Late last night Celtic got their goalkeeper, Scott Bain (26), on loan from Dundee, from where he had already been loaned to Hibs this month, while also landing Jack Hendry (22) on a permanent deal from Dundee.
The Hendry deal is intriguing. The player didn’t get much of a chance to shine before being released by Wigan in the summer. Two dozen games for Dundee later and he is a Celtic player. This is not a conventional career path, so what are Celtic doing here?
First of all, the player has the attributes Brendan Rodgers looks for in a central defender. He has pace and is comfortable with the ball at his feet. The jump from Dens Park to the Allianz Arena is eye-watering, but when you have just signed a four and a half year contract at Celtic, someone must think you are capable of reaching the required standard to play at the latter venue one day.
I don’t know if Jack will make it that far in the game, but I am pretty sure Brendan Rodgers will improve him as a player and craft him into a valuable professional – one we may sell at a profit one day.
Set alongside the signing of Lewis Morgan (21), you can see a strategy here. If a Scottish player in his early 20s raises his profile high enough, we’ll sign him. Only some will make the grade, but the aggregate financial consideration of having these players at the club will probably be profitable.
Alongside all investment in youth sits Marvin Compper (32), one time German international and by all accounts, the real deal. Marvin will have the responsibility of leading the younger defenders through their on-field development.
The other side of the transfer window equation passed without Celtic cashing in any of their premium chips. By the time Moussa took to the field against Hearts on Tuesday, he knew he was going nowhere, and his performance indicated that whatever was previously on his mind had passed. Kieran Tierney’s recent contract renewal seems to have convinced all that there is no business to be had there. I expect some movement out in the summer in the central mid and central def positions.
You and I have been through January transfer windows when the objective has been to make sure we win the league. Now it is all about player development and getting ready for the inevitable Champions League qualifiers. We have not measurably improved our chances against Zenit this month, but it is not clear how possible this is (or even if it is necessary).
The market in England took another step into the ridiculous this window, possibly in anticipation of the announcement of a bumper new TV deal later this month. The new deal will not come into effect until summer 2019, but previously we have seen player values inflate immediately after the deal is announced. Game Theory suggests this inflating possibility will have been anticipated.
What you and I have also pondered for over a decade is when the great English football bubble will burst. I’m not going to predict that date, but just as sure as we knew Rangers would crash and burn years before they did, so will the English Premier League. The model has inherent risks which cannot be safely accommodated. Let’s wait and see how much Sky TV are prepared to pay this time.
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Regan resigns, he should have been sacked long ago.
Mike in Toronto
Wee tune for you…
https://youtu.be/mxVo5mjK4eg
Leaving aside the good window/bad window chat (good window, for me) and the Regan chat (good riddance, no friend to Celtic, no friend to Scottish football), can I be the last to say Eboue Kouassi was absolutely immense on Tuesday and I’m looking forward to seeing a lot more of him in the team.
Boyata also looked kind of liberated and much happier without the crowd getting on his back. I can understand that.
FIELDOFDRAMS
The first 3 names on the team sheet should be Broony, Ollie and Eboue from here on in.
thanks for the summary paul67, I don’t know much about how a club runs, so it’s good to get the big picture. Am happy (clappy) with the transfer window – get a feeling br can rip the model up and get spfl clubs chasing their tails again for a while before they figure out how to nullify us
WDH
You’re always a big mhan in my mind mhate.
HH jamesgang
Philbhoy
Deffo. And/but only cos we should ‘spell’ KT from time2time
HH jamesgang
Glad to see the back of the inept buffoon, but as long as the likes of Strong Rangers McRae and his cohorts are there I really don’t see it making much of a difference.
The whole place needs cleaning out.
JAMESGANG
Sorry mate!
ALL TEAM SHEETS have KT printed on it before they get to Brendan!
I should have made that clear!
A big welcome to the Celtic family to Musonda, Hendry, Morgan, Commper & Bain…..what a crappy window it has been ;-))
Talking of crappy….I see that the main jobby that has been stinking out our game has finally been flushed away. All we need now is for continuing decontamination and airing out of the office(r)s at FTSFA ;-)) Will not be happy till they are all gone and brought to account.
shittyanalogiesCSC
H.H
jamesgang
cheers, incredible what the mind is capable of
Timbhoy3 here, much to a lot of you on here,I have been a Celtic Supporter since I have been 9yrs old,and if I make a comment good or bad,then to bad,can’t be good to be to positive about your team,
Jings David Currie inventing history about the demise in 2012 of Hun’s holding company
Tom English – it’s because of the suspicion in the country.
Now why would anybody be suspicious about an organisation that signs a secret agreement?
Boy has Traynor got the BBC and STV on message, Currie just said the holding company went under when talking about RFC 1872-2012 in the context of a piece about Regan, what hold Traynor has and why is that?
The reprehensible McLaughlin on Shortbread, citing Celtic and Brendan questioning the South American games at the end of the season, as a main reason Regan was punted.There is your Level 5 squirrel right there, Chris, Jabba must have some good photos …..
Regan has left because his work is complete, brought in to oversee sevcos “difficult” years. He first tried to shoehorn them “back” into top league, then assisted them any way he could including insisting on the continuity myth.
He broke the chain of RRM in the job role as they would be seen as conflicted whereas he was considered a neutral outsider.
The vacant post will revert to being filled by a RRM and we’ll all carry on as if nothing ever happened. A bit like when Bobby Ewing had that dream in Dallas.
Transfer window was fine, no concerns with signings and team is in better shape now than it was beforehand.
I dont have problem with epl getting lots of money, it is what it is. And it has always been a far more popular league than ourselves or at last some teams have been i.e. liverpool manchester united etc…
However we should be getting a far better t.v deal than we currently do. A good deal for our own football rights is one that reflects its population and potential.
Such a move would improve the product and the quality and the viewing figures further and might just bring our bigger city/ town teams into long with lower to mid championship clubs which would go a long way to enriching the competitveness of the league
HH
If Levein has any balls at all he should back his words with deeds. Am I correct in thinking because the referee took no action on ‘Brown’s challenge’ it can be looked at by the compliance officer? If so, Levein should insist on this and watch it be laughed out the room. I assume none of the craven MSM suggested this or pointed out that if you live by the sword you should be willing to die by the sword. Each week he puts out a team that kicks anything that moves and falls over if they’re breathed on. He then complains when one of his players gets injured. You couldn’t make it up.
Re Reagan: be careful what you wish for.Sometimes it’s better the devil you know.
Lurkin …
As the lawyer awoke from surgery, he asked, “Why are all the blinds drawn?” The nurse answered, “There’s a fire across the street, and we didn’t want you to think you had died.”
:)
somebody stop me!
have = do
MIT,
What do lawyers and apples have in common……they both look great hanging from a tree ;-))
there’s millions of lawyer jokes….none showing you in a good light…..you all must be just misunderstood ;-))
H.H.
How do you stop a lawyer from drowning?
Shoot him before he hits the water.
Level 5/ Shortbread , touting Leeane Dempster as next CEO, a ST at Poundland for 20 years, i hope she had shares and Debenture Seats…..
What happens to lawyers when they die ?
They lie still
STV can be in cahoots with whom they like. So can the DR, Sun, Herald for that matter. Ultimately they will live or die by the laws of economics: if none likes the product they don’t buy. If they don’t buy there’s no revenue from sales or adverts.
The stuff that comes out of BBC Sportsound on the other other hand is financed by you and me whether we like it or not. We have no choice. The way they are happy to perpetuate lies, construct the narrative and set the agenda is unacceptable for a tax payer funded organisation.
Evening Judith…..:)
Broonie the sports news on BBC Scotland caused by Levein, wouldn’t be to take away the attention from issues at the SFA would it, I cant help thinking about that mysterious £4.5 million to finish a stand at Tynecastle given by a benefactor , in Scotland you can buy anything.Hearts and Levein in particular have recently gotten away with quite a bit and todays comments from him about the Captain of Celtic Football Club must not be allowed to go unchallenged by Celtic.
So , Regan has gone….bet we will see the same same shit with the same flies.
Feck them all.
Deflection, deflection, deflection….
Starry Plough, brilliant stuff.
Try this out
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUulr8w3FPY
KINGLuBO
Oh Dear, baws been booted, they have the audacity to call themself’s journos, so we are to believe the hun version are we, jeezo
BBCKheredine
@BBCKheredine
The word from China: source close to Beijing Renhe denies that the club made a multi-million pound bid for @RangersFC Alfredo Morelos. Says their foreign player quota is full, and that there’s a levy on foreign signings over $7 million.
BBCKheredine Verified account
@BBCKheredine
An apology to @RangersFC : despite what I was told from China, there was indeed a multi-million euro bid, indeed bids, from Beijing Renhe for striker Alfredo Morelos, with varying options for how it would have been structured. This retracts, and corrects my previous tweet.
@BBCKheredine
An apology to @RangersFC : despite what I was told from China, there was indeed a multi-million euro bid, indeed bids, from Beijing Renhe for striker Alfredo Morelos, with varying options for how it would have been structured. This retracts, and corrects my previous tweet………….
……..and prevents my house being fire-bombed.
So. The chip wrappers in Scotland made up a story about a Chinese club offering mullyinz for a sevco player, the club, naturally deny this. Who do we believe?
Paul 67
Why don’t you ban this A4#3(9”3.
Never a Celtic fan
Probably one text from the bbc high heed yins did the trick
“Jim Spence”
Going for the weekend to Dungloe and looking for a pub to watch the game on Saturday .Staying in the Midway Bar .First time in Dungloe.
KINGLUBO
Great tune from a top film:))
KTF