Celtic assistant manager, Chris Davies, met Harry Brady of Celtic Underground, PaulT from ByTheMinute Celtic and myself in dressing room at Lennoxtown on Monday. Harry recorded the interview for podcasting, which you can access here.
The overreaching observation from the conversation is that Chris Davies is not an assistant manager who is there just to put the cones out, or be some kind of go-between, sorting out frictions between manager and players. His primary responsibility is to get tactical aspects of the team plan right.
You don’t stroll into a dressing room and expect your subject to tell you he has learned from Professor Steve Peters, author of The Chimp Paradox, but Chris explained this is where he, and his mentor, Brendan Rodgers, have been in their quest to put players on the field in the best possible condition, physically and mentally.
He talks about building a player and about the team collective, “11 players, one brain”. How this approach gives the coaching staff a structure to rehabilitate a player who is out of form, something we have seen markedly with Dedryck Boyata and Craig Gordon.
Player feedback is also an important aspect of management at Lennoxtown. Every training session is videoed and the coaches are in before 7am to get the day’s preparation underway. In the afternoons they discuss each player, his metrics and what they should speak to him about. Players are expected to “be their best every single day in training”.
I got the feeling that the Shankly adage that players need their brains to be in their feet doesn’t apply to this Celtic team. A big part of what players are asked to do is improve their decision-making.
There are lots of gems in the inverview, “The (5-1) game against Rangers was a statement game; we blew them away”.
One of the critical parts of the season was the second half away to Hapoel Be’re Shiva. Celtic were 2-0 down on the night, playing poorly and a single goal away from elimination from the Champions League qualfiers.
Chris talked about the pressure of that occasion, how the players and he fed off Brendan Rodgers’ experience and got the job done.
The interview (available here) gives a great and rare insight into what’s going on behind the scenes at Celtic, you’ll enjoy it.
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BR said Paddy will be back training before the weekend
Geordie … you are probably right. I just checked back on the articles, and no decent sources attributed…. so probably idle newspaper gossip.
Interesting team selection tonight with Wee Jamesie out, reckon GMS likely to start to provide the width.
The rest pretty predictable aside the usual rotation in defence.
Brendan doesn’t make wholesale changes and doesn’t have any surprise players?
Mike,
Or some currant bun trying to take some gloss of the deal.
Which might actually be the same reason as you gave :)
HH
“Brendan doesn’t make wholesale changes and doesn’t have any surprise players?”
Bsr,
I dunno like. He’s made at least 8 in a game before.
That said, I think this winning run will limit many changes and surprise faces in the coming weeks.
HH
VFR you around ?
random question for today – did you happen to be in a Braehead office today ?
KIKINTHENAKAS on 1ST MARCH 2017 4:20 PM
Bhoys
This looks great and worth a wee donner along
Professor Willy Maley..Martin McCardie and Paul Cuddihy…The Lions of Lisbon: The Story of 1967
http://bit.ly/2jmQo4Q
Kikinthenakas
………………………
My boy phoned me last night to say that he had bought us tickets for it. It will be a good way to spend an evening after we have (hopefully) stuffed the Sevconians on 12 March. Really looking forward to it.
I’d like to see Brendan rest Dembele, so he’s champing at the bit by the time we meet the currants.
As we’re on the subject of a great band.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjCw3-YTffo
HH!!
I think Wee Leigh is fair champin at a few bits
BOURNESOUPRECIPE on 1ST MARCH 2017 5:01 PM
I think Wee Leigh is fair champin at a few bits…
That’s another reason.
Absolutely beautiful evening heading to Inverness where it will no doubt be Baltic.
We seldom get it easy up there so will need to maintain standards and put right that result in September.
Barney
Wish BR would surprise us.
SameoldCeltic csc
Ernie, there is also a school of thought that says it was Echo Helstrom as well; but the smart money is on Suze Rotolo.
I’ll class myself as smart!
JJ, get me a copy of it please.
As far as the irregular heartbeat goes, I have a heart arrhythmia which was diagnosed when I was 45 and training for a marathon; it isn’t debilitating and can be easily controlled with beta blockers.
KTF
WC
Good on ye.
Enjoy the Match csc
Time to unleash the new…… Bangura ?
SAINT STIVS on 1ST MARCH 2017 4:57 PM
I was indeed. I assume you saw me at some point?
KTF
Ignore any pish about Moussa you ‘hear’.
It’s what Jabba Traynor’s left with – scraping the barrel with the lowest of low health scare rumours to attempt to ‘upset’ the opposition. Pathetic, Jabba – is that what your decades of pie-munching have come to?
brilliant paul67 – excellent how he could at length and in depth about the whole season. I’d always loved the way you’ve a football club as something very difficult to run whether we’re winning or losing. Gives you great confidence for the future – hope br and team get a sniff of 10iar
WINNING CAPTAINS
Book delivered today …cheers
jeez – missed ‘talk at length’ and ‘treated a football’
Small world it is. I clocked you on the stairs after the big meeting.
I thought I recognised you but vwasnt sure.
Then saw you getting on a bike and though its gottae be.
Let me know if your in again and I treat you to a free coffee from the free vending.
Cheerz
So if Moussa has a problem we don’t
We have him for 4 years at least then☘️☘️☘️
Every cloud CSC
Hail hail and god bless all whatever time zone
Loved the Chris Davis interview
Recommended to my workmates ,while I’m off with the lurgi
Then I turned beef mince in to an art form via the additions of chilli flakes Worcester ,salt n pepper
While my good lady gets back to full fitness(lurgi)
Now trying to pick my paddy power bet for this evening
Scots @ 1:37 pm
When you’re quoting someone else’s words, shouldn’t you make that clear?
Unless you are in fact Robert Somynne from today’s Guardian, responding to an article by Claire Heuchan, which included this paragraph:
“In order to valourise Scotland, to present it as some sort of progressive utopia, nationalists must emphasise the difference between Scotland and our southern neighbour. The mythos of Scotland as a friendly, compassionate country is maintained with fervour – like any other fairytale, it needs heroes and villains. And Scottish exceptionalism – the idea of Scotland as a land of tolerance – is a fairytale. It is what allows Scotland to hold England accountable for all the wrongs of imperial expansion while denying this country’s own colonial legacy.”
“A black feminist researcher who was abused for criticising Scottish nationalism has deleted her Twitter account because she feared for her physical safety”.
Claire Heuchan, who penned the article from which the above paragraph was taken.
i’ve had an epiphany of late – the hun are nowhere near the depths – they’ve no idea that gardner, sendheroff, the goalie who took a day not to reach the ict ‘overhead spectacular’ , a knackered kenny miller and waghorn is their lot! That’s it. They’re not going to get any better than that ! They don’t know this yet. They won’t know till next season when they struggle against spl teams. what a feast !
tell the huns you know
it’s gonna be 10 iar
…..
Quote from yesterday’s Guardian.
having watched GMS play wide right on his last 2 outings , imo he looked lost , kept coming inside onto his left side, best position wide left , but not going to shift SS.
Team selection for this evening is not as straightforward as normal but here goes:
Gordon
Lustig Boyata Svietchenco Tierney
Bitton
GMS Brown Armstrong Sinclair
Dembele
Actually, it was pretty straightforward.
JJ
Celts are unbeaten in the last 15 games away from CP in all competitions
12 wins, 3 draws, scoring 37 goals
@CQN
would prefer LG wide right tonight other than GMS.
ST STIVS I’ll be back in tomorrow and then most days till August.
Started a few weeks ago on. PM contract. Based on the first floor, left wing as you go up the stairs.
KTF
RON67
So you don’t rate GMS?
ST STIVS I assume the short hair might’ve thrown you a wee bit as well!
KTF
BOURNESOUPRECIPE on 1ST MARCH 2017 6:25 PM
RON67
So you don’t rate GMS?
imo GMS is a good player , playing in his natural left sided position.
HOTSMOKED.
irregular heart beat and palpitations,exactly what happened to me when you stole CAROL away.
best lookin 13 1/2 year old ever.
Good evening friends. Been looking at our next 8 games and see that we have just 1 (one) on a Saturday!
Wed 1 Mar 7.45 Inverness (A)
Sun 5 Mar 12.30 St Mirren (H)
Sun 12 Mar 12.00 The Rangers (H)
Sun 19 Mar 12.30 Dundee (A)
Sun 2 Apr 12.30 Hearts (A)
Wed 5 Apr 7.45 Partick (H)
Sat 8 Apr 3.00 Kilmarnock (H)
Sun 16 Apr 12.30 Ross Co (A)
Anyways, Ashes then Goals is the plan for this evening.