Bolstering the attack quickish

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With 26 career goals, 25 of which came in a Dundee United shirt, £1.5m sounds a tad generous for Nadir Ciftci.  Celtic’s earlier offer of £900k sounds more like the mark but Wigan have validated United’s target price with a deal with meets their requirements, if not that of the player’s.

Is he a player to improve Celtic?  Quite possibly, he’ll bring something we don’t have at the moment – a sticky out ball – but it’s a big ask to expect him to step up to Champions League levels.  Signing that level of player might take Champions League money, but we’ll need to get there first, which is why we need to bolster the attack quickish.

Two years ago we talked about the number of senior games a good player is able to make before he’s noticed by those to rich and lazy to do as much low-level research Celtic must do to unearth a gem.

Victor Wanyama made 51 appearances before becoming a Celtic player, Virgil van Dijk made 62.  It’s likely both spent the bulk of those games without anyone paying much attention to them, Celtic’s scouts are likely to have been alerted when they have little more than a dozen or so games left at their previous clubs.

Ciftci’s made 67 senior appearances.  If he has what it takes, the world will know about it sooner rather than later.

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  1. awe_naw_no_annoni_oan_anaw_noo,

     

     

    The team’s performance improved noticably with the arrival of MacKay-Steven and Armstrong, they moved the ball quicker through midfield and scored goals.

  2. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    Starry

     

     

    They were liquidated. The membership was transferred remember the club 12 fixture list.

     

     

    HH

  3. Awe Naw

     

     

    I could be reading it wrongly but I don’t think we’re all that far apart. Ronny’s strategy is the high intensity pressing game that we saw last season. Unless it’s carried out by every individual then as a team it leaves us open and vulnerable. We’ve seen evidence of both the pros and cons of this system.

  4. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    Murdochbhoy

     

     

    Until they even stopped appearing so regularly. I convinced our team selections are made with asset management considerations being the strongest concern. Mych easier under Ronny than Neil.

     

     

    HH

  5. All systems are go for Cifcti I hear. I hear be done dusted by end of the week.

     

     

    With Baily coming in it will just be the LB to come. However, depending on Europe we could add another Striker and attacking Player. What happens with VVD will determine if another CH comes in.

     

     

    Just what I hear.

     

     

    Keep the Faith!

     

     

    Hail Hail!

  6. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    HT

     

     

    Ronnie was brought in cos Neil did not fancy projects. How far have we come under Ronny with regards bank balance and football quality since Neil left ?

     

     

    Not far imho

     

     

    HH

  7. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo

     

     

    You know me, no the sharpest tool in the box, you need degree in Shenanigans to keep up with it..

     

     

    Enjoying the heatwave??

  8. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    SP

     

     

    Oh aye …… BBQs and water fights :-)

     

     

     

    HH

  9. Paul67 et al

     

     

    Ciftci will certainly be more than good enough in the SPFL, and hopefully good enough to make a contribution in the upcoming European games. In Scotland Celtic, certainly at home, and more often than not away, play a lot of the game in and around our opponents eighteen yard box, an area where time and space are limited. Anthony Stokes gets a whole lot of criticism on here, but watch him close in the final third and you will see a player trying to show, or get the ball to a player with a bit more space. Not an easy game to play, but also where Commons and Griffiths get goals. Ciftci brings something different to that game and hopefully he will not only get his share of goals, but create chances for whichever players are around him. I mentioned last week that Ciftci actually enjoyed being on the pitch after Celtic won the title 2013-14. Not a great reason to sign him I hear you say, and you may be right, point being though if he does sign he will love being at Celtic in a way some of our more recent signings have not. Love is the drug!

  10. Awe Naw

     

     

    Bank balance? I don’t know.

     

     

    European competition this season will go a long way to answer the second part of your comment I believe.

  11. Auldheid,

     

    You seem to be forgetting the timing, the 5 way happened before the clubs were exposed to the plans, remember (again) they refused to ratify the 5 way agreement and forced sevco to the bottom of the pile and not the top or even near the top which is where the 5 way planed for them to be.

     

    You have no idea or can have any idea if questioning the 5 way would have made any difference because quite simply it wasn’t questioned, yet your using all these unknowns to qualify your opinion.

  12. Joe Filippis Haircut on

    murdochbhoy.I have to agree with you Zig and Zag made a difference when they signed for us I think before there arrival Celtic were guilty of passing the ball sideways and backwards anyway but forward and our play was laboured.Zig and Zag were much more direct and moved the ball quicker. H.H.

  13. Auldheid,

     

    What is more worrying is that you are implying that the board were party to the agreement

  14. I believe Ciftci is facing a hearing on 20th july for biting. If he signs for us it is odds on that there will be a conviction and a long ban. We know what happened with tonev.

     

    Not really keen on him myself but do we really need him before the 20th.

  15. Jimmynotpaul on

    An Tearmann.

     

    If your lurking.

     

    Thanks for post this afternoon ‘re Luke Donnelly.

     

    Yes I’m aware of the Bellarmine connection. His uncle M.G. was a good friend of mine all through school. I think we were the year below you.

  16. quonno…

     

     

    I work with a bloke that played in the reserve team during the Aitken era, showed me programmes to prove it… Height… Five foot seven.

  17. i'vehadtochangemyname on

    great post pauli67

     

     

    these are times and decisions which make our season and have many of us including me up in arms come christmas – not an easy decision because we won’t know if it’s right till it’s too late.

  18. Aw Naw

     

     

    I’m not sure about the no title stripping part.

     

     

    Was it not Sevco who did not want punished for RFC’s cheating on the grounds it wasn’t Sevco who cheated?

     

     

    Did Green then not turn that on its head by claiming to RFC fans he was fighting on their behalf by challenging the SFA’s right to question RFC/Sevco at all, and in doing so get the mugs in his corner and buy STs?

     

     

    RFC were in no position to demand titles were untouchable.

     

    Sevco were because without such an agreement the purchase would have been a lot less viable so they could have pulled out.

     

    Logically the SFA could say titles would not be stripped from Sevco but they could not agree they would not be taken from RFC as that was in hands of the LNS Commission yet to be announced.

     

     

    I’m not saying you are wrong it’s my memory from reading some of the debate by SPL lawyers is saying it’s not quite that simple that no title stripping was a condition of the 5 way.

     

     

    If I’ve the time and inclination I’ll check.

  19. thomthethim for Oscar OK on

    If Ciftci signs, I have a feeling that our coaching staff will do a Dixie Deans on him and he will become a Celtic hero.

  20. i'vehadtochangemyname on

    can you hear deloitte audit

     

    no oh no oh

     

    can you hear deloitte audit

     

    no oh no oh

     

    can you hear deloitte audit

     

    cannae hear a fuggin ting

     

    no ooh oooh ooh oh oooooh !

  21. Canalamar

     

     

    Why is that worrying?

     

     

    If it was the 5 way or tipping Scottish football over the edge what else could Celtic have done?

     

     

    Gave it a shove?

     

     

    What’s worrying is the failure to understand all the factors that had to be taken into consideration to keep the professional football industry and jobs dependent on it in Scotland alive.

     

     

    It’s not all about Celtic, we depend on the opposition as much as they depend on us.

     

     

    That is the inescapable nature of football and it has to be a factor in any decision about a club.

     

     

    How does what happen to them affect me/the others and how do I minimise the damage to us all?

     

     

    Unpopular for sure when faced with such a toxic entity but necessary nevertheless.

  22. Celticrollercoaster supporting Shay,our bhoy wonder along the way on

    BIG-CUP-WINNERS

     

    18:54 on

     

    6 July, 2015

     

    This Belgian guy is ONLY 6’3″………Gordon is 6’4″……..Frazser is 6’7″.

     

     

    Clear signs that Celtic are not trying to reach the heights we used to……

     

     

    ======================

     

     

    It is clear to me that we are downsizing :-)

     

     

    HH

     

     

    CRC

  23. Auldheid

     

     

    Sorry for butting in, but did they or any other Scottish club, or the msm worry about that scenario when it was us going to the wall? :)

  24. Aw Naw

     

     

    I think we all were but the intellectual gymnastics necessary to arrive at the surprising decision were beyond what had been an understanding of the intent of the registration rules.

     

     

    An affront to the game but the lengths the SPL were prepared to go to to avoid having to make such a decision.

     

     

    The fact that it was only possible because key information was kept from SPL lawyers is being studiously ignored by the SPL and SFA but give it time….

  25. Auldheid,

     

    I’m no sure how exposing corruption can be equated with tipping Scottish football over any edge, nor do I understand how you could possibly make the association. A lot of people continued to but their season tickets on the understanding that Celtic were not involved in the 5 way agreement, and now you are here trying to justify any involvements Celtic may have had on the grounds that it was a worthy price to pay to keep a corrupt administration in power. Are you serious ?

  26. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    Auldheid,

     

     

     

    That is a very big If ….and anyone who belived it has to go. The game was already tainted but the emperor has had no clothes since and NEVER will again. That they failed to recognise this is their collective fatal mistake as far as ever giving them another penny again as far as I am concerned. They rrpresent tbe spirt first and foremost not their portfolios.

     

     

    HH

  27. Marsapa

     

     

    They were stupid enough not to consider the consequences for themselves but dont forget then that Celtic were pulling in 20,000 support not the 45,000 RFC were pulling in when they went bust.

     

     

    Different times and football became more commercial in the interval and more clubs were in financial trouble.

  28. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    Auldheid,

     

     

     

    Live to you guts

     

     

    but ypu should walk away …..Celtic FC will let you down and you dont deserve it. The stick that will come your ways inevitably.

     

     

    HH

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