Every year we hear that January is a difficult time to do transfer business. Clubs are reluctant to allow top performers to leave midseason, but we’ve had some creative January activity over the years. Objectives for this month are clear.
We need to better prepare for our Summer Cup Finals. Trying to build a defence, or strike force, while simultaneously qualify for the Champions League is, unsurprisingly, tricky. Summer transfer windows are really two periods, the last days of the month, after European qualification has been taken care of, and earlier in the window, when limited volumes of business will take place.
We’ve done some great business early in summer months, most notably Virgil van Dijk, but instances like this are rare.
The most interesting aspect of this window will be how Ronny Deila is backed. He’s 18 months in the job now, long enough to come to an assessment of the wider scouting infrastructure he inherited. We’ve been underperforming on recruitment since January 2012. Ronny needs to buck this trend, and Celtic need to give him the necessary lateral.
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Dismantle Starry plough
Hail hail
Sir ronny of deila
awe naw!!!!!
HUH!…….always the bridesmaid!
The würst curries again :-)
HH
The big lad from villa is a certainty as he’s a Freeby
Happy New Year bhoys and ghirls.
1st day of the ciggies and in first 5 hours I haven’t killed anyone….yet.
HH
KTF
UTLR
TBJ….
What big lad please?
with all due respect Paul, I think we have bigger things to worry about than who we may or may not get in the january transfer market. I think we all know what it is and unless it is addressed we will not move forward
Mighty tIm
Patches … chewing gum. . Vapour. .. or cold turkey ;)
TBJ vapour mate hope it works 40 plus years of smoking but staying positive.
HH
KTF
UTLR
I stopped smoking in April 1982, or, if you like, four stone ago.
MT
My dad has been of them for 15 years and as the bhoys noticed on Saturday he hasn’t become more crabbit or as philbhoy added larger…⚽️⚽️
It would be amazing to sign a holding mid of quality and a class winger who can create and score. I think we have too many players so will need to off load a few. Griffiths will be the main striker for a few years and the centre backs need to be given time to click. If we go out and buy a centre half I think it would highlight even more how bad the summer transfers policy was but the defence hasn’t looked too good. Depends how confident we are about the defence. If no one feels the boys have it then we might just need a centre back too. Costly January if we go out and pick up 3 first team players but if we get it done we shouldn’t be busy in the summer.
Phil bhoy
Libor Kozak – 26 year old Czech international striker. Villa manager stated he hasn’t got a place at villa park and can leave .
Mighty tIm
Good luck with it mate…. never smoked but can imagine how hard it is to cut out
Posted on the last blog that Ronny or any Celtic coach works with one hand tied behind their back.
We recruit players regardless of who the guy picking the team tactics and formation will be. Celtic think they have a sustainable plan. It’s not sustainable to have no continuity in a director of football. Other European clubs work well with a director of football but we have the model without the appropriately qualified staff.
Robyn’s time will come to an end sooner or later and I suspect with a small puff of hardly noticeable smoke. We might get lucky with the next guy. He might be able to work with one hand behind his back or we might find two gems this transfer window before we sell Biton and Johansen in the summer.
A manager from an International team would be a good appointment as they are used to working with a restricted pool and moulding a team.
Until we get lucky again we will be the dog returning to its own vomit.
TBJ….
Thanks!
i want to know why it is we buy guys from any league who look great and in their first dozen games look like class and we manage to turn them into dumplins who we let go for nothing 1 or 2 years later Armstrong and GMS being the latest pair on the downward spiral
Think we need to make a decision on our CB pairing for the CL qualifiers.
Is Simunovic-Boyata going to be good enough?
With Boyata’s injury they will have less than 20 games together before the qualifiers.
Would like a solid, experienced CB to come in. Doesn’t have to be a world beater – just someone who “gets” defending.
If JS-DB develops well he may not be needed, but at least he could be available and also for injury cover.
It will be interesting in the next few weeks. Will we stay on strategy or will we amend the strategy. Whatever it is something needs to change or they can shut the top tier next season…
He added: “You can call it relief, I will call it happiness. I am so happy that we scored and got three points. “
Boyata, Armstrong, GMS, Allan, Ciftic, Stomovic, Blacket, TO NAME A FEW – all bought under RD
Yes No answer – are they better players today than they were before they signed for Celtic ??
I agree PL has too much influence on recruitment but RD has not improved them IMHO
67ECW
Ciftci “goal” definitely looks level (at worst) btw.
” ….or they can shut the top tier next season…”.
About fifty Home games ago, I started reading on here that we were losing a couple of thousand supporters for each game. As the normal attendance on a Saturday is around 40,000, we must have had astonishing numbers eighteen months ago. Did we really have crowds of 140,000 or are some people exaggerating any decline in numbers?
JJ
We need a central defender with pace as we are always leaving them exposed by our style of play
The need for a big stopper is secondary imo
Jason has speed which saved us a few times last season
Tansbell
We seem to play a lot of our new signings wide left even if they’d never played there before.
That’s why they look like diddies eventually.
Armstrong was a good player for DU and I was pleased when we signed him. GMS is doing for us what he did at Utd, not very much. Not sure why we signed him unless it was the price.
I am not at all convinced by Boyata and Simonovic (sp) either together or individually so that is still a concern in the middle of our defence.
Lustig looks less than ordinary at the moment and has had a poor season in my opinion.
He is our deputy captain so not likely to be dropped.
Bitton overrated, Johansen very poor. Both play just about every game when fit.
Scott Allan must be wishing he’d signed for the huns. (Mibbe no)
I can’t remember a Celtic team that was so dependent on one player, and I’ve been around since the late forties.
Still, I soldier on………
Soldiers are we……………………….
The real metrics of Lawwell’s success or failure are not to be found in the on field progress of the team or for that matter customer satisfaction.
He will be judged on the income outgoings balance.
As he has overseen a reduction in income ( attendance is a decent proxy) he can now only manage the balance by reducing outgoings.
I see 2 things happening to facilitate this – players leaving who hold any value. Very little by way of incoming players who will improve the team.
If we had a more visionary CEO we would be developing a growth strategy not an ever decreasing circle as we currently have under PL.
Ronnie is just a pawn in this although I think we can safely conclude he is not up to the job.
MIGHTY TIM
you can win yer battle with the fags,you are in charge now ,
i for one will be thinking of and willing you on.
Y.N.W.A.
BIG JOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOE welcome back ,
did you find us a strng tackling ,ball winning midfield leader on yer travels as IMHO we need one,
RD said last year January was the best market to sign players…….
Dang curried again by WurstBhoy
It’s tricky for Celtic Board to trump this summer’s business given they secured their no1 signing..?
Paul67
“The most interesting aspect of this window will be how Ronny Deila is backed. He’s 18 months in the job now, long enough to come to an assessment of the wider scouting infrastructure he inherited. We’ve been underperforming on recruitment since January 2012. Ronny needs to buck this trend, and Celtic need to give him the necessary lateral.”
An interesting piece which to my mind misses the real point which has been touched on by subsequent posters.
The Board need to decide NOW whether RD will be here next season and plan accordingly.
We can therefore assume that if he is supported in this window with reasonable finance he will be here next season.
If he is not to be here next season – for whatever reason – he should not be given any money to spend this window for two reasons.
One, that any spending would affect an incoming manager’s budget and two, based on recent experience there is less than average likelihood RD
would spend wisely.
Who has he brought to the club and improved ??
Also I had a day out yesterday wi occasional poster ‘Callmegerry’ – his bhoy understands that this is the last window where we are entitled to a Wanyama sell-on fee. Come on Arsenal get the chequebook out.
maybe thats why Eustace never signed for sevco hes on PLs list …lol
Mighty Tim
I hope ye make it aff the fags, life changer for a couple of good mates of mine:))
HH
I still think Celtic should be complaining about some of the decisions particularly the Cifti penalty, two footed tackle and takes him right out, always best to complain after a victory. We as a club appear to be submissive and don’t want to rock the boat.
Our P.R. is virtually non existent.
B.T.
I agree Jason had pace and Virgil had great acceleration over a short distance bailed us out on several occasions.
Uh Oh
There have been reports for over a year that Celtic have been thoroughly scouting the Portuguese league in the hopes of unearthing reasonably priced talent they can mould.
Last weekend Celtic were again said to have been among clubs who had sent scouts to the game between V.Setúbal and Braga. Along with scouts from Bayern Munich, Southampton and Aston Villa.
Primeira Liga expert @PortuBall believes two players were being watched by scouts at the game. Braga midfielder Rafa Silva and V.Setúbal’s centre forward Hyun-Jun Suk.
While these two players were mentioned it’s thought that Celtic only had their eye on the Hyun-Jun Suk during the game.suk
Speaking to @PortuBall he gave the low down on the South Korean.
Suk is a pretty complete striker, who has played several seasons in Portugal(& Holland). He has done okay, but this season he has really hit the ground running. He has scores 9 goals & assisted 7 goals in 15 Liga games this season, and among the goals scored is several Golaços. He’s strong, dangerous both on the ground and in the air, can hold onto the ball & run with it.
Suk would cost around €2-3m, I think. V.Setúbal not a big club, so that’s a lot of money to them.
With Celtic in desperate need of more firepower up-front and with the player seemingly in our price range then there maybe a deal to be made. At 24-years-old Suk definitely fits into the mould of the type of players Celtic like to sign.
The striker is contracted with his club till 2018.
Giggly
Maybe there will be.more fans
Rangers might get promotion and there could be more fans going making up for the fans WHO say they won’t be back
Maybe Rd will get the players to click it happened second half of last season.