperate Board, it signalled a profound change of direction by the club. Neil Lennon represents talent, precocious, untempered, and raw. The club’s player recruitment strategy has similarly focussed on young, gifted players. Hooper, Izaguirre, Ki, Kayal, Ledley, Stokes and now Wanyama represent the not only the new first team, but the new strategy. 10 years after Gallup flagged up the secret of the best managers in business, Celtic have at last got with the programme that Wenger introduced when finances demanded at Arsenal, and that Fergusson pioneered at Manchester United in the mid 90s.
Celtic of course play on a different stage to these English behemoths, and a decade after Dermot Desmond made his play for Celtic to join the EPL cast, it remains as far out of reach as ever. For the new model Celtic therefore, we need to look a little further abroad, to Italy. Udinese, who despite turning over less than 20% of the big clubs in the North, consistently compete with and profit from a strategy that is built on developing talent and selling it when appropriate. Udinese’s current first team squad of 26 players is drawn from 14 different countries, Slovenia, Argentina and Ghana among them. They have a further 34 players out on loan at other clubs. In the past 5 years they have generated over €60 Million in profits from player sales, and qualified this season for the Champions League ahead of Juventus, Lazio and Roma. All of this on a turnover of £40M. [Prescient or what! Mind, this was written in July.]
The new model Celtic is built on the same principles, driving progress on the pitch and stability off it through identifying, developing, utilising, and ultimately selling talent. While it was always unlikely that Lenny and his youngsters would be able to win the league at the first time of asking in the unique season just ended, they came far closer than many expected, and there are positive indications that the right man is at the club in this most challenging period.
Shackled by the financial legacy of Mowbray’s appointment, Celtic turned to Neil Lennon, and Lenny is relying upon his talent, and the talent of his developing team, to create something at Celtic that we haven’t seen before. I am backing him to win the SPL title this coming season, at a stroke validating his approach and his young team’s talent, and gaining a chance to win entry to the Champions League the following year. Indeed, it is remarkable to consider that, for the new model Celtic, winning the league this coming season will be more significant for the test of talent that is the Champions League, than the £18M income that it generates.
Allys denial of a bid for Jelavic is contrary to his comments to Radio Clyde after his team got their bums skelped. He said that that was the last thing he needed to hear when asked about it. What has changed since? Surely the Radio folk didnt have to tell McCoist before his gaffer told him. Has anyone had the bright idea of phoning the manager of QPR? I am sure he would give a straight answer like the one he gave back on the 19th of December…
Warnock admitted that he is looking to sign a few players within the January transfer but has denied interest in Jelavic.
“Sometimes I’ve not even heard of the players that are quoted with me, but I am aware of him, only because Stuart McCall, one of my good pals is at Motherwell,” Warnock told reporters.
“I’m not aware of any offer, or showing any interest in him.
“He’s just one of a number of players who’s been mentioned to me, not the other way around.”
On goal line technology. Bring it on. Presumably the technology would dictate if it was a goal or not and not the likes of a Principle Teacher of RE at Cardinal Newmans High School. IN fact if it was installed the other night it would need to have made an alarm sound or alert the ref in some way, as not one person inside the ground claimed it was a goal. It was only when the tv replayed it and forensically examined it that the goal claim was made.
Normally don’t have a great deal of faith in the January transfer window, but I think we need another goalscoring attacker we are pretty thin on the ground in that department.
Read an interesting stat in one of the English newspapers – Celtic, Rangers, Man Utd and Liverpool are the most watched teams on TV.
Stuart McCall the manager of Motherwell touting players for his old club. Who’d a thunk it.
Talkin of the ole Googlies… a seasonal message from wee CH
“Nobody has told me that anyone has been told that a fax which may or may not come from QPR and may or may not contain a bid for a player who could be Jelavic has been received,” said a defiant McCoist. “If a bid were to be rumoured to be possibly received than I would would not, hypothetically, know whether it would be acceptable.”
“But if I should possibly be, in a manner of speaking, losing a player of his class that would or would not be a blow. And I would need to speak to our supreme leader about any possible spare chance he might have lying around and could potentially spare me. That’s for a replacement and not a cup of tea, obviously,” said McCoist with typical humour.
“And anyway we have an excellent striker who has been banging them in for our under 12s and I would have no hesitation in putting him into the first team. Well, he’s ahead of David Healy in the pecking order for a game, that’s for sure”.
(All reporting by STV)
Twists n turns at 12:31,
As you say Victor Wanyama (singing away to myself here) has had a large say in our transformation since Oct. It’s been a wonderful team effort though and I hope we can keep the momentum going and with 2 new players plus Izzy returning in the transfer window, we can start to produce some classy performances.
V
Somebody should use the volkswagen badge on a t shirt to honour Vic Wanyama.
Mullet
There are few things in life as reliable as a (V)ictor (W)anyama
summa….i just noticed through your post that STV are running RFC???
is this true….or am I being silly…..again??
ramie
Vmhan/ tnt
Certainly the half time introduction of Victor away at Killie was of great significance as was the ‘angry’ Stokesy, who scored to screamers.
However, we shouldn’t forget the contribution of wee Jamesie Forest. For 20 minutes in that second half he quite literally was unplayable. In my opinion it was the day he became a Celt and a man as a footballer.
summa
sorry….speed reading…..STV reject QPR bid….
does this still mean STV are a concerned stake holder??
Victor Wanyama……drives the VW that gets to the snow plough…
Mr VMhan
hope you are well and looking forward to coming down under
you will love this part of the globe
you must pop by to see my broonie…..its spectacular…
ramie
Polite note to CQN ……………”The High Chaparral” , just started on the ole TCM Channel 415 Virgin Media
……Aye but the original Around the World in 80 Days” is currently showing on RTE 2…..
No contest.
Melons
bankie
Passepartout?
Maybe the ball never crossed the line anyway.
The camera position looked liked it was not quite square on to the goal-line.
Square up the camera a bit and the whole of the ball has not completely crossed the line.
End of argument Collum was correct -NO GOAL>
BhoyfromSky says:
30 December, 2011 at 13:12
===================
Out of Europe at the time we played at Rugby Park.
The wee shiote still cant get his facts right.
HH
British cabinet papers recently released under the 30 years rule show that Thatcher’s Tory government were in discussions, via an intermediary, with the PIRA army council in regards to ending the 1981 hunger strike. Thatcher gave tacit approval but insisted that there should be ‘plausible deniability’ should the negotiations break down. The British offered concessions if the hunger strike were called off. Interesting that the old hag always claimed that she didn’t negotiate with so called ‘terrorists’ –“Murder is murder – crime is crime” – Yes we know Maggie and you were complicit in both.
The Bastion of the British Empire even went as far as not ruling out any thing including a British withdrawal from the 6 counties. Interesting that the British cabinet feared that a withdrawal from Ireland would lead to significant civil unrest in the West of Scotland. I wonder who they were referring to.
How can there be bids for Jelavic if the transfer window isn’t open?
BSR
No, completely sober thanks.
You?
The Battered Bunnet says:
30 December, 2011 at 13:41
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I take your point re hammering Tony Mowbray and the board-no friends of mine,obviously-to a certain extent,but there is a certain amount of revisionism in your post.
I didn’t think TM was the man for the job,mainly due to his personal circumstances,but he came to us with a record of playing exciting football,necessary after the largely unexciting stuff we had seen for years. He failed very narrowly to keep WBA afloat in the EPL ,but had stormed their Championship the previous year.
He walked into a nest of vipers at WBA,and sorted that out,and few of us on here disagreed with the steps taken to free up some space in our own dressing-room. Most of us wanted shot of the players that he discarded.
The main problem for TM was in his replacements not having time to gel,and this was IMO due in no small measure to an unprecedented level of MIBBERY.
Kicked to pieces,booked or worse for looking at an oppo the wrong way,offsides,penalties,etc,ignored or imagined-depending on the end-and eventually the heads went down.
Inevitably.
Tony Mowbray was NOT the architect of his own downfall. Others are responsible for that,and I am DELIGHTED that,against the odds,he is rebuilding his career and his reputation.
Estadio
Martin was asking about you on wednesday
I told him you were all good…just a couple of years older since the last time he saw you!!
he regularly asks what you are up to and where you are….I always let him know as much as I can from CQN
can you drop him an email when you are able?….I know you are busy….but it might be worth a wee chat when you can
mckane@iinet.net.au
any other tims out there who know of KANO …and are wondering how he is going ……
just drop him an email and I am sure you will get a reply…communication is GOD…..some thing we all may take for granted…
just imagine never being able to tell someone that you think something ….without having to spell every letter, of every word , of every sentence
be assured CQNers….you are a privileged lot and you should see your ability and right
of communication as a blessing…..some are not as blessed as you
i wish you all a peaceful time ….you all deserve it
hail hail
ramie
the battered bunnet
im a board critic in the sense that ifeel the downsizing that started in 2003 could have been more controlled and i tend to think that this strategy has run away from the board a bit and is now out of their control, but currently i reckon we are adopting a wait and see attitude, as long as we win the title i cant really fault this approach too much.
i worry that this new model of celtic being a selling club seems pretty much like the celtic of the old board, where we watched as we sold king kenny, charlie nicholas, frank macavennie,brian mcclair, big pierre, di canio etc in the long run its hard to see how this bring success
anyway, last season we sold aiden to break even, do you think we may need to sell this season to break even again?
lets say we had to sell, for example, hooper to balance the books. I dont believe that this would be a positive step