News that Hull City had a £6m bid for Robert Snodgrass accepted took the wind out of my sails this morning. Snodgrass was one of the outstanding performers for clubs in the bottom half of the English Premier League last season, so it’s easy to understand his ticket price, despite only having a year left on his Norwich City contract.
He is a Celtic fan and has not hidden his desire to play for the club, but Hull City (good grief) are now bidding £6m for players from relegated clubs, after spending £8m on a Spurs squad filler.
This all begs the question, can we afford to compete with Hull City? Probably, yes, but we can no more afford to splurge £14m on a couple of players than Hull, who a year ago were reporting debts close to £80m.
We’re operating in an environment where indirect competitors for players are spending unsustainable amounts of money, pretty much like Rangers did for 20 years under Sir David Murray. For a few years after Fergus left, we played the same game as Rangers, running up millions of pounds of losses year after year, before pulling away from the edge, while they kept the pedal to the metal and careered into liquidation.
The decision not to match the Bank of Scotland money flowing into Rangers cost us trophies, and caused a great deal of dispute in the Celtic family, but story ended sweetly. So, so, sweetly.
The crash may never hit England, but the job for Celtic is to find a way of remaining competitive in the Champions League while matching income to expenditure.
Visit the CQN Bookstore to get Tommy Gemmell to sign your personal copy of his book, All the Best.
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Well im off now to wallow in how much of a disgraceful Celtic fan I am, revise my use of the english language and work out exactly where this thickcsc is? Enjoy the wisdom of the true SUPPORTERS on the blog!
Kev j @1441
Thats all fine and well but it may surprise you to find out there are some among us who don’t bark at every crisp poke that flies past oor windy.
Wee Jay can’t go to Brazil as they were already at the airport on their way elsewhere for a family holiday, shame!
HH
LiviBhoy, 14:12
I’d not heard about that game, but the report mentions it was for the Scottish National War Memorial, which is in Edinburgh Castle.
setting free the bears supports Res. 12 & Oscar Knox
14:34 on 27 June, 2014
___________________
With respect…it was you who mistook my point!
Btw, you don’t by chance have a ‘selfie’ of you and PG somewhere in yer abode.
You do seem to get quite offended whe ever I mention or rather, whenever I show
this player in a ‘true’ light.
Or, would you rather I became a re-writer of history and got an ‘easy’ life?
whe=when
typo sorry
Geordie Munro
14:46 on
27 June, 2014
Woof Woof.
Geordie Munro
14:46 on 27 June, 2014
___________________
Naw, you just bite, eh?
KevJungle – Murdo Macleod is my favorit CELTIC player ever.
14.10 and earlier etc. etc. etc.
Murdo was a player I really enjoyed watching play for Celtic.
Your trenchant support for him, Gerry McNee and Hugh Keevins over the years has been constant and it makes me curious to ask if you’re of a mind to line the dots I’m imagining.
Everybody’s retired now, so no harm to be done.
Was Murdo feeding the two journo’s stories about the club during his years with us?
Wayfarers was a pretty expensive operation to maintain back in the day, I’m sure, so the odd kick-back could’ve been useful. No?
Bada Bing, Supper Sutton – we also had Neil Lennon saying in January that Samaras had been made an offer.
Either somebody is telling porkies or the words used are open to interpretation.
Livibhoy and Willie
When Snodgrass was in Scotland (livvy and Stirling) we were winning leagues and qualifying for the last 16 of the cl two years running.
If snoddy was signed back then who would be dropped?
I’d love to have him now but back then….as my wee boy would say…..net et.
Could one of you nice chaps please bring over my post at 14.09 on the last article?
Supersutton-Agree it is feasible but only quotes have came from GS ,no comment from anyone else.HH
Kev j
“Naw, you just bite, eh?”
From time to time. But I genuinely think I ignore your cries for attention more than others.
Ps Thanks for all ur best wishes for Josh.
Jude-jude2005 is Neil Lennon \o/
14:09 on
27 June, 2014
ACGR
Thanks for that. Hasnt played up ur way for a while but ill keep you mind for the next time. Yes wetted ma thrapple with a nice Old Pulteney 12.
Malt stocks are back up thanks to fathers day!!
HaiL HaiL
GuyFawkesaforeverhero
14:51 on 27 June, 2014
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Ah, the ole paranoia, wh?
Maybe Fergus was paranoid about Murdo hence, the instructions to Joke Brown to appoint – over the heads of Wim & Murdo – Eric Black?
I do know that Fergus was paranoid of Brian Dempsey cos he was ‘pally’ with Gerry McNee.
McNee also wound up both, Fergus and Martin O’Neill by continually mentioning his
famous ‘Celtic mole of over 30 years’ and, ‘still’ active, to the extent that, all of a sudden, after what? 30 years service, Brian Scott was unable to work for the club cos of a drink problem?
Did MO’N think that BS was Gerry’s mole?
wh?=eh?
typo sorry
JaseBhoy-must do better mate :}
Macjay @1450
Is that yer Terry Thomas impersonation? :)
Geordie Munro
14:55 on 27 June, 2014
____________________
And, you don’t want attention?
So, why are you posting on a blog?
Peter Brady – CSC
sipsini
I’m not sure if the cash went directly to the war memorial here or the one in France or to the families.
What is clear that Celtic are being painted the villan of the piece in the article today and we are always painted the villan around 11th November each year but it is completely unfounded.
It really angers me. This is a prime example of lazy journalism and Celtic must take this clown to task and his publication.
HIs editor is a disgrace to even let that go to print. It has no relevance when the biggest competition in football is underway.
Logistically all titles in war time would have to be declared void and all cup victories. It is not Celtic’s call. It can never be Celtic’s call.
The league was completed that year whether that is right or wrong. Celtic won that league whether that is right or wrong.
Why has the Scottish cup that season not been mentioned?
The league season was started and had to be finished.
There is no guarantee that Hearts would have won it anyway. To suggest that they would have won it in any event with the players who went off to war is ridiculous in sport. Is the journlist suggesting that looking at the squads before each season the league winners should be decided there and then? The article gets more ridiculous the more I think about it. Football is a sport and anything can happen.
The great war was a terrible atrocity. many men went to fight and many lost their lives. Bringing this up is completely out of order and the timing is baffling. Celtic have a duty to stand up for the honour of the club here and I would hope our historian and director Brian Wilson is the man to make a statement regarding this and unless a full apology is printed stating the facts regarding all the incidents regarding Celtic and Hearts at that time the newspaper in question should not be welcome at Celtic Park for any matches or press conferences.
Celtic made the gesture to Hearts by playing the memrial game in 1920 and the matter should have been considered closed then.
LB
Kev if all I sought was attention I’d post much better content than I do :)
B B
Ta
Nerr felt a thing!!
H H
George.
“don’t bark at every crisp poke that flies past oor windy”
GEDDIT?
You`re a complete boundah.
Or a propah Charlie.
We should not compete withe crazies. The World Cup has just shown us that English footballers are over priced due to tv overhyped hyperbole. Only the rich foreign imports make up the deficiency.
Why would we pay 6m for snodgrass when we can buy better for a 1/3 of that.
How much for an Mexican, Chilean, American? How much for a Nigerian still playing in his domestic league?
Let the Epl shop in Harvey nicks for the same produce we get from lidl or aldi. We will train better and understand the game more and they will continue to falter on their ego.
We may not be able to spend what clubs in the EPL spend,but we still underspend on new players,we brought in around 20 million in transfer fees and spent less than 25% on replacement’s and you wonder why fans are buggering off
Geordie Munro
15:07 on 27 June, 2014
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Nothing wrong in what you post fella and keep posting.
It’s who ye hing aboot wi that’s problem :)
Hail Hail
nothing without fans
Regardless of where the money went the club made the gesture. The fans at that time travelled and put their hands in their pockets to contribute.
Nowhere in that article is that game even mentioned. I would hope Hearts under their new owners will put the record straight and put this ludicrous suggestion to bed.
LB
I wonder whether we can adopt a similar strategy to Chelsea, albeit at a lower level.
They seem to be signing up loads of good young players on long term contracts and loaning them out rather than leaving them to play reserve football. Some are on loan for several years. They either develop enough to come back and play first team football or are sold on.
Presumably some percentage of wages are paid while the players are on loan, so I think you gamble on a combination of getting an eventual first team player cheap or recouping some of the investment in sales.
LiviBhoy
15:05 on
27 June, 2014
“It really angers me”
That`s what the bar stewards want.
Don`t give them that satisfaction.
Ca` canny with your fellow Tims.
KevJungle – Murdo Macleod is my favorit CELTIC player ever.
15.00
Thanks for that. An entertaining deflection.
We all had fun back then trying to decide who the moles were.
You haven’t ruled out MM yet. Good to talk to a Celt who’s walked the walk.
Tiny Tim
They have been able to dodge the consequences of their ebt cheating because ebts until now have been treated as lawful.
The problem is that is that not all ebts were lawful. Apart from 5 which relate only to bonuses and so are not the same enticement to sign as the ebts that were, the inescapable fact that the SPFL are trying to ignore so far is that two of the early ebts paid to De Boer and Flo were in fact unlawful and provided a sporting advantage no other club had access to and so are deserving of a sporting sanction.
What that sporting sanction on a dead club might be is not defined, but given that they lied about the De Boer/Flo side letters to HMRC as well as concealing them from the SPL and SFA and worse, kept the evidence of unlawful ebts away from the LNS Commission itself then the most obvious sanction is removal of titles.
The SPL title of season 2002/03 was won playing Ronald De Boer (not sure on Flo who may have gone by then but definitely De Boer) so that title from 2003 should be removed from their record.
This is all evidence based and the SPFL Board have the evidence and the letters setting out the case are on TSFM with more to come.
If HMRC win the UTT appeal then all the ebts Rangers used will have been unlawful and the SPFL will have to grasp that particular nettle when the UTT rules.
However in the meantime be in absolutely no doubt that the 2003 title was won by unlawful tax means, which main stream media is not prepared to report, but that there are enough folk in the game who were misled by Rangers concealment of the evidence, who now know this is the case and the number is growing.
At some point this truth will become accepted and regardless of the UTT result the 2003 title was won using unlawful means and Rangers concealed this fact from LNS..
Macjay,
I get ye. I’m just keeping it light.
No world cup. No boss in work but can’t leave.
My state is between boredom and the dt’s;)
Ref the Ralston ‘article’….I guess this shows where the phrase “wouldn’t dignify it with a repsonse” comes from….
As BMCUW we can’t say anything without it being twisted. So say nothing.
HH jamesgang
George
Of magazine fame.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9rtNUiYllnw
Delirium tremens `r us.
O.K.
Macjay
You never answered my question mate regarding the definition of your personal support.
When you post ‘I support Celtic’ what exactly do you mean?
GuyFawkesaforeverhero
15:14 on 27 June, 2014
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I do know that the late TB was a confidant of Gerry McNee
when Fergus wisny playing ball with transfer money and
other stuff. Does this constitute – mole activity?
Who can tell if anyone is a mole?
Maybe that is why Bobo Balde and Neil Lennon had to sign
confidentiality clauses?
If you have evidence to the contrary about Murdo, I’d be glad
to see it.
Hail Hail