The margin between great success and disastrous failure at this level can be paper thin. Celtic failed to make the most of a 28th minute corner kick and within 30 seconds, Cluj opened the scoring. Lewis Morgan missed a challenge in the 70 yards from goal and the inch-perfect through ball got beyond Boli Bolingoli for Mario Rondon to score.
We have seen many Celtic teams wilt after losing a goal away in Europe, but James Forrest made sure the same would not happen on this occasion.
Within nine minutes of the opener, Forrest played a give-and-go with the impressive Hatem Abd Elhamed, collected the return pass and shot, the ball clipping the inside of the post on its way into the net. This passage of play turned the tie in Celtic’s direction.
While there is a high expectation Celtic will progress to the playoff round, our chances are no more than they were when we secured the same result away to Maribor in 2014. There is work to do on Tuesday. In particular, the nature of the Cluj goal is of concern.
Apart from one dreadfully defended corner, Celtic restricted Cluj to few genuine chances, but they were able to punish us on the break. This will be the basis of their game plan next week. Soak up as much pressure as possible and overload on our flanks when we are forward. It does teams no harm to have a simple game plan. We will need to be at our best.
More on Kieran Tierney later. There will be chat like: “This is how football works and has done so for decades. It’s why many players come to Celtic. They come and go, our job is to understand how the sport works and to be good at it….”
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Guys get real. Get off KT’s case.
Two more years of Collum, Thomson, Dallas, Madhun etc could put KT out the game forever, aged 24.
He has proved himself in Scottish Football against the hammer throwers. He has won a treble treble and his final act was to smash the Scottish transfer glass ceiling, going to an A list club in the richest league in the world. £25m is a mega statement for future transfers.
Many of us want Celtic to play in a better league, many of us would sacrifice the 10 in a row and immediate European aspirations to play in a better league. How can the same persons then criticise a mega talented young player for wanting the same.
It is our job to source the best players even using the incentive of a gateway to the EPL.
Unfortunately that is the natural order of football today.
If our players attracted no attention from richer teams then that would be the time to really worry.
HH to all the journey continues.
Good morning from a rain and wind swept Garngad
So we move onto Murderwell, who will try and muscle our new bhoys mañana. Supported by the MIB.
In my eyes this will be a lot of our new guys and young ins first test.
Stay strong and stand tall bhoys, let’s get Murderwell put in their place. Then we can move onto the Clujy.
Hail Hail
D. :)
Good morning, friends and a Big Happy Friday to you all, from a very wet, blustery and generally dreich East KIlbride.
So no more of our players will be leavingfor England in this window, unless they fancy the lower leagues. That at least gives me some comfort around McGregor and Ajer, both of whom I feared may have been on Snake Eyes’ radar. Of course, teams from other nations may yet come calling.
25 days left for Celtic to spend our money, wisely and on some real talent. I remain optimistic.
Sevco played very well last night. No slip ups tomorrow please Celtic.
Good luck to KT. Like all players that leave us I hope he does well. Even more so in his case – it’ll bring us in more dough if so.
I said before that some of the money should be used to put golden handcuffs on Callum McGregor. Some on sourcing the next Scott Brown.
Is there any sign of movement on the incoming transfers? And can English clubs still sell/ loan players out?
I take it Scott Sinclair is still at the club?
Drew67 – if you are lurking I see your mum is retiring after 52years service to our Glorious Club, can you wish her all the best from me please, I wish my auld man was here to wish her well as well.
52 years, now that is commitment and a real Legend.
Hail Hail Drew
D. :)
Macjay,
Hope you’re well, comrade. lol
I met you at a hootenanny a few years ago. Thoroughly disagree with most of your views, but you don’t hide behind blog anonymity, so fair play for that.
You’re certainly a Tim, so hail, hail to ye.
A quartet of opinions:
a)` Honest` mistakes exist:
b) Not as often as many think;
c) `Agricultural` tackling occurs;
d) Not as often as many think.
A duet of responses:
Greenpinata
Good point re moving to better League ( although many might say` fairer` League.
Jobo,
I also remain optimistic but maybe more for the season ahead rather than the transfer window. As we have often seen, new players often struggle after coming to Celtic . It`s our hope that kills them :-).
Off to see if the weather holds long enough for a round of golf.
Cheerio for now,
JJ
JJ
GER57 on 9TH AUGUST 2019 7:21 AM
Macjay,
Hope you’re well, comrade. lol
==============================================
:-)
Hail Hail , Tovarishch.
This time last year Hearts were about to go on a long unbeaten run. We were stuttering and playing poorly. Hearts battered us. But did anyone think hearts were going to last the season? Were folks wetting the bed about it?
Not as I recall.
I watched Sevco on Sunday. They were bang average.
Didn’t watch them last night so I can’t comment on how they played or on how good or otherwise the Danes are.
But it’s clear that every good result for Sevco causes some people to react in a way they don’t when Aberdeen or hearts or Hibs have a decent result or run of performances.
Even if we didn’t recruit another player we are still better than every team in Scotland and better man for man than Sevco. They outdid us tactically at Ibrox last season, just as hearts did, Hibs did and a few others. The up and at ‘em stuff works for a while – but better players eventually overcome that. Tough test tomorrow but the season won’t be defined by it – and we can’t go in to every game fearing the ‘what ifs’ and looking at other results.
All that said – it’ll be a helluva lot easier if we get the players in that we all know we need for Europe and to replace those we have lost and will lose in the next one or two years.
Like most, I’d have liked Keiran to have stayed for another couple of years, however, I also think he has done the right thing by moving on. He was quite possibly the most fouled against player in Scotland over the past couple of seasons and some of the “tackles” he has been subjected to could have seriously injured him. Let’s not get carried away, we have lost many players over the years and continued to succeed, we simply move on and Hail new heroes.
Good luck KT and hope all goes well for you.
Looking at his statement I bet Level 5 & Jabba in particular are wishing they could write statements like that.
Am I correct in thinking that in one transfer we are just 6 mil below Sevco,s annual turnover?
Turnover is only a figure that has no relevance in what sevco are doing, as financial fair play is ignored by governing bodies and clubs who lose out to them , they will continue on this track until they beat Celtic, that is their only goal, Scottish football continues to have no rules when it comes to them, bursting into grounds, pitch invasions, damage to stadiums referees not booking players who run to the crowd, that is one game Kilmarnock and this is who we are happy to accommodate and say nothing about what they have gotten away with.
They have recently converted huge debt to worthless equity, the professional clubs here have a clause in the rules that should a club suffer an administration event it will not lose it’s top league status, all designed to suit the reckless conduct of one club, welcome to Scottish football and who gives a damn anyway, it’s only about money.
Kieran Tierney is a Celt through and through. He gave everything he could, in every game.
A player and a supporter.
I am sorry to see him go. But, I am so proud that our club can produce players of this calibre.
Reading his farewell piece last night was emotional. He loves Celtic.
His outstanding praise for the Green Brigade, shows he is not afraid to stand by a group of folk who are regulary condemned by the SMSM.
Why shouldn’t he challenge himself against great players on a weekly basis ?
He is like our son who is leaving to seek adventure and fortune abroad. We should support his decison. He is one of us.
Please stop saying James Forrest is loyal and KT isn’t.
A top EPL clu/ has decided that KT can perform at the level required consistently within the EPL.
No EPL club thinks James Forrest could do that.
If they did ,and they made a similar offer for JF ,he would be away in a heartbeat.
As with KT .
Celtic would want the money,The Agent would want the money,The player would want the money.
This goes for James Forrest or any other player.
TT
A good Tim gets a break……… 25 m banked -, Football perspectives changed, Celtic in the limelight, record fees broken, a profile boost , precious evidence of Scottish academy football progress……..and weeks to invest the funds……………..
Stayin’ Happy.
in ither news
A well-written, effektive “plain English” sleekit denigration and downplay of Celtica………..
Take Heart Bhoys and Ghirls, thems are hurtin’ badly.
HH.
Got to ask why we seem to keep looking at wingers… Lennon has said he’s looking at a left and right winger now. We have Forrest, Morgan, Schved, Sinclair, Johnstone, Arzani, dare I say it Eduoard is best on the left of a front 3…do we really need more?
Links with Rico Henry at left back as well (who does look extremely dynamic going forward although not sure if there’s an end product or if he can defend). But if he’s £7m and we spent £3m on KT then there’s only £10m of that left and the position is still likely to be weakened.
Serious concerns about Boli but hoping its just settling in and him getting used to playing with a little less! freedom. Taylor would make sense at about £1m but we now run the risk of every club knowing we have barrels of cash.
Utilising the loan market from the EPL again would make sense (particularly at CB). There’s one or two positions we should be looking at in the central midfield areas but only if there are outgoing players (Turnbull possibly still in if Rogic or N’tcham out), a long term Brown replacement (is there any real interest in the south American boy?). Up front it really depends on what the situation is with Griff and the coaches will know if Bayo even comes into consideration.
Wonder if a Bundesliga club would be interested in McGregor now that the Rodgers interest is public.
Callum is a key part of the side but if he’s not happy we have plenty resources to replace him and a certain Frenchman who needs a good season to find his gold over the rainbow.
ROBERTTRESSELL on 9TH AUGUST 2019 7:19 AM
Good luck to KT. Like all players that leave us I hope he does well. Even more so in his case – it’ll bring us in more dough if so.
I said before that some of the money should be used to put golden handcuffs on Callum McGregor. Some on sourcing the next Scott Brown.
Is there any sign of movement on the incoming transfers? And can English clubs still sell/ loan players out?
I take it Scott Sinclair is still at the club?
__________
The English Market is still open to sell or loan.
We’ve taken a massive gamble and have lost our first choice back four. I doubt we’ve ever done that before.
We really need to spend wisely. How much will the manager get? Maybe £15?
Good luck to J. The reality is, we could not afford to keep a £25M player. If Peter wants to really earn his bonus, get us aying in an environment where we can HD on to guys like KT and VVD.
I’m really pleased Sinclair never went. We’ve lost too many big players already. Over to you Scott.
Oh, spending wisely means buying guys with the bottle to go and win at Ibrox (where we shat ourselves last year). Get tomorrow out if the way and we have massive home games in Europe. We need to really support the team then and that includes Boli.
Good luck to KT
I know sometimes when managers are asked about players they need they may be caught out and not answer with the clarity of mind they should have… however Lennon said a left winger and a right winger! Why when we have Morgan, Arzani, Forrest, Sinclair, Hayes, Johnstone. More left and right wingers than the Houses of Parliament.
If we can now bank on selling one player for £20m per season surely we can boost the wages up to £60m on a permanent basis or even for the next two seasons?
Show some ambition ye know.
We need some steel in the side. Centre back centre mid and centre forward.
A negative net spend is on the cards yet again. I can’t see us spending another £15m.
…and that wee Kent never surfaced at The Dilapidated Edwardian Toilet Block?
………that’s very good.
Jesus, if KT is worth 25 million , Tabernier would sell for astronomical figures.
Live stream of JJs golf round……for anyone interested in how hes doin…..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r95a3p8Os-w
Maybe McGregor is the next transfer out ,if he isn’t happy ,as reported in some quarters .then there is always January for him . But I would hope that if that is the case our scouting dept ( if we have one ) should be actively looking now for replacements . With regards to Boli my t going to criticise the boy , but could we have done better for 3 million , but in time he may prove us wrong .
ROBERTTRESSELL on 9TH AUGUST 2019 7:44 AM
I watched Sevco on Sunday. They were bang average.
======
And got 3 points. Being able to do that consistently is the sign of a serious challenger. Right now they’ve only done it once but they are not the pushover they were 2 years ago.
HH
SID1888 on 8TH AUGUST 2019 6:50 PM
Haven’t posted on here for a while, well not since I got zilch responses when looking for help in getting tickets for Valencia away!
============
Not sure where you think you are…
Neil Lennon is eyeing five new signings after Tierney’s mega-money move to the Premier League.
He said: “We’ll look to bring another left-back in, no question.
“A right back as well. And a left winger. And a right winger. And maybe a centre forward.”
TRADITIONALIST88 on 9TH AUGUST 2019 9:04 AM
A left winger? Arzani, Shved, Sinclair, Hayes, Johnston & Morgan isn’t enough?
MULLET AND CO 2 on 9TH AUGUST 2019 8:42 AM
A negative net spend is on the cards yet again. I can’t see us spending another £15m.
_________
Maybe not. Might be a false economy if that’s the case.
Can you imagine what the season ticket sales will be like if we don’t win the league?
We’ve never been so cash rich but compared to last season thus far, we are asset poorer.
n.b. When buying a defender, make sure they can defend first. Having the ability to ‘bomb’ forward is a bonus. Early impressions of the Israeli boy is good. Boli had a very good game on Saturday but one thing I’ve noticed is that he tries to do everything at 100 mph. Calm your jets at times son. Doesn’t look a natural defender but he needs time. Just as well our support has great patience on nervy European nights 🤔
TIMALOY29 on 9TH AUGUST 2019 9:06 AM
The manager said it, not me! But I guess the thinking is Shved is better on the right, Sinclair is offski, Arzani struggling and Hayes and Morgan not good enough (but Morgan also better on the right in any case).
HH
TRADITIONALIST88 on 9TH AUGUST 2019 9:11 AM
The manager said it, not me! But I guess the thinking is Shved is better on the right, Sinclair is offski, Arzani struggling and Hayes and Morgan not good enough (but Morgan also better on the right in any case).
____
This is probably the one downside
Shved has played most of his career on the left but if that’s where the manager sees him fair enough. I can’t see Sinky moving on now the English window is closed.
To a certain extent NL needs to do what Brendan Rodgers did, make the guys you inherit better. He has enough raw materials to be working with..
TIMALOY29 on 9TH AUGUST 2019 9:18 AM
Damned if we do and damned if we don’t mate.
He will be trying to give himself and the team the best chance possible to win trophies and qualify for the CL.
If that means new signings and If he gets the chance to sign better players to improve on what we have he will do so.
Sometimes you can improve players but there is a ceiling and its still not up to the level required.
HH
If Neil’s latest quote is accurate and he’s scouting for RB, LB, RW, LW and CF, it’s bad news for our ‘squaddies’…
Tony R, Jack H, Jonny H, Calvin M, Daniel A, Scott S, Jack A and Vakoun B…
Who of these do we need/are capable of getting to 1st team quickly??
The rebuild continues.
I can’t make my mind up regards to Lenny’s comments. Were they tongue in cheek?? He was asked the question about getting some of the £25 million to spend, and he proceeded to list practically every position on the park.
Anyway, my point would be, the spin that comes out of Celtic Park, at times is becoming boring.
Less shit talk, and more action is needed.
In terms of wingers… Mikey Johnston and Scott Sinclair to fight it out down the left. And Forrest and Shved to rotate wide right. The others, Hayes, Morgan, etc. not good enough IMO
3 Signings I would like to see us make : Gumny (right back) £3.5 / £4 mil , Merling (left back) £2.75 mil , and
Cifuentes (Defensive mid) £3 mil
These guys would be a good start. All young, talented and strong players.
RUGGYGMAN – I always thought the Melling kid had great energy and tenacity; wonder if he sees us as attractive? Possible – mibby Lenny was just ribbing the meeja and winding up multiple CQNers.
I think that the league this season will be tight. Too close to call. This is my reasoning.
The Scottish premier league is unique. It is a handicap race. And celtic are the club being handicapped. Last season there were five instances of players who should have been given red cards in games against celtic who were retrospectively banned. There were two other occasions when sevco players who should have been retrospectively banned were let off.
This season the cheating will reach epidemic proportions. The mantra will be stop nine in a row at all costs. Like last season, sevco will receive more penalties and concede fewer penalties than any other team. You can almost guarantee it. This and the red card issue must be worth at least eight to ten points to sevco before a ball is kicked. This is a huge disadvantage for celtic to overcome.
The team finishing third last season have been knocked out of Europe by a team from wales. This is the standard of play in scotland’s premier league.
Sevco don’t need to have strong team or a good coach to win this league. Jock Wallace won two trebles and alex mcleish won one treble.
Celtic and sevco will play eighteen games against the bottom six clubs. If steven gerrard can put a team on the park who can beat the likes of ross county, st mirren, livingstone etc. then it will be difficult to overcome this handicap. Sevco will drop points against the bottom six but so will celtic. Celtic had four draws against the bottom six last season.
Celtic and sevco will play twenty games against the top six clubs. Last season the clubs who gave sevco most problems were Kilmarnock and Aberdeen. Both of these clubs are now weaker than they were last season.
Sevco will drop points against the top six but so will celtic.
I think it could come down to the four celtic-sevco games and celtic were not convincing last season. Celtic were rolled over twice at ibrox. They were lucky to get nil in both games. I think celtic are now intimidated by the atmosphere at ibrox. To win this league they may have to get results at ibrox.
i think this will be tight.