Celtic will face Israelis Hapoel Beer-Sheva in the Champions League playoff round later this month, with the first leg due to take place at Celtic Park.
Hapoel, carrying a Uefa coefficient of 4, eliminated Olympiakos, coefficient: 70, in the last round – a bigger shock than Dundalk’s win over BATE. They put on two backs-to-the-wall performances, drawing the first leg in Greece 0-0 before winning the return 1-0. In the earlier round they shot the Sheriff Tiraspol from Moldova, winning 3-2 in Israel before securing another 0-0 away.
The positives: the Israeli league hasn’t started yet, so Hapoel will be no further into their season’s preparations than Celtic. It also looks like the play on grass.
In recent seasons Celtic have found new and innovative ways to bow out at this stage but we know what’s required and will be strong favourites to progress.
Bring it on.
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Just a quick point on transfers
Hal Robson-Kanu has been in demand since before the Euro’s but he hasn’t signed for a club yet. He hasn’t had a pre-season and it will probably disrupt his season ahead.
Why? Players and agents play their cards close to their chest. Hold out for the best deal. This unfortunately works against us in the market.
Chris Gunter’s not gone anywhere either.
TAURANGABHOY on 5TH AUGUST 2016 11:45 AM
‘On the home game I expect the GB to spend a fortune on Palestinian flags’
###
Well they didn’t bother for the Hapoel game, so I wouldn’t be too concerned.
BURGHBHOY on 5TH AUGUST 2016 3:42 PM
Auld Tam
Was Sir Robert wrong then?
For the record , I do not expect Celtic to refuse to accept the tie.
That Board won’t do a thing that won’t line the coffers.
I was just highlighting how things have changed and not for the better.
For me, if we get banned because some people choose to waive a flag then UEFA can stick their Champions League exactly where u told me I was talking out of
HH
What utter, utter tripe, IMO of course. You would be well advised to keep your recommendations to UEFA to yourself. We are a football club; a member of UEFA and political stuff needs to remain outside of football. People such as you bring us into disrepute. My advice to you is to shut it!!!
JERUSALEM — In an effort to appeal to Palestinians ahead of hotly contested elections, the party of President Mahmoud Abbas listed one of its main achievements as having “killed 11,000 Israelis.”
Does the above seem like something worthy of support?
I’m sure when you wave your Palestinean flag the above boast is not part of your reasoning but stop and think about what it symbolises. No issue with anyone showing solidarity with innocent victims but I do have an issue when it’s selective. Both peoples have suffered & at this moment two states would seem like the logical answer here & not just the one. This complicated issue has no place at Celtic Park but If you must wave a flag then why not both of them?
HH.
It’s Friday
Celtic Champs Elect on 5th August 2016 1:18 pm
Hun rhetoric if ever I heard it, bury your head in the sand, brook no criticism etc etc. The mans’ posts may sometimes put a damper on an upbeat blog(criticise for that), but all he says is true and factually backed up!.
I assume that Tricolours at CP will bring a ban from UEFA.
It tells you what the smsm in this country is all
about when they give that pish-stained jakie
fcukwit John Brown air time to spout his bigoted
ramblings.
ELLBOY on 5TH AUGUST 2016 4:55 PM
Spot on; well said!
Any overt political demonstration carried out by a small minority of fans at the play-off, will be stabbing Celtic and it’s vast support in the back.
Celtic Park is NOT a political platform – and that applies to ALL, including those who have forced the OB act on us.
Say what you like, when you like,from your own vantage point, as you are entitled to do – Celtic Park belongs to Celtic supporters – first, last and always.
Supporters do NOT damage their club – sadly some self-centred ‘nae brains’ have frequently done so in the past – these people are DETRACTORS not SUPPORTERS.
Gerrybhoy
Thanks for your reply.
IMO and only my opinion, that type of subservient attitude is why we have meekly accepted as a club systematic cheating for decades and said nothing.
We need to grow a pair and soon.
I value everyone’s opinion on here .
I am only expressing mine.
So I won’t shut up!!!
HH mate
Cultsbhoy indeed. Some would be pleased if PL asked us to kneel down in adoration at the return of the Huns. It would be a “master stroke”.
QF I long ago realised that some folk are so set in their ways and belief systems that it is a pointless (and frustrating) exercise to attempt to converse or debate with them. I have absolutely no desire to convert anyone into anything. Why on earth would I falsely Put what you describe as “balance” in my post. The boards performance is absolutely shocking. We are woefully underperforming based on our finances, the board have colluded with corruption whilst at the same time lying to and vilifying their own support. All the while awarding themselves bonuses which they are not contractually entitled too. What is balanced about that? Oh on the plus side they like to pretend they are very charitable. The only thing is that. The actual charitable donations come from the very same supporters they vilify. All the while refusing to pay the living wage and employing people on zero hours contracts.
Balance my a@@e.
With regards to the Seville season, of course it was successful. Have we recently got anywhere near those heady heights?
Scots on 5th August 2016 4:57 pm
but all he says is true and factually backed up!.
_____
Maybe he should be Chief Executive and Chairman and Manager
We could use a guy who’s never wrong
Mats hillock.myeah we are open to all as long as you don’t criticise the board.
CL tickets- Home cup ticket scheme tickets payment date 12th august prices adults £25 concessions £15 under 13s £10 tickets will be activated once payment taken
Happy with the draw, and that the first leg is at CP. That could well be to our advantage. Any scoreline that ends Hapoel Be’er Sheva 0 and we are in the driving seat.
They looked compact, fast, neat and tidy against Tiraspol, but they rode their luck against the Greeks.
Tough tie but they are beatable, especially at CP.
Delighted with the way Brendan is approaching the job, and delighted with the way the team is responding. Some of our play on Wednesday was lovely. Encouraged at his intelligence re tactics and substitutions – a year ago we would have folded in Kazakhstan and Glasgow when Astana ramped it up, but we didn’t.
Better and better!
re the Fleg Debate:
I’ve been a supporter of the Palestinian cause, in word and deed, for all of my adult life.
I’m also a smoker.
But I would not take my seat in the JS Upper, say, and light up a fag.
To do that would be arrogant, selfish, counter-productive and utterly pointless.
Of course politics and football mix, and so they bloody should. Celtic wouldn’t exist if they didn’t.
But waving the Palestinian flag on the visit of a team from Israel will see UEFA come down on Celtic like a ton of bricks. It also won’t change the Palestinian situation one iota.
I don’t like it at all; it is an odious rule, but it is a rule, and if it is broken the club – and consequently us – will suffer through another fine, a ban, or playing behind closed doors.
Just my opinion.
EXCLUSIVE: Scott Sinclair heading north for medical as Aston Villa finally accept Celtic bid https://t.co/kdeS83cvWy https://t.co/qD5R8asPZG
Farewell and adieu to you, Spanish ladies,
Farewell and adieu to you, ladies of Spain;
For we have received orders
For to sail to old England,
But we hope in a short time to see you again.
timalloy29
You said
You always equate failure on the field as being solely down to the board.
I’m not convinced that Ronny needed more players. If he could get the team to defend a set piece, we would have been in the champions league.
Part of coaching is developing the players that are already there and that’s something Brendan Rodgers is excellent at.
We appointed the wrong man. Maybe Ronny will be a success somewhere else but he wasn’t right for Celtic.
The constant demands to buy buy buy our way out of trouble also ignores our youth team. Kieran Tierney has come on leaps and bounds while O’Connell has also seized an opportunity. We should be calling for the likes of Henderson to get a run in the team as they are more likely to stick around if they do well.
Now I would like to point out several flaws in your argument here.
Firstly failure on the field is the fault of the board. You said it yourself. They appointed the wrong manager. We failed. Ergo it’s the boards fault. This isn’t a difficult concept. You proved it yourself.
I never said we needed more players. I have said we needed to build a team with senior players and a balance of younger players. But moneyball put paid to all that.
And who has called for spend spend spend? I haven’t seen anyone suggest that.
It seems that you cannot hold a coherent argument without making stuff up.
BURGHBHOY on 5TH AUGUST 2016 5:04 PM
No problem with your political opinion. Like arseholes, everyone has one :)
Does not though, belong at our club. My opinions about middle east history, current events etc; may well differ from yours. That is not a problem. The problem begins when you attempt to align your opinion with our football club. That is quite simply, not on.
HH
Gerry
Ross Hall spotted in Lennoxtown
UEFA decide the rules in which their competitions are run.
Some we like, some we don’t.
If we don’t like them enough, we withdraw from the competition.
However, if we want to stay in the competition, we abide by the rules,
All agreed?
Right.
EUFA have strict rules regarding political comment inside grounds during their competitions.
Therefore any such displays are hammered, with the CLUB suffering penalties.
The CLUB, not individual protesters.
Now, there are many issues that many people have with different ideologies and they reserve the right to protest.
Might I make a suggestion?
If anyone or group has a problem with a team from Israel playing at Celtic Park, then why not stage a protest in the car park, outside the ground?
UEFA claim no jurisdiction outside the ground, (ref, Manchester 2008).
That way, everyone has the right and opportunity to protest, without hurting Celtic and, as long as it is peaceful, no risk of arrest.
I would go further and hope that Celtic issue a warning that any action which causes harm to the club will result in bans, or even closure of areas, should it be widespread.
Drastic and draconian, maybe, but the alternative to parasitical behaviour could be catastrophic for the club.
As you were, CQN.
It’s a funny old game, a few weeks ago it was Sviatchenko was the main man, much needed, future captain etc. Now I’m not sure he’ll actually get a game.
Neganon
You put many points there and have got me thinking. I will take time to look into the bonus thing because I don’t know if you’re right or wrong there. I do know we still exist unlike them. I do know Scottish football fans stood up to the new club going straight into the top league. I do think there is a place for balance and I don’t think life is that often black and white.
typed at the checkout at sainsburys!!
I don’t know if any of the young lads are talking about any flags or protests at the forthcoming CL Qualifier?
Why are we talking about it here?
In my view (for what it’s worth) the least said the better given the ongoing situation in Europe…we’d be better concentrating on the game, imo.
I saw a post last night that mentioned that there are no public sales of unsold tickets in the Standing Area for example. I’d suspect that area has been and will be very closely monitored/screened for any problematic behaviour.
GERRYBHOY on 5TH AUGUST 2016 5:13 PM
Likewise Ireland.
Thus no Tricolours should be flown.
Otherwise a ban will inevitably follow from UEFA.
Because the flying of Tricolours at CP is every bit a political act as flying Palestinian flags.
And, not least in Scotland, every bit as provocative.
THE TOKEN TIM:
Good to see you posting, stay around.
If we strengthen and we can get the new recruits settled or at least some of them I believe we are in with a fighting chance, starting with Scott Sinclair.
Keep the Faith!
Hail Hail!
Spurs v Inter on ITV4
Has anybody posted we’d have gotten beat if Ronny was still here?
IBlameRonny CSC
THOMTHETHIM FOR OSCAR OK on 5TH AUGUST 2016 5:14 PM
‘If anyone or group has a problem with a team from Israel playing at Celtic Park, then why not stage a protest in the car park, outside the ground?’
##
The point of flying a Palestinian flag at a match in Scotland involving an Israeli team, a match that will be watched live by Palestinians and Israelis, is that it makes a point directly to the viewers that there is support for the Palestinian people in Scotland.
So, a demonstration of solidarity.
A demonstration in the car park, or in the toilets, or behind a burger van is unlikely to be screened live in Israel, so would have no effect. Which would suit people like yourself.
Gerrybhoy
I am not trying to align my opinions to the club.
There are many many things I disagree with the board on.
In particular the way they have ignored the cheating.
I fear our club is loosing all principle in pursuit of cash.
We do not speak up any more and that is why I referenced Sir Bob Kelly’s principled stance in 1968.
Sir Robert also showed principle over money on many other occasions including the ‘ the great flag flutter’ of the 50s.
My main point is that in the past our club never hesitated to speak up when things were wrong .
Now we meekly accept
And that’s a shame
HH
ERNIE LYNCH on 5TH AUGUST 2016 5:17 PM
We just have to support out club/team. We have a “catholic” support. Note the small c. No need to alienate any part of our world wide support. I am not at all interested in flegs or where they may fly; in any way!!
GERRYBHOY@5:13
Spot on!
————
On Sinclair – I said a couple of weeks ago that Villa would need to pay up the balance of his contract, if they wanted him off the books.
He has three years left on that contract and so unless Villa and/or the player and agent were willing to compromise on the overall figure, Celtic would need to offer around £3.75 million – seems that has been done and accepted – there will be no profit for Villa, as all of the fee will go to player and agent – however they have made room for Ross McCormack’s wages.
Has anybody posted we’d have gotten beat if Efe was playing ?
IBlameEfe CSC
It is sometimes said that politics are all about priorities.
One’s priority may be social justice or low taxes or environmental protection etc..
More often than not, priorities compete with each other and difficult choices have to be made depending on circumstances.
Any one waving a political flag or banner during our 2 UEFA games will be choosing to place Celtic and Celtic fans beneath a futile political gesture.
No amount of sophistry will make it right.
There are many ways in which to support the Palestinian people but guaranteeing sanctions against our club and our fans is not one of them.
In fact, any one who does so is displaying a gross contempt for all of us who support Celtic.
GERRYBHOY on 5TH AUGUST 2016 5:25 PM
So be consistent and demand that Tricolours be banned as well not just Palestinian flags.
Ernie Lynch,
Re-Tricolour at Celtic Park.
‘And, not least in Scotland, every bit as provocative.’
Why?
BURGHBHOY on 5TH AUGUST 2016 5:25 PM
Gerrybhoy
I am not trying to align my opinions to the club.
Your points are well taken. However, we would be well advised not to conflate board decisions/non-decisions with political standpoints and opinions. We are are a world-wide famous fitba club and that is how it should remain. IMO of course ;)