History will record that season 2012-13 was more successful for Celtic than season 2013-14 but the champions’ league performances this season have been comparable only to those of season 2003-04, when the club completed a 25 game winning streak.
With seven games to go we have already collected five points more than the team which reached the knock out stages of the Champions League last season, and this season we have had a worthy competitor for second place, who are favourites to complete the domestic treble of League Cup, Scottish Cup and Best of the Rest titles.
Kris Commons, Virgil van Dijk and Fraser Forster have correctly gained enormous plaudits throughout the season but the story of Celtic’s success is more nuanced. We don’t just have a great keeper and a great central defender, we have a central defensive partnership which is better than either of the two partnerships I watched in the Manchester derby on Tuesday night.
In other times the story of our season would be the injuries at right back, but the standard of cover there, with Lustig, Matthews and Fisher, is such that no one really noticed.
The strikers didn’t really get going until Leigh Griffiths arrived in January, and much of our player investment over the summer missed the target. This had consequences on the autumn, when we came up short of last season’s (over) achievements in the Champions League, but we have a plentiful squad of players, including Forster, Lustig, Matthews, Izaguirre, Ambrose, van Dijk, Brown, Johansen and Commons who are more than capable at Champions League level, with others knocking at the door.
Congratulations to Neil, his technical team, the many who work to keep the ship pointing in the right direction, some behind the scenes and some front of house, and to each of the players who left their mark in the history books.
On the equivalent day six years ago, we recorded that Gordon Strachan had joined Willie Maley and Jock Stein as the only Celtic managers to have won three consecutive titles. Neil Lennon’s name is now added to that list.
With all this championship coverage, did the phrase ‘Good day to bury bad news’ slip into anyone’s mind? “There is a reasonable expectation that the Company has adequate resources to continue in operational existence”.
You know when your chairman tells you he has a reasonable expectation the company will continue in existence that there’s nothing to worry about. All the doubters have been put in their place.
Seville – The Celtic Movement, is out now:
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Morning Jobo
Wee smir here in dunblane. But bright.
Hoopy Friday mate.
HH jamesgang
Morning also Skyisalandfill.
Keep churning out those barrels for my Faither. Not sure if I/he would get away with one being presented to my Mum on Sunday. We’d both get shot!
HH jamesgang
Morning Jamesgang
Trying my best.
HH
Welcome to waltonesqueCSC
Time for work…..
On the world serice this morning, there was a quote from EPL heid honcho Peter Scudemore about the poor form of Man U having a downwards effect on the whole EPL worldwide brand. To paraphrase, as they are the most popular team in the league on a worldwide basis, the bottom line suffers when Man u are Raphael. Sound familiar?
The EPL clearly needs a strong Man U. Vomit inducing!
HH
Sevco will return to the SPFL.
They will be fervently supported.
Domestically .
They will have the same attendance income as us ( possibly more).
The same domestic revenue streams.
The only difference between the two clubs will be who gains the greater European income.
Wake up bhoys.
They will be back and with renewed vigour.
The current troubles will be overcome.
They have too big a support to not .
It may take another metamorphis,but some form of Rangers will be our mortal enemies forever.
TT
TINYTIM
Them and the rest of the Establishment.
TT
I agree I’m afraid. Timescales may be an issue but there will forever be an evil empire there waiting for the next megalomaniac.
1EvilEmpire4SaleNoCarefulPreviousOwners#
HH jamesgang
TT and others…
RFC died.
How we laughed and mocked
We will NEVER forget
We all knew an apparition would arise, we all did
It would be called something
And be follow followed by the same hoards
Using the same colours
But RFC died
We will NEVER let THEM forget
Oh how we’ll laugh and mock
@JamesGang5446: Barack wears his new Barca away strip to meet the Big Mhan! #obama4barca http://t.co/vbWps2aS9X
Front page of the metro today. V clever wee photee!
HH jamesgang
Celticrollercoaster
Thanks for info re. CQN badges. Your hint about where to collect them reminded me that I owe you lads an apology for saying I could not find you last Saturday. Yes, I went to the Ticket Office. It is Lent so a time to be humble and admit the truth. Doc has kept me informed so I hope to turn up at the right spot this Saturday. Keep up the good work.
CHRIS TOREY
I doubt Alan Lomax could be termed a ‘big-time record producer’ and Dylan’s relationship with Suzie lasted long past the launch of his career.
As to his Freemasonry and the concerts you mention,care to elaborate?
TinyTim @ 07.29 hrs.
Reluctantly I have to agree with your depressing conclusion ref Sevco. Even if they implode again another ugly phoenix will rise from the ashes. As “jamesgang” states timescale is the only uncertainty.
We have for all intensive purposes lost the argument and they have with the help of their media allies redefined the word liquidation.
The irony is that this scenario has the potential to divide us more than them and this must never be allowed to happen. Unpalatable as it may be we must continue to support our club with as must vigour as we can muster and talk of boycotts etc. is frankly unhelpful.
Support your club, support the regeneration process and most of all support the team.
I hope PL et al are working tirelessly to address this with a league move or alternative solutions; his interview certainly alluded to this.
HH, Always in Celtic.
Jobo Baldie
07:21 on 28 March, 2014
Welcome to waltonesqueCSC
Time for work…..
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Interesting.
Work overtime all year round to go where the sun shines, or be weird, not pre wired, and not work overtime and stay at Home and, enjoy Scotland.
Choices
As one of the most monumental posters on here elaborates, goin’ back to the olde Skool,
Ooh Aah could Crush a Grape.
SunWorshippin’
it isnae what is packqged to be!!!
Bo selecta???????????????????????????
off oot.
tinytim,
Bang on the money friend, I said here a couple of days ago, the old version got away with financial doping for 20 odd years with no punishment outside of liquidation, the new version has so far passed through the two lower divisions using exactly the same formula as the old version, spending money they don’t have. There are no challenges, no comment from the administrators who purport to run the game in either Scotland or Europe, you are 100% correct in that they will return worse than ever, no remorse and with the ruling that they did not gain any sporting advantage, what rules are in place to stop it happening again. I mean the guy who administered the whole EBT fiasco is still in charge of the factory.
Wake up Bhoys before it’s too late.
AR
neil lennon & mccartney
05:20 on 28 March, 2014
“We have a good foundation at the club and there is no real necessity to sell players now. Having won the championship our focus is to step up the summer planning we have had in place for the past couple of months. We need to plan for the summer, plan for the qualifiers and hope to get through, but we do not have to sell players.”
Peter Lawwell
—
Pull the other one lawwell
Id Sell –pukki, derk, sammi and mcgeough
Loan out– balde, mcconnell, herron and new icelandic striker.
Good morning Champions,
AR wake up and do what exactly ?
Morning all. Drab and overcast here at the moment. Still the mood is bhoyant.
If the SFA puts forward that charlatan Ogilvie for the FIFA post, have we any way of stopping him getting the position?
Goodness Judith the weathers had a tough night!!!
neil canamalar,
Exactly what you guys did by getting initiatives like Res 12 going, if I remember at the time, it looked distinctly possibly that due to apathy or other reasons that there may not have been the required amount of signatories to get Res 12 on to the AGM agenda. I applaud that work and the tireless work of auldheid and others in putting whatever pressure possible onto those who run the game in Scotland.
My wake up is to the many who think that they are just going to disappear without trace, in my opinion it is not going to be allowed to happen.
AR
zimmerman
05:21 on 28 March, 2014
Look into my eyes,
your feeling sleepy……sleep….sleep……sleep…..”Good. Evening and here Is the News”
Today some people from à foreign country were pissed off about something,
Also in the news ..à plane accidentally got lost,
Now Here’s John with your weather…………sleep….sleep…
____________________________________________________
You can bet your bottomed out $ that there will be a lot more nonsensical news stories over the coming weeks and months. Keep the Sheep asleep for as long as possible.
Sheering time is a coming/Blood Letting. Get right with the Lord, despite all the pressures, believing in the Lord is Crucial NOO, mair than ever.
Wake up?
Greenpinata:
Any room left for demanding honest governors, honest officials and a level playing field whilst we continue to support our team on the North Face of Scottish football?
Morning all
One must get up noo, three days off. No long till the bowling season starts and the Scottish indoor championship’s are in Prestwick this very weekend, just if anyone interested like…!
Ayrshire is Green and White
BOBBY:
Did you manage to read up about MI19 and Winston’s claims of “we don’t do torture”?
I was wondering when the Board and Peter Lawwell haters would raise their heads. I didn’t think it would be so soon after our winning the league. Away and bile yer heids.
I’m sure they know, like everyone else, that the hun hoards and their media hangers on would be out in full force. They are doing their best to self destruct and all some Celtic supporters want to do is attack our Board and CEO. Madness.
Tiny Tim
Maybe we’ll end up with twins ? Two ugly wee clubs.
Interesting little snippet in the Telegraph piece above:-
“Rangers posted an operating loss of £3.5 million, boosted by a tax credit of £813,000, which means that the club is losing over £600,000 per month. ”
Bit of a smoking gun in there for anyone deluding themselves that the new Gers are the same as the old ones.
Begs the question – why if they are the same would HMRC allow them a tax credit of £813k when they were put into admin then liquidation primarily for tax debts.
If they’re the same entity wouldn’t HMRC , err , just set the credit off against the old debt…
antipodean red
08:31 on 28 March, 2014
neil canamalar,
Exactly what you guys did by getting initiatives like Res 12 going, if I remember at the time, it looked distinctly possibly that due to apathy or other reasons that there may not have been the required amount of signatories to get Res 12 on to the AGM agenda. I applaud that work and the tireless work of auldheid and others in putting whatever pressure possible onto those who run the game in Scotland.My wake up is to the many who think that they are just going to disappear without trace, in my opinion it is not going to be allowed to happen.
————————————————
The, Range^$ now Sevco show will go on for a few years yet, legal argument over various aspects of alleged fraud etc will prolong it for an age. GID.
HH
antipodean red
08:14 on 28 March, 2014
It is all, indeed, truly scandalous / shameful, but they are not coming out of this…….they will not survive, since it is about money, and nothing else…..once ming realises that the orcs / institutions are not going to invest the £20m he needs them to invest, he will disappear back to his wee villa in SA …….if he sets up a £50m share issue, he is going to have to personally cough up at least £45m (not £30m) and , with the realisation that these new shares are going to drastically reduce the overall share value of rifc, it’s a dead duck, as are sevco…..watch this space……….incidentally, Celtic know this, and that’s why we are remaining stume …….
KITALBA
I never disagreed with your summations of Churchill-as I said,he wanted to use gas against the Soviets in the Russian Civil War.
MI19 is scrawled on my notepad. I’ll get there shortly.
ParkheadCS
I agree.
Are we perfect? Nope, far from it but we have had CL two years in a row and won our third league in a row.
Meanwhile our rivals are feeding their own legs through an industrial wood chipper for the second time in a crazy attempt to delude themselves that they are mere months away from competing with us.
Really. What’s not to like..?
kitalba 08:34,
Enjoyed, Always, yer submissions to the olde blog.
Your thoughts on 4 Blood Moons happening on Jewish Feast days this Jewish year?
Relating to the Celts, preferably, if not, well us Gentiles will just have to jibber jabber. ;))
parkheadcumsalford
08:36 on 28 March, 2014
Absolutely SPOT ON….
Mick
Bowling championships is it?
Here’s me thinking all the cones along the Main Street in Prestwick were for the open top bus parade the city fathers had organized to celebrate 3 in a row…………..
or perhaps not
BOBBY:
Simmer laddie, I was only asking.
petec:
Over my head mate.