Bedwetters, antacids and transfer articles of faith

I love this time of year.  As we publish, 60 hours of the transfer window remain.  Celtic have gaps to fill in the squad, we have targets for each position, each target has his own target destination clubs, and the potential selling clubs all want to hold out for as long as possible to get top price – and some do not want to sell at all.

There are options for several positions we could have concluded on Monday.  These were not top of anyone’s list, of course, and not cheap either.  Hospital facilities are reserved in cities across Europe, most awaiting medicals that will not happen, but may be required before Friday evening.

How long should we wait for top targets?  You certainly wait this late in the window.  Bedwetters signing players early in the window to relieve anxiety symptoms is a sight to behold.  If you have that knot in your stomach right now, just go pop an antacid and let those with a seasoned constitution cope with stressful negotiating situations.

Every transfer window follows the same rules.  Players want the most money possible and the best stage to enhance their subsequent contract.  Clubs do not want to sell valuable players with a lengthy period left on their contracts.  When a sale looks inevitable, they employ agents to entice more bidders into the market.

If more than one bidder is involved, stalemate can run until deadline day.  People who ask, “Why are we not signing players earlier?” occupy that special peak at the top of the Dunning-Kruger chart.  None of this is news, we all know and accept this as an absolute article of faith.

So why all the angst?  This is the game, let the enormity of what Celtic are attempting to achieve over the next two days sit with you for a few moments and you might begin to enjoy the unfolding drama.  It sure beats wearing adult nappies (I’m led to believe).