Michael Lustig arrived early on a pre-contract from Rosenborg. A right back as tall as the North Stand he is one of the most curious signings we’ve made in a while, considering the strength we have in that position.
Rabiu Ibrahim, past-wonder-kid of African football, came in after negotiating an end to an unproductive stay in Eindhoven. I hear lots about Ibrahim’s ability but Celtic will have to find a way of turning that into a productive force in the SPL, something PSV were unable to do in the Netherlands.
Polish international striker, Pawel Brozek, arrived on load from Trabzonspor, where he spent most of last year at the side of the pitch. Pawel is an experienced pro who is likely to enjoy his time in the SPL. He’ll keep the front pairing of Abbot and Costello on their toes, neither of whom will be certain of retaining their place.
Young players, Paul Slane, James Keatings and Lewis Toshney went out on loan to MK Dons, St Johnstone and Kilmarnock respectively, which Josh Thompson continued his tour of English towns and cities by heading to Chesterfield for 6 months. None were likely to make more than cameo appearances this season, all will benefit from the career development opportunity.
Throughout the month I ignored stories that we would sell our prime first-team assets, Hooper, Stokes, Samaras, Forrest, Commons, Ki, McCourt and Matthews were all linked with clubs in England and offers were received for six of the above, but who in their right mind would sell top players in January when you are in a nip –and-tuck race for the title?
916 Comments- Pages:
- «
- 1
- ...
- 18
- 19
- 20
- 21
- 22
- 23
- 24
- 25
- »
oh
and
good morning !!
(that’s prob one fo the rare occasions i will write that on here, haha, so thought i’d get it in there)
Jobo
forecast if for SNOW on Saturday, buddy
have a great day one and all
off to bed !
is
fore i go
here’s Ally other day when i was there…
bin RFC and keep up the SCIAF work, Ally !!
God bless yeez
Good morning CQN from the fast train to Glasgow. -5.5 in ML8 this morning.
Morning Saltires – hope you’re well. I was talking with Blantyre Kev about the fight for power at snake mountain, depending when THE went happens and in which form it manifests itself, that power struggle could contribute further to their demise.
hh
bjmac
Something worth bearing in mind,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7xHCMg65qAU
Any news/ideas/thoughts about team selection for Inverness?
Don’t forget that there is a treble to be won.
Ridiculous huns.Sad,pathetic huns.
CRAIGWHYTECSC
Only 75% of the allegations are based in fact.
I have invested 25 Million into rangers.
I AM the preferred creditor.
Such a shame having the opportunity, they did not ask the one question everyone wants the answer to.
‘Where has that mortgaged money disappeared to Craig…’
Fortunes Favour Mibbes says:
2 February, 2012 at 07:50
Was yer man Malcolm X a hun,by any chance?
I don’t think that I have ever witnessed such rage and anger in a person before! (Apart from der hun,obviously)
Fortunes Favour Mibbes says:
2 February, 2012 at 07:50
“Something worth bearing in mind”
In what sense mate?
Sixteen roads to Golgotha
Inverness will be a tough game and demands a 5-man middy. I realise that’s a bit of a cliché, but in this case it’s an apt description. Quite a few of our regular players – Brown, Mulgrew, Forrest, Hooper – have poor games up there. It’s also a worry in terms of the talismanic Hooper/Stokes partnership, being one of the few places Celtic lost with them starting.
Hooper, in particular, will be interesting to watch if he plays (something that seems inevitable, considering how well he played at Hampden).
Sixteen roads to Golgotha
:) He must have been speakin the truth.
pflan76
Wasn’t really in reference to our own current affairs….just a reminder of what has and does happen if we don’t stick together. And I mean the Celtic Support, NOT the rest of them. Documented that quite well in this, no? :)) It’s uncanny . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8lUt0Ile00
It was fantastic to meet up with the master of quizes Celtic rollercoaster last night for a few beers. I can confirm that he gave me this Friday night’s quiz answers.
The clue for everybody else is “Anton Rogan”.
A good guy with good stories, CRC that is, not Anton Rogan, although he might be too.
Hail hail
The Herald has been telling us since last summer that several of our top players would be off to the EPL in January. Didnae happen. Poor Herald.
So what do they do?
They lead today with a story warning that the Russian windae is still open and that Hooper and Stokes are hot targets.
The source of the story? “one Russian source “.
Hurting Herald.
Good Morning,
from a frosty Stirlingshire.
I see Michael Grant attempting to explain the current situation in the Ibrox Mire in the Herald this morning. Whilst he is to be congratulated for trying and at least focusing on the current difficulties, i’m afraid he remains far from the point.
Unless Craig Whytewash has really salted all the money from ticketus away for a rainy day, then the actual Liquidation of Rangers looks increasingly likely.
Only in the event of Whyte having stuck the better part of £26Million under his bed is it likely that any form of Administration or receivership can be successfully concluded. If the real Rangers Debt to Rangers Group (Wavetower ) PLC is the former bank debt of £18M PLUS the £26MIllion borrowed from Ticketus then and only then could Whyte have a chance of outvoting HMRC at a creditors meeting at some point in future.
However, if that were the case, one would expect HMRC to be asking the question “What did you borrow the £26Million for? What did you spend it on? Did you use it for running costs and to reduce liabilities?”
Unless he can demonstrate that then any escape from Receivership or Admin looks impossible as by the looks of it HMRC will not deal with this mob or anyone appointed by them.
Also, as things stand very few-if any-Insolvency practitioners are going to want to “run” Rangers and so they are likely to immediately cease all trading on appointment– unless there is immediate cash available to sustain trading for a period.
So well done Michael– but go speak to the business guys and the legals at the paper– they might be able to point you in the direction of the likely team tactics!
up_over_goal@08:08
A 5 man midfield is indeed the way to go at Inverness while they are under Butchers management
Play that formation and we will win comfortably
Any other and we will struggle big time imo
Brogan Rogan Trevino and Hogan supports Kano 1000 2 February, 2012 at 08:23:
Would Whyte being a secured creditor be involved in any voting procedure with unsecured creditor HMRC in administration?
up_over_goal@08:08
play Stokes & Hooper up front with 4 midfielders (Brown, Wanyama, Leldey & Commons) behind them. Keep Forrest, Sammi and Brozek (if fit) in reserve if required.
Forster
Matthews Rogne Mulgrew Izaguirre
Brown Wanyama Ledley Commons
Hooper Stokes
Subs Zaluska Samaras Brozek Ki Forrest
Poor Sandanza left sitting by the phone for hours and hours. He thinks Ally wanted him but Craig wouldn’t pay the fee, now the Record says it’s the other way round – mcCoist thought he could spend more money for a better player. Hence the squillion dollar bid for Holt.
Michael Grant’s Herald article for those who haven’t seen it
Could it be Rangers themselves which close? The outlook is becoming so bleak for them even that cannot be ruled out with total certainty. Liquidation still seems an unlikely outcome but the prospect of the club going into administration has moved from unthinkable to looking pretty much inevitable. It may not be long now before a statement is released confirming that Rangers, drowning in debt, have been placed in the hands of an administrator.
It’s not about whether they win or lose the tax case against Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. They could sink before the outcome of that is known in March or April, or else they could collapse later even if the verdict goes their way. What’s becoming clear is that Rangers are living a hand-to-mouth existence where debt levels are unsustainable, income does not match expenditure, and something exceptional such as the sale of Nikica Jelavic is necessary just to pay the bills and keep the wolves from the door for the next few weeks.
BUT THEN WHAT?
HMRC are all over Rangers. They aren’t just interested in the big tax case, or the smaller one for an outstanding £2.8m fee; those are legacies of Sir David Murray’s reign. HMRC are also investigating an entirely new set of issues and concerns which pertain totally to the takeover by Craig Whyte and his subsequent actions as owner. They have interviewed former directors about the acquisition and about potentially outstanding VAT sums, including £5m which will be due from what is being referred to as “mortgaging the season-tickets”.
Whyte has admitted using season-ticket projections for the next four years to secure loans worth £24.4m from an agency, Ticketus. He has denied using that money to buy Rangers in the first place and claimed that was a separate £18m from one of his companies. But if that is the case, where is the evidence of him investing serious money? Rangers’ biggest spend on a player under him has been £1.5m on Lee Wallace, some of which has still to be paid. Madjid Bougherra was sold for £1.7m and Jelavic for around £6m with, it is believed, £3.5m paid up front.
SO HOW IS THIS LIKELY TO UNFOLD?
A club goes into administration either voluntarily or when creditors file a petition. Clubs first pay football-related debts (wages and fees to other clubs), then HMRC gets some of the money it is owed. Whyte may soon have to accept that he can no longer maintain Rangers as a going concern and pay the bills.
WHAT IS THE ADVANTAGE OF GOING INTO ADMINISTRATION?
Going into administration amounts to a rescue package which nearly always allows a club or company to survive. A licensed insolvency practitioner, the administrator’s intention is to maintain the club as a going concern. It would secure partial repayment for Rangers’ creditors and should avoid the club going into complete liquidation and ceasing to exist. After the administration the club re-emerges with new directors and a refreshed balance sheet. But it is no easy fix: there would be job losses among the off-field staff and redundancies, too, for players.
WHAT HAPPENS IN FOOTBALL TERMS?
Rangers would be docked 10 points in this season’s Clydesdale Bank Premier League – no more, no fewer. That is an automatic and mandatory penalty imposed the moment the SPL receives court notice that a club is in administration. No vote or decision needs to be taken. The points come off immediately. Rangers would fall 11 points behind Celtic and be seven ahead of third-placed Motherwell as the table currently stands.
If Rangers believe the league title is a lost cause without Jelavic (or any quality goalscorer, for that matter) it would be in their interests to go into administration sooner rather than later. If administration happens during the close season they would start next season on minus 10 points. Ten points will be docked in every season in which they remain in administration. A club can be docked more than 10 points in a season only if it goes into administration more than once in the same campaign. Rangers would also be prevented from signing any players, either permanently or on loan. They could sell players, though. Much as January was, then.
COULD THEY BE RELEGATED TO THE THIRD DIVISION, AS LIVINGSTON WERE, OR DOCKED 25 POINTS, AS DUNDEE WERE?
No. They’d have to be relegated from the SPL (virtually impossible even with a 10-point deduction) and come under the auspices of the Scottish Football League, which can impose far more severe sanctions for being in administration. The SPL punishment is 10 points.
COULD THEY PLAY IN EUROPE?
Every club needs an SFA licence to compete in the Uefa tournaments. That is granted only if the club proves it doesn’t owe money to other clubs, its employees or Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs. The SFA needs to see audited accounts before a licence can be granted to play in Europe. So far, Rangers have not submitted such accounts to the SFA. They have until March 31 to do so, although there is some leeway for up to two weeks after that. But unless those audited accounts land at the SFA Rangers will not play in Europe next season, whether they are in administration or not.
WHAT IS THE HOLD-UP WITH THE AUDITED ACCOUNTS?
This is another question that Whyte must answer. Last month he said that an audit of the finances would be complete “on or around January 31” but yesterday he told the Rangers Supporters’ Trust that it had still to be done and, what’s more, he could not call an annual general meeting until it had been finalised. Whyte says the delays relate to the HMRC tax hearing. That’s a very vague explanation.
IS COMPLETE LIQUIDATION AND THE END OF RANGERS LIKELY?
Rangers going out of business altogether can no longer be entirely ruled out, although it is still thought to be an unlikely conclusion to the current situation. It would depend, if the club did go into administration, on whether agreement could be reached with their creditors over repayment term. If, for example, no agreement could be reached with Ticketus’ parent company (if they were the preferred creditor, rather than Whyte) full liquidation would be possible.
MIGHT ALLY MCCOIST RESIGN OVER THIS?
A matter of daily speculation. His chances of winning the league look all but over without Jelavic, although he is in an almost criticism-proof position given supporters realise the conditions he must work under. Eventually he could feel he is on a hiding to nothing and decide to escape the stress of dealing with it. But if McCoist is deeply frustrated about Whyte he might feel he’d be letting him off the hook by walking out. Nothing is likely to happen until the summer, at the earliest.
WHAT IS THE SFA’S ROLE?
The SFA can suspend or terminate a club’s membership if it goes into administration, which would prevent it from playing in any league, but it has never previously done so.
WHAT NEEDS TO HAPPEN NOW?
Whyte must explain why Rangers seem to be in meltdown. The biggest question is: if he didn’t use the season-ticket money to buy the club, what happened to the £20m-plus of supporters’ cash? It hasn’t gone on signings . . .
Get your popcorn.
‘The Civil War in Poundland’ is described as “A Must See” by HMRC. “Thriller of the Year” Ticketus
Internet Bampots give it ‘*****’
HH
super swally has a huge decision to make…….a devil you know senario
This is an interesting piece of writing from a poster(Goosy) on the RTC last night…………….
My heid is sore .but anyway………… here goes
I was always sceptical about the idea of someone with the track record of MBB still being around after liquidation. I think he`s an in and out merchant who will disappear as soon as RFC are liquidated. He is after cash, cash and only cash
From that assumption I reckon this was the sequence of events last year
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
1. Some time before March 2011 perhaps years earlier, LBG and SDM legally agree the LBG related terms on which SDM can sell RFC to any 3rd Party. This gave SDM unfettered control of negotiations.
A key element in this legal agreement being that LBG mandated SDM to act on their behalf during negotiations with 3rd parties
2. SDM meets CW for the umpteenth time sometime in March with their respective lawyers in attendance. They are sworn to secrecy by client confidentiality. SDM sells RFC to CW in exchange for a £1 coin which is solemnly handed over. The deal agreement specifies a fixed May date on which LBG will get their £18m. If the £18m is not paid on that date the sale agreement is nullified. The deal is done perfectly legally with signatures, witnesses etc. As part of this written agreement CW promises by a date to show SDM an escrow account from which LBG will be paid.
3 Armed with this agreement CW goes to Ticketus in March and does the £24.5m deal (This was netted down in June to £21m). The deal is between Ticketus and Wavetower the owner of RFC. As security Wavetower gives Ticketus the ex LBG floating charge over all assets of RFC on the date of liquidation. This means Ticketus own Ibrox, Moray Park and the players if RFC are liquidated.
CW then informs SDM that he will definitely meet the LBG payment date and , as agreed, shows him £24.5m in an escrow account in the name of Wavetower.
4. After seeing the escrow account. SDM contacts LBG to advise that a deal has been done and the £18m will be paid to LBG by Wavetower from escrow account no xxxxxx on a fixed date in May
5. A few weeks later SDM tells the RFC Board the deal is almost done. This is technically true since the money to LBG has still to be paid and the deal is not legally fulfilled until LBG get their £18m.
6. Before LBG get their hands on the money, Alistair Johnston challenges SDM about the credentials of CW. He is told it’s too late, the deal is done but he is given no details. AJ is then contacted by LBG and told firmly that the deal is done. LBG will be getting their £18m shortly. If the old board persist in their objections LBG will put them into an impossible situation by withdrawing banking facilities.
7. LBG gets paid their £18m and are out of the picture along with SDM.
For an investment of £1 and some smart manipulation CW has acquired control over RFC with potential CL income that will enable RFC to more or less break even in 2011/2012 This left a cash pile of £3m as pure profit. This could be increased by not paying creditors and liquidating the club before Ticketus are due their 2012 instalment
The challenge for CW then becomes one of exiting the business legally with as much money in cash as possible. After sucking out the Ticketus money the on going strategy is to starve RFC of ready cash by drip feeding from Wavetower just enough to survive. Any payments that have to be made are done in brown envelopes ie a pay poke with cash rather than a BACs transfer
Meanwhile, Wavetower continuously launder the cash through a series of phoney transactions to a myriad of shell cos such that it only ever holds a nominal amount of cash to satisfy the minimum drip feed needs of RFC. Wavetower is then folded simultaneously with RFC on the date of liquidation. When Jelavic is transferred to Everton on 31 Jan 2012 the cash paid is immediately transferred to Wavetower and disappears onwards into other CW cos.
i.e. RFC continue to have no cash and are totally dependent on Wavetower for paying anybody including the players
,,,,,,,,,,
If the sequence outlined above is more or less correct then the crucial piece of information is the date on which RFC were sold for £1 subject to the LBG debt being paid by an agreed date in May
Was it March 2011 or was it May 2011?
If it was March then CW has done the deal of the century for £1 and the escrow account was indeed funded by Wavetower using ST money from Ticketus
If it was May then the escrow account was funded with money from some other source
Note for new RFC fans reading this blog
This CW guy only wins with liquidation, (like Woolworths) not administration , (like Livingston)
Its not about a 10pt deduction
Its about death.
RFC will die long before the end of the season
That means no more games after the liquidation announcement.
Whether a “new” RFC can rise from the ashes next season will depend on whether the Newco can disguise themselves enough to stop Hector claiming the back taxes. This means doing everything in their power to distance themselves from the defunct RFC ( Like “We are a brand new club, we haven’t won anything, we are nothing to do with RFC, we have no history ,we will pay Hector what is due, when its due, we just happen to be playing at Ibrox because we bought the stadium from Ticketus, don’t confuse us with the 9 in a row RFC , we are completely different etc etc etc )
As an example of this dilemma just think about the Sky TV deal.
The word “Old Firm” cant be used any more as RFC are defunct. If the Newco claim they are really RFC with a new name then Hector can send them the RFC tax demand for £49m
What can you do ?
At the very best RFC will not be liquidated until an FTT decision in April
At worse CW will liquidate and flee abroad well before the next CFC game at Ibrox
There wont be any administration scenario………….. so forget it.
This is not about a 10pt deduction
Its about whether RFC die as early as Feb or as late as April
It all depends on whether CW feels so threatened by the reaction of the fans that he decides not to liquidate the club right away
Instead he drip feeds his profit back into RFC to keep it going.
This avoids liquidation by CW until Hector swings the axe. CW can then blames Hector for the liquidation. If Hector liquidates soon CW might even make a few hundred grand profit.
However
CW cant make a loss on this deal otherwise he is breaking the law by trading while insolvent
So if Hector doesn’t move for liquidation quickly enough then CW faces a criminal charge if he doesn’t liquidate
Make no mistake. This guy is sucking the last drop of blood from the corpse of RFC
So what can you do ?
Before liquidation the best you can do is to buy RFC from CW and promise Hector you will pay him any money due.
This will cost about £100m to pay off all the debts .Maybe 100,000 fans worldwide paying £1000 each over 5yrs. That would work out at about £200 per year Thats less than half a season ticket when you think about it. But it’s a big ask
Its up to you
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Note for Mr Traynor
Please acknowledge the RTC blog if you use any of this post
Finally
I wonder if any first time poster will say one of the old Board think this isn’t too far from the truth ?
BRTH
The Herald’s position is remarkable.
And entirely predictable.
It apparently addresses the serious issue (of ranjurs plight) but no examination of the causes. In fact it serves more to assure worried teddies that although prospects are grim – humiliation and annihilation are not on the cards.
He’s very clear that they wont get relegated. Very clear.
Message out.
Tick.
Still not prepared to grasp the nettle tho’, and examine the causes or apportion responsibility.(Mustn’t mention David)
Still just concentrating on the dire prospect of that institution disappearing- what a terrible thought for all the fans, eh?
He’s well on-message.
Remarkable.
HH.
Morning all from gay Paree, temps du jour: ciel bleu mais froid, tres tres froid, -8C.
In terms of our ambitions of a treble, the Inverness game could be one of our most important games.
We rarely play well there, and Butcher will have his hammerthrowers instructed to do what they do best.
Not sure what the forecast is up there, but the pitch there isn’t great at the best of times.
I would go with 5 in the middle initially, with Neil to change it early second half.
For me, Commons must start, but I wouldn’t be too sure about Izzy who seems to be short of fitness/confidence.
Maybe not the best match for him at this time.
It will be tough.
We just have to beat these teuchters.
After that, it’s all champagne.
Let’s do it in style.
I love football, Stan, love it!
I agree that we must play with five in midfield against the butchers.
Samaras should play as a lone striker.Jamesy should be rested.Hooper and Stokesy can sit this one out as well.
Commons and Ki should be drafted into the side,because of their expert and clinical shooting ability.
Battle them all over the pitch,and pepper their goal with shots,everytime we are in range.Scott Brown and Mulgrew should also be having a dig on sight.
Celtic for the victory.
McCoist is on the drink.
Gobbledegook.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-dJpf3zOXd4
Another beautiful. frosty morning here in North Ayrshire.
Yo-ho-ho!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K6KcpaXIfiA&feature=related
Forster
Matthews Rogne Mulgrew Ledley
Forrest Brown Wanyama Ki Commons
Hooper
Sixteen roads to Golgotha says:
2 February, 2012 at 09:15
Peeing masel laughing at your naismith impression!
HH
Any ‘alleged’ Celtic supporter who believes that we, as a club, need Rangers FC to survive is deluded in the extreme. They have yet to table a reasonable cognitive argument that would support that assertion. That is apart from regurgitating the same nonsense as the Save Der Hun looby – Scottish football is doomed etc . Absolutely no thought about what, if any, the consequences of the Huns disappearing would be! All we have is simply a panicked response by the LL to forestall the arrival of the Grim Reaper; Ranger’s nemesis being HMRC. Just how good is that? Her Majesty having a hand in the destruction of the most quintessential of British clubs!
And lest we should all forget
“This has to be said about Rangers, as a Scottish Football club they are a permanent embarrassment and an occasional disgrace. This country would be a better place if Rangers did not exist.” Ian Archer
bankiebhoy1 at 08:51
Yeah: what is it about Murray that he still seems able to avoid the flak that he rightly deserves?
Is he a genuinely charismatic bloke who always looked out for these journalists, like some latter day St Francis de Sales (patron Saint of Journalists)?
Is he the grand mufti of some Ancient Scottish Order of Lick-spittles?
Or might he (JR Ewing-style) have a dossier of compromising photos of the laptop loyalists?
Maybe it’s partly to do with the general disagreeability of the MBB, but I really struggle to understand why he (SDM) is still getting such an easy ride …
We might have to go with the untried duo of Samaras and Brozek up front against Butcher’s teuchters, because Stokes and Hooper will have been snapped up by an unnamed Russian outfit.
Sorry to herald that news.
;o)
Big,BIG,game this weekend.
A must win.
The boay`s aff `is heid.
Perspective.
It`s a wee game against wee provincial opponents in the cup of a third rate footballing nation.
Do I want my Tims to win?
Does the Pope etc.etc.?
However,if they don`t ,let`s not have the predictable flagellation of the board session.
Eyes on the prize.
S.P.L.is everything.The ticket to ride.
I.M.O.,only the corrupt refereeing establishment can stop us.
The hun and it`s fellow travellers are relying on this,as they always have.
God speed,Lenny.
oglach
Cant see “Save Der Hun looby” being a big seller even among kinky nazis!
Sorry!
HH
I posted this last night,and its all over the rags, follow CQN for your up to date news-
!!Bada Bing!! Kano 1000 says 1 February, 2012 at 22:15 Bhoys, from an impeccable source,one of Sandaza’s team mates- Here’s a story for you. Fran’s in Spain and got a phonecall from Gordon Smith last night asking him to get to the airport and fly back to Glasgow to put a deal thru with Rangers. Fran doesn’t know what’s going on and ally mccoist phones fran asking if he’s had a phonecall yet, fran says yes and asks what’s going on…. Ally McCoist tells him to ignore it cos they have no money and won’t be signing him. Gordon Smith etc wanted sky filming Fran arriving at Glasgow airport with no intention of signing him and were going to run a story about saints/fran changing demands!!! Just to deflect the media attention off them