There was a standing joke on here for years. On day one of the transfer window someone would write, “The transfer window’s been open 13 hours and still no news, get your finger out Celtic”. It mirrored the less jovial comments when the transfer window had 13 hours left, although “get your finger out Celtic” occasionally still featured.
It’s not just Celtic, transfer business is a deadline activity. Why sell your prime asset early when you know desperate clubs will pay over the odds to appease the manager who is demanding sufficient resources to meet target?
You need to work an angle to pick up prime cuts this early in the window. We picked up Virgil van Dijk for a paltry £2.6m in June 2013, which is remarkable, considering he is an outstanding player who was working in one of Europe’s heavily scouted leagues.
We got in early with van Dijk, who had been released by Willem II without playing a game before making 62 appearances with Groningen. A false start followed by a period with just enough form to tempt Celtic’s scouts, but not so much as to alert the slower footed.
So what do we know about Dedryck Boyata? He’s 24, three years older than Virgil when he joined, but has played around half the number of first team games Virgil had experienced. Dedryck was vacuumed up by City as a 16-year-old, part of the annual harvest major clubs make each year. He clearly had something about him to convince City to retain him, but first team outings were rare. When Celtic came shopping a year ago, City were prepared to live without Jason Denayer for a season, but not Dedryck, who went into their first team squad.
It’s correct to say that knowledge of Dedryck is scarce, even among City fans, but Ronny has spent time on City’s training fields with him, and had him watched extensively in non-first team outings over the last year.
Is he the answer to our defensive prayers? Time will tell, but the recruitment strategy which brought him here is coherent. All our scouts and management team have watched him to the extent that a consensus has been reached. His profile is not high enough to commend a fee which is out with our budget, and most importantly, we can bring him in now, making sure he’s embedded before the potentially lucrative Petrofac Cup Champions League qualifiers.
Welcome to Celtic, Dedryck.
Still laughing, in case you were in any doubt.
684 Comments- Pages:
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kevjungle
11:28 on 3 June, 2015
The kleek..?……sounds as painful as your posts….. :)
Paul 67
Or ,as I believe the huns now call it, the Petro facsake cup.
Kev
You and your pasty face pal are clique obsessives.
Are you one and the same, or just a clique?
blantyretim,
Don’t know what the best channel would be to find it.
Maybe ITV – the replacement for Crossroads at last….
Maybe even a SOAP type preview/advert…
Who will still be there after the close season?
Who will be the next Manager?
Will there BEE another manager?
Can they survive?
To find out tune in next week….
Don’t miss the next episode of this sordid tale..
Only on….SEVCO Tv….
Brought to you exclusively by ORange industries
Gleekit is a braw word………….
braw
Hmm. Does Paul 67’s last line suggest that Kojo will be back soon? A riddle to be sure.
67heaven @ 11:08,
Makes one wonder why the investigations carried out so far into Ipoxgate have been so hush, hush …. a lot of the corruption has been uncovered, but looks as though it has then been covered up before it got out to the public domain……?
Yes, if you look at the arrests and where the investigation takes the investigating officers, you have to ask, what are they investigating?
If the investigation was all encompassing you’d have thought more sporting institutional type premises being raided than Sports Retailers HQs.
Not looking good.
If you look at Sir David Murray’s final deal on his Bankrupt Companies, where he was allowed to walk away with some prime assets for a song you need to wonder.
That said one of my favourite quotes comes to mind “events dear boy, events.”
With the great and the good’s HSBC’s off-shore Accounts being investigated and Football Corruption being investigated the zeitgeist may change.
The information gleamed from that City of London Police visit to Govan in 2007, might be worth reviewing.
Kevjungle @ 11:17,
Well I know you’re passionate about this and many share your thoughts about intervention from the Celtic Boardroom. But we aren’t going to agree. This is about Rangers, it’s about Scottish Football Governance, it’s about 42 League sides, it’s about fiscal Governance and Moral guidance.
It’s not about Celtic, they’d love it to be (remember Charles Green “it’s about bigotry) it’s not about us, let’s keep it that way.
Have a Champion day one & all!
Hail Hail
Alasdair
Comedy Central possibly o))
Who’s this Daddy Warbucks who’s linked with Sevco?
Next I’ll be hearing Annie is running the Hearts.
Good Afternoon.
Celtic look suspiciously like a club getting its act together early in the summer transfer market…
More please!
In other news, did anyone catch the hilarious “20 Reasons Why Celtic Fans Are Jealous Of Rangers” piece online yesterday?!
http://whatculture.com/sport/20-reasons-why-celtic-fans-are-jealous-of-rangers.php
It was as hilarious as it was delusional.
Here is my response. I only needed to make three points to debunk it.
https://theclumpany.wordpress.com/2015/06/03/click-baiting/
Have a brilliant afternoon!
Tallybhoy
Nobody’s mentioned Willo Flood yet.
I was actually thinking about him at the weekend when watching a second division team getting humped by a first division team. The second division team had a wee baldy guy (I think Nicky Law is his name) who was running around like the proverbial headless chicken and at one point, leading up to the second goal, started chasing an opponent then GAVE UP ‘cos he couldn’t catch him. Laugh? I nearly p*ssed myself.
That was only bettered by the introductory part of the Sportscene coverage when I spotted a grim-faced, ugly, unhappy ‘expert’ sitting beside our favourite Pat. Richard (well named) Wilson is and has been a hurting hun for years now and the irony of him being on the programme (no doubt pre-planned to enable him to gloat and spout crap) was muchos enjoyable!
voguepunter
10:43 on
3 June, 2015
Richie #TeamOscarForever
10:13 on
3 June, 2015
…and don’t forget that monstrosity of a statue of the evil King Billy (not Cesar) which was erected on our high street in the eighties.
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Richie ,that statue was sited at the trongate for over a HUNdred years before moving
up High st, just glad they didn’t put it ootside Bar67.
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Can’t remember it down there. It has certainly had some kind of facelift!
Re King Billy statues,there’s a bliddy H-U-G-E one in Bristol.
Classed as Grade 1 listed,no less.
But if you look closely under the rear left leg of the horse,there’s a wee molehill.
Well done,that sculptor!
http://www.speel.me.uk/sculptplaces/scplacepicb/bristol/bristolqueensqwm3a.jpg
TheClumpany
Loving your work! Magic! :)
Serious question
why did Kojo stop posting on site?
The signing has been a positive and hopefully a couple more additions in the right areas.
The interesting bit will be the departures and the trimming of the squad.
The first being fragile Derk, wonder if we’ll get two bob for him or a loan out the way?
theclumpany
12:02 on 3 June, 2015
*****
Excellent debunking of the “20reasons”.
The photo of Fergus ceremoniously planting the Donegal Sod holds a special memory for me.
Years ago, on here, I told the story of the trip and Paul, plus one or two others, have a DVD of the trip.
mrob1967
12:17 on
3 June, 2015
Serious question
why did Kojo stop posting on site?
………………………………..
a huge bhoy based in Dunblane hounded old Kojo off the site and threatened him with little cabbage recipes….was absolutely terrible …………Kojo wisnae laughing ever again …
braw tongueincheekcfc
NB
Aye, that big Dunblane gangster is an awesome sight in his Viking headwear. :))
Blatter out and the Teletubbies back?
Not sure what to make of it all.
Delaneys Dunky……………..ssssh now or we will be next for him and his middle borderland cleekies ….
braw
NB
His posse are all giants. Fearsome Central Scotland tribe. ;)))
Well in my opinion the big Guy from Dunblane should be ashamed of himself Kojo was a real charachter his football views were good and his politics thought provoking.I believe he is a big loss to the blog he was bringing alternative views which spiced up the place and without him the blog is a poorer place. H.H.
hey Delanys when you mentioned his Viking headgear…….I jumped immediately into helmet polishing visions …………….that has me worried ….
braw needsahobbyquickcfc
CHAIRBHOY
Hopefully something will come of Operation Hornet-centred onReading btw.
Just needs one person to crack.
As FIFA discovered.
THECLUMPANY
If I may say so,your best yet. And you had provided serious competition previously!
NB
Think we should quit now neebs! :))
Hail Hail
OLIVIA AND PHILBHOY
Smashing post. At once humble heartwarming and uplifting.
I think you deserve each other!
HH and all the best!!!
mbcelt
11:33 on
3 June, 2015
A matter of interest, are we any closer to automatic entry to Champions League? HH
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In a word. NO.
We are currently a LONG way off automatic entry. Scotland currently sits in position 23 in the rankings, with the top 12 only gaining direct entry. We are effectively disadvantaged by other Scottish clubs participating, since they rarely score many ranking points (by means of draw/win). The total points gained by each club is combined and divided by the number of teams participating from that country. Scotland has 4 participants, so if the total points gained by all clubs came to 20 for instance, the ranking points attributed to the country would be 5 (If there were only 2 participants the score would be 20, so you can see how this would benefit us!). Even in 12/13 with Celtics participation in the CL and subsequent bonus points etc, the country only obtained 4.3 ranking points. In order to return to automatic entry we would need to score an average of 5.5 points each year over a rolling 5 year period.
Our next realistic target would be position 15 which would mean entry at Q3 rather than Q4. I say realistic, but for this to happen we need to reach the CL each year (or a very good run in the Europa), with contributions from Aberdeen / ICT etc over the next few years to make this possible.
Of course, the qualification criteria could alter!
TJ HH
DD …….aye your no wrong there…..smiley thing …
braw
NEUSTADT-BRAW
WEETWEETWEET posted the rules of Bedroom Golf near the end of the last article.
Sounds right up your street…
The LurkinTim 11.17
That episode is a favourite of mine.
Drederick Tatum is the Mike Tyson spoof.
An earlier poster complained about Glasgow City Council hosting a civic reception for Orangefest.
If today’s Herald is to be believed, our city fathers, seldom viewed as being thrifty in the hospitality stakes managed the affair on a cheapskate six quid a head.
Amendment to previous post….
20 obviously should read 10!
Scotland has 4 participants, so if the total points gained by all clubs came to 20 for instance, the ranking points attributed to the country would be 5 (If there were only 2 participants the score would be 10, so you can see how this would benefit us!).
thanks Bobby I,ll get right on to it….
……love them ball scrubbing machines to be found at regular intervals ,whilst on the course…
braw
BMCUW @ 12:37,
Well if it hasn’t been hived off by the WASPs…..
Seriously, we’ve got to hope someone does crack, otherwise we could be waiting (and waiting) for the usual establishment cover up, when the charges will be made when people are either too ill to face prosecution or too dead.
Still at least we’ll have the thirty in a row to celebrate.
Hail Hail
BTW: Any current News on Operation Hornet.
The clumpany
Excellent as usual.
HH!!
Just had a quick flick through the DR site.
One of their journos reckons ‘Gers fan merit praise for not rising to Well fans taunts’
Well,cool. Has he reported on same fans battering lumps outa fans of Hearts,for instance?
Throwing missiles at all and sundry?
Etc. etc.
Thought not. Twat.