This time last year the league was in the bag, as it is today, but we had Champions League football to look forward to in the coming days, and would ultimately go on to win the Scottish Cup. The Champions League is always going to be a hard place to measure progress for a club seeded in pot 4, last season it was hard enough to Benfica, a pot 2 team who were eliminated by Celtic but still progressed to the Europa League final.
Domestic cup performances for Celtic is a more accessible measuring tool. After home defeats to Morton (good grief) and now Aberdeen we may well ask, what went wrong?
It was evident from early in the second half that whatever match plan we had was not effective, and despite the introduction of fresh faces, the performance didn’t improve. Aberdeen defended outside their box very effectively, making it difficult for Celtic to play the kind of passes which Samaras released Stokes with to score early in the game. Forrest found red shirts blocking his path whenever he got going. Commons had a day when nothing sparked. Possession was cheaply conceded throughout as Celtic continued to ask the same question of the Aberdeen defence.
While we are playing in in impoverished Scottish football Aberdeen represent the strongest possible opponents. They are second in the league and were the last team to score against us on merit. Yesterday wasn’t a fluke result, it was deserved and marked the progress of Derek McInnes’ team.
So where does this leave us? Celtic remain imperious in the Premiership, the fact that they’ve not tasted defeat against a weaker team there, or conceded in 11 games, is historically impressive, but against the best of the rest, there are question marks, as there will be for Champions League qualifiers.
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ipaddy he is always aggressive kinda stupid too………….
Just reading back……..get IPaddy on the coaching team! We could have done with some aggression on Sunday.
SFTB-Not sure if you are defending NL and yesterday’s defeat ,which you are perfectly entitled to do mate.The big issue for me, and possibly others on here is the repitition of glaringly obvious mistakes.The 2 in centre midfield being outnumbered,with the other 2 playing wide.This happened in the Ross County semi final,which was NL’s first game in charge.Add to that substituting our 2 main goal threats ,Stokes and Commons,is either baffling or incompetent management for me.HH
Angelgabriel
Thanks – I’ll stick to putting ten bob each way on the horse with a name I like in the Grand National
Worked for me with Fionhaven :-)
All the best guys
PFAyr…
Which draw outcome gives sevco the best chance of progressing to the semi, and home to ensure a wee much needed pay-day………simples
Craigy White, Craigy White, Craigy, Craigy Whyte
http://twitpic.com/dv0ght
Wife switches over to Mr Selfridge and a mass of facial hair.
jinkyredstar cuts it back for neil lennon
Happy birthday.
Now is there any truth to the Rumour, that the Green Brigade will be back with us supporters of Celtic next week ? In the Stadium :-)
ipaddy
The mere thought of corruption in Scottish football…………..I need a strong drink. Just as well guys like your good self are here to stop these Celtic paranoid types.
I’m shaking my head in disbelief at besmirching the good name of Scottish football.
But they usually resort to aggression when exposed, so well done you.
!!bada bing!!
21:20 on 9 February, 2014
Just think, if it was as simple as that, you and I could become Football Managers, and earn all that doe sally earns….HH
Now Doc
That was a good response, credit when due
Over to you CRC
cowiebhoy supporting the celtic to 3 in a row
21:24 on 9 February, 2014
Oh, I hope so….
Cowiebhoy supporting the Celtic to 3 in a row
21:25 on
9 February, 2014
Doc, you posting as Cowiebhoy again? Wait until he finds out, he’ll no be happy? :-)
HH
CRC
The main problem yesterday was that neither of our wide men, nor our attacking midfielder/2nd striker tracked back, leaving Brown/Johanssen continuously outnumbered. The 4-2-3-1 formation we used works, and has worked in the past, but only if players track back. We were left with 4 players up the park doing nothing as Aberdeen broke forward and swamped our middle 2.
Had Mulgrew not been injured he would have played instead of Sammi and we would have seen a different game. Mulgrew would have tracked back/played deeper and given us more equality in number in midfield.
The manager must have seen what was going on, he had an international midfielder he bought in the summer sitting on the bench but at no stage during the game did he alter a failing formation.
67heaven-we have seen the same movie too often my friend.HH
Cowiebhoy
The GB are desperately needed back at the morgue which is now Celtic Park.
Cowiebhoy supporting the Celtic to 3 in a row
21:24 on 9 February, 2014
Yes, heard that last week.
everything neil has learned has come from gordon strachan.zonal marking was always the way with gordon,listen to neils soundbites in press conferences he says things like the players are feeling good about themselves,wee gordon still says that at every tv appearance.under gordon the football was bad apart from the four goals in the first half against motherwell.
I have 10 log ins, you know that!
CowieBhoys not a real person at all!
Hehehe
K33-agree,Biton should have been on at half time.Why the urgency to throw Matthews on when Fisher was match fit? We had 40 minutes to retrieve the deficit,Langfield did not have a notable save to make.
The most worrying aspect of yesterday is that half the stadium was unused and empty.
“Build it, and they will come.”
So if you call out the silly conspiracy theorists and their draw rigging fantasies, that makes you an aggressive, stupid hun. Wow, great level of debate on here these days
Talking about 10 log ins, dare I ask where’s Kojo? He’s not bought any badges yet?
Jinxed it now! Sorry!!!!! :-)
HH
CRC
ipaddy
Thanks man. That’s the best I have felt since yesterday.
HH
Dirty hun bastards…huns…….dirty smelly huns
weefrathetim
Good tae see you back mucker
This place needs you
HH
!!bada bing!!
21:28 on 9 February, 2014
Well, at least it wasn’t a ‘blue’ movie, or a ‘horror’ called ‘the big hoose’…..hehe
Jimbo67
“SFTB
Re all your stats about how many cups – as opposed to leagues – Man U won in their heyday. Same with Liverpool from 73 to 85.
Relevance to that game yesterday? Very little that I can see. Our team is not good and the ground was half empty . That is what irritates . Not some truly useless statistic to prove your point that we are actually really good.”
The relevance was the basic point, perspective. It is commonplace to lose cup ties. Many big teams and revered manager have done so. It should not surprise or shock.
I believe we are good and that we have been good since 2001.
I am not alone in this view.
Many judges of European football, now see Celtic as a relevant force, though not a giant force, in European football. From 1980 to the year 2000, we did not register as anything other than a club that used to be big in the late 60s and early 70s.
Winning matches in the CL under MON made us relevant. Reaching the last 16 under WGS twice and NFL (just last year; lest we forget) made us significant and admirable.
These achievements were made under two managers that we wanted sacked, almost from the moment they took up post. We ignored the “silly statistics” about their Euro accomplishments and instead focused on the more pertinent issue of LC defeats.
I seek to persuade no-one of the merits of yesterday. It was a truly awful performance, fit to be ranked alongside the hearts and Killie defeats and close to being as awful as Clyde and Ross County.
We have problems as a club. Too many in our fan base are missing the edge that the presence of Rangers used to bring and, on top of that, our Board have angered us with their handling of the GB issue and other matters.
Bada Bing
You raise other issues which I did not address nor mean to address in my post. You are entitled to refer to them as the “big issue” but they were not relevant to my post.
CRC, I still have a decent chance of selling out of the Green badges first!
All is not yet lost.
ipaddy mccourt supports wee oscar
21:34 on 9 February, 2014
No, it makes you wrong, I’m afraid……they are at Admin’s door and they are desperate..
I know one thing for sure.before it gets worse.there will need to be a lot of changes not in the summer.but right now.celtic need to get supporters like myself.renewing there season books.back at Celtic park.
Doc is Neil Lennon
21:42 on
9 February, 2014
If we sell out all the badges, then it will be a great wee amount raised for the CQN Marys Meals project!
Have you bought any yet? Ah yes, 50 of the Green badges :-)
HH
CRC
Kayal 33
Agreed we missed Chas Mulgrew big style yesterday.
Also thought we left the substitutions for too long.
We brought on Griifiths around 65, and when that didn’t work we brought on Amido, and when that didn’t work etc.
On reflection, we should have brought on all three around 65, but I suspect manager was nervous about Adam’s fitness, and that our captain stupidly got himself booked early doors.
Kayal 33 @ 21.28
Agree 100%
However the issue with the 4231 is that 4 of the 6 ‘non-defenders’ personnel used yesterday do not see their role as requiring them to track back, those 4 being Commons, Forrest, Samaras and Stokes.
IMO Johansen was trying too hard but I do not see him as a replacement for Ledley.
A blind man could see that we had resorted to the ‘doughnut’ midfield with Brown and Johansen totally overrun trying to cover the centre with the 4 mentioned above contributing very little.
As on previous occasions, it is a concern that if ordinary Joes like us can see what’s not working, why cant the manager?
timbhoy2
21:45 on 9 February, 2014
Faithful through and through…
CRC, I will put and order in, for both.unlike yourself!
Buying up your own badges, shocking;-)
Bada
Biton from start for me. Not going into rant but it was clear from start that Matthews wasn’t fed and after he got treatment he was worse. Then take off your best player. Take from that what you will but it’s happening too many times for my liking.
Kayal33 @21.28
Totally agree and still puzzled that it wasn`t changed.