Last night’s convincing win was exactly what was needed. Hearts were subjugated by three goals and an avalanche of chances, John Guidetti got off the mark and we kept a clean sheet after eight games without one.
We are a lot more potent up front than we were a month ago and the return of Scott Brown in central mid has tightened things up but that defensive record remains a concern. Hearts were utterly outplayed and failed to score, but that wasn’t for the lack of hospitality from their hosts.
It’s not clear what the difference is between last season’s record-breaking run of domestic clean sheets and our current porous look. Jason Denayer is partnering Virgil instead of Efe Ambrose, while Efe has been shunted right to cover for injured Adam Matthews and Mikael Lustig, but this wasn’t the case for some of our European nightmares last month.
Apart from last night’s pass between two statues, Emilio has overcome his early season jitters and Craig Gordon has been impeccable in goal.
It’s more likely that whatever changes have happened to the shape of the team, specifically, what is happening in front of the defence. Emilio’s back-pass last night occurred when he was under pressure and his midfield options were busy looking for a forward pass. Anthony Stokes’ error on Sunday led to Motherwell’s goal, but it happened on the halfway line. Against Motherwell! Who were able to exploit a lack of defensive cover.
Ronny’s Celtic press quickly and high up the field. I like this plan. As he navigates the squad into a position where this is their natural state there will be transitional damage, but the basis of every successful team is keeping the back door shut.
It will be some time before the manager gets a chance to finalise his defence as he awaits the return of Matthews and Lustig, and he decides on whether to partner van Dijk with Ambrose or Denayer (or Lustig), while Emilio could benefit from being pushed on the left by Charlie Mulgrew. In the meantime, Brown and Johansen, together with whoever plays wide, will need to practice their reverse gears.
St Mirren have failed to score in five of their last eight games, so as well as three points, and a clean sheet, we should be looking for whoever plays in goals to have a trouble-free afternoon.
Thanks to everyone who donated to the Great Scottish Run fund in aid of the Celtic Foundation, and to those who signed up for the race to do their bit. I know our gas has been at a peep recently but the flame of why we are Celtic fans burns as brightly as ever.
You can sign up for the race through the Foundation here, or if you’ve misplaced your trainers, you can help me hit my target here.
[calameo code=0003901718cdc4362fa2e? lang=en page=4 hidelinks=1 width=100% height=500]Many thanks.
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It`s a much fairer society in Scottish sport nowadays. There was only one hot ball in the bag last night, the number 8 ball. That`s why it had to come out first, in case it cooled down quickly. So they are guaranteed a home tie, but they don`t know who they`ll face. When St Johnstone came out, there were audible* sighs of relief from the Newclubs management (no laughing at the back), it could have been worse. Aberdeen, D Utd, Celtic, Raith Rovers, oh, wait a minute…..
* had they been edible sighs the only sound heard would have been chomping by the management.
Ernie,
In which case you’ll be relieved to know he can’t be deployed to a war zone until he’s 18.
_______________
I knew that already.
The point being…he would be trained as a seventeen year old, then thrown into a war at eighteen…which is looking like a foregone conclusion with Cameron’s warmongering today.
Ye, I’ll sleep well mate…
popsted = posted :(((
Till later all.
Johansen dwells on the ball to long ,though he improved as the game went on,
Tonev looks much better on the right and Scepovic will score plenty for us once his team mates notice the space he is making for himself.
Ohhh and Gollum the MIB is a *^*^*^*^*
bawsman – it’s not gay unless you have a moustache and leather hat. (thumbsup)
The honest cover up,
I know. It’s a bugger eh?
Reminds me of the time no-one could play right back for us without being injured.
Hinkle, hartley and someone else all got crocked playing there.
Lucky white Heather ;)
I just want to be on the first page.
Jamesgang
Our pre match SAT before Celtic park for a while in 80’s
5’s 1 till 2pm just about sober from Friday night dancing
Shower but no liquid in a quick rush to my brothers van
Stop off for a Litre of Merrydown(Gold) and for some reason a litre of Lambrusco(RED)
Skud in the 15 minutes drive to Celtic park
2nd half usually saw a headache kick in
Steinreignedsupreme
I disagree with your assessment of our 2 current centre backs, both of whom are top quality. VVD has a languid style but he has poise and is comfortable in possession. He seems to have buckled down to his work, shed a few pounds and playing for his big move at the end of the season. Jason is still a lad, but he is playing well. He doesn’t make many mistakes and he will go back to Man City better for his stint with us. His loan may be extended into next season if City don’t need him.
TBB
I think the forwards are better at reading Izzy’s crosses than those of Efe.
Yes, he is sometimes too close to the keeper but he has provided more assists and scored-from crosses than his counterpart.
Efe tends to cross the ball into the penalty spot area. I don’t know if that is a legacy of playing on African pitches but he is not mis-hitting them; he places them there deliberately but there is still rarely ever anyone on the end who has read his intention.
Matthews tends to dribble well into the box rather than cross.
The best we have is Lustig, whose crosses have wicked curve on them and are placed sweetly into that there Zone of Uncertainty.
I would still guess that, because of fitness issues, Izzy has more assists than any of them. Does anyone have the assist figures?
Steinreignedsupreme
Agree about van Dijk. Bougherra is an excellent comparison. There is a reason he is still here and it’s not because Lawwell said he is not for sale. It’s because big clubs see the flaws you have highlighted and shy away from £8m+ asking prices. Otheriwse he would be away.
I hope he pulls his socks up and gets back to basics as he has plenty of talent.
geordie munro
;-) hic
Leftie
I was deffo one or the other. Think it was silver tho I may be wrong.
Izzie/Efe bad
VVD/Jason good
??
Don’t think so.
All 4 have strengths and faults.
Jason. Super fast. Great potential. Too keen to dive in. Often from the non goal side. Positionally still learning. It wasn’t the ball that should have hit the back of the net, it should have been Sutton himself with Jason getting much closer to do so.
VVD. Bhoy has the lot potentially. That’s also the problem. If he was chocolate he’d eat himself. Hence the nice wee saunters up field but jog back. Love the former (if he’s got cover) detest the latter.
Izzie. Pace. Occasional gem of a touch and dribble and run into space. all on show last night. But short and makes it worse by losing man and drifting infield. Young, shy sensitive young Mhan a very long eat from home. Does he have a ‘big brother’ in the club?
Efe. Great athlete. Lovely skills at times. But bombscare potential. Too often makes that omg I wish I hadn’t done that pass. A Bhoy who inevitably must sense the opprobrium of the boo boys. You see it in his demeanour.
HH jamesgang
setting free the bears for Res. 12 & Oscar Knox but saying no to CQN racists
Zone of Uncertainty?
Enough referendum chat ;)
ger57
“His loan may be extended into next season if City don’t need him.”
I heard an astonishing stat last night which claimed that Chelsea had more players out o loan than they had registered to their first team squad.
PL often talked about being willing to go to £6m if the player merited it. Jason Denayer IS such a player, if he and Man City are willing to trade at that price. Guidetti may be another you might risk a £4m-5m punt on.
Davidopoulos
“Zone of Uncertainty?
Enough referendum chat ;)”
I thought it was sex chat.
Yet another repost.
Can anyone give me an answer on this. Tried Bawsman first as he is one of the very few to mention that he was an actual member of the Labour Party. Hes given up on the politics here for the time being
So anybody else help out.
..
Genuine question.
As someone who thinks that whichever stance one takes on the independence issue should not interfere with their Labour ideals.
Was Labours position formulated from Central Office.
Or was it as a result of surveys of Scottish activists.
Thanks
HH
jc2 – are you Leigh Griffiths?
Leftie – I feel honoured to gave been asked to migrate to ML land!
Livibhoy – with all that he’ll firewater in you no wonder you can run fast the trouble you’d have been in!
Laters Timdom.
HH jamesgang
We remain very fragile
constantly outnumbered in midfield ….forwards who fail to cover for the FB who attacks up the wing …leaves huge holes at the back
our CB are often under pressure and are not good or experienced enough to deal with the onslaught
last night was a good victory …however , it was against a Div 1 (refuse to call it The Championship )who chucked it after the penalty reversal
any decent team will cause us real difficulties…we are wide open
lastly
Johansen..looks like a very fit boy trying to play football …badly
Setting free the Bears. Guidetti will be available in January as he is out of contract next summer.The problem in signing the player is he is likely to be pursued by many clubs.
This highway leads to the shadowy tip of reality: you’re on a through route to the land of the different, the bizarre, the unexplainable…Go as far as you like on this road. Its limits are only those of mind itself. Ladies and Gentlemen, you’re entering the wondrous dimension of imagination. . .
Next stop, the Zone of Uncertainty.
http://www.mwctoys.com/images/review_serling_3e.jpg (thumbsup)
SFTB
6 yard line is the target. The number of goals scored at the back post on the 6 yard line is remarkable. Low to front post works too provided the striker can get in front of the defender, Eg Sutton last weekend, but converting is more difficult.
Efe I’m afraid simply can’t cross the ball. Crossing to the penalty spot is a futile exercise as the forward cannot convert. Efe puts it there via the law of averages, not intent, imo. It’s the best fit pattern in the scatter graph.
TBB
re Efe …Lenny said he didn`t like him at RB because he can`t cross the ball …he can`t
SFTB
Agree on Denayer although I doubt PL does…
Guidetti is available on a Bosman come January.
sipsini
13:08 on
25 September, 2014
Ernie,
In which case you’ll be relieved to know he can’t be deployed to a war zone until he’s 18.
_______________
I knew that already.
The point being…he would be trained as a seventeen year old, then thrown into a war at eighteen…which is looking like a foregone conclusion with Cameron’s warmongering today.
Ye, I’ll sleep well mate…
============================
Ah but Sipsini, he’d be a Hero. No? You know one of them young boy\girls sent to soil foreign lands for financial gain of our establishment, some of whom spill their blood, lose their limbs, then the Hero returns to be provided for by errrmmmmm – oh yeah charity.
Great system old WM has setup there.
MWD said AYE
Then he’d be injured, sent home a hero (because that is what a soldier becomes the minute he lands to soil foreign territory) and offered charity donations to help him recover.
TBB
I see many more of Efe’s crosses going into the rear part of the penalty area than into any other place. I think there is some deliberate intent there. I just can’t work out why.
Last night Doc and one or two others were trying to say that Stoksey made the back pass just before half time and The Johnatron on this thread is on the same wavelength. Now I know Stoksey has more hair than he used to but he looks nothing like Izzy. FFS open ye’re eyes it was IZZY, IZZY alone and noone else but IZZY who made the back pass. P.S. The same IZZY had an absolute blinder yesterday.
haven’t read the comments but from my viewpoint the team is very open, especially the defence.
most of the time the fullbacks are pressed high and wide on the touchline.
the two centrebacks are split wide perhaps 30 yards apart and one or sometimes both sitting midfielders will sit in between them near the centre circle.
more like a 2-1-4-3 formation
very similar shape to that employed by the great Barcelona side with busquets dropping between pique and puyol whilst alba and alves play like wingers.
this helps create more options for keeping possession high up the pitch and also pressing high when the ball is lost. unfortunately we don’t have enough quality like iniesta, xabi and messi in forward areas therefore when we lose the ball we are very susceptible to a quick counter attack.
I would personally try to keep 3 out of the 4 defenders at the back leaving one full back to attack depending on which side of the park we’re on.
that would leave us with enough going forward and enough cover to cope with most teams that we play against
ger57 13:14 on 25 September, 2014
“I disagree with your assessment of our 2 current centre backs, both of whom are top quality.”
They both have potential. As I said Denayer is just a boy and still learning, so mistakes are expected. I think Van Dijk believes he is top quality, and that is part of the problem, because he switches off too easily as though he’s better than everyone else on the pitch.
Van Dijk caused the goal against Aberdeen as well. He played well last season but so did the rest of the defence. Hopefully he can get back to that form but he appears to be treading on his petted lip a bit too much at the moment.
If Ronny becomes stubborn enough to maintain his “rather win 5-4 than 1-0”, it will be his downfall. We played some good football last night but tried repeatedly to shoot ourselves in the foot. Against better teams, we need a third midfielder and for me that man should be Liam Henderson. Ronny obviously likes to encourage young talent, a la McGregor who was mostly anonymous again last night, yet overlooks Henderson. Too many winger types in the team at the one time for me and I’d like to see Guidetti and Scepovic as a front pair…though doubt it’s going to happen.
corkcelt
I was one of those who, last night, named Anto as the culprit. You are, of course, correct. It was Izzy.
Stupid blindoldfartcsc
philvisreturns
13:10 on
25 September, 2014
bawsman – it’s not gay unless you have a moustache and leather hat.
=============================
Who mentioned gay? I have no issue if you swing that way.
SFTB
If Izzy could cross a ball like Tosh McKinlay we’d have a further £15M in the bank and Izzy would now be bombing up and down the wing wearing a Chelsea or Arsenal tap!
But he can’t – so he isn’t.
All his great work, and he was great last night up to a point, is nullified by the inevitable missile that he projects over everybody’s head. Every cross ends up over the bar or out for a throw in.
I find him VERY frustrating!
Aff oot!
Met wee Fergus last night at CP,he was in great form.
SFTB
Always good to talk to you,pal.
Particularly when areas of political disagreement do not feature.
Basic.
A defender NEVER directs the ball centrally. i.e.. back into the path of greatest danger.
Izzy regularly does.
By head or foot.
One example can never prove a point.
Believe me,I have been watching Izzy serially making the same basic defensive mistakes for years.
Midfield ,yes.
Last line,never.
I can`t give you chapter and verse about every occasion Izzy has “sold the jerseys”, but I have seen enough to come to the conclusion that defensively he is a liability.
You mention Efe.
His defensive lapses are fine as long as he has somebody behind to sweep up .
How about a nouveau ” Brush.”
Of greater import is Ronny.
Still on trial as far as I am concerned.
Guidetti seems to have the unqualified support of the supporters and fans. This is a very good thing. I can see him becoming very popular.
It seems to me that only Broonie offers that oh so important connection with us. We need more.
JJ
CorkCelt, I did indeed think it was Stokes who made the pass back, but I’m happy to have been proven wrong.
Something so rare the world stands in shock when it occurs!
:-)
“Every cross ends up over the bar or out for a throw in.”
Billy bhoy,
Guidettis goal came from an excellent izzy cross.
Admittedly it wasn’t the perfect cross as that would need JG to have met it with his heid but to suggest all his crosses are gash is simply wrong imo.
corkcelt
13:33 on 25 September, 2014
Last night Doc and one or two others were trying to say that Stoksey made the back pass just before half time and The Johnatron on this thread is on the same wavelength. Now I know Stoksey has more hair than he used to but he looks nothing like Izzy. FFS open ye’re eyes it was IZZY, IZZY alone and noone else but IZZY who made the back pass. P.S. The same IZZY had an absolute blinder yesterday.
—
Corkcelt
The long range angle used by BBC Scotland has so few pixels that it’s possible to confuse almost any outfield player with another.
But you are right as ever!
It was izzie. And that apart he was fab last night!
HH jamesgang
I did also say Stokes and Izzy had very good games. They combined very well.
Jungle Jim, you were correct last night, apologies.