We arrived at Celtic Park yesterday with an anticipatory bounce in the step. A full house for flag day with the usual summer noise from elsewhere hushed by the harsh realities of the Scottish Premiership. St Mirren were not there to make up the numbers, though, and withstood 76% possession and wave after wave of attack without looking overwhelmed.
Genuine chances were few with the visitor’s two banks of players (defenders and auxiliary defenders) parked in front of the box. Celtic mix it up by playing the long ball to Adam Idah, but he was well marshalled throughout.
Kieran Tierney was back and immediately dispelled any concerns we had about how effective he would be. His touch, timing in the challenge and industry were first class, but for me, it was his forward passing that was most impressive. Fortunately his retirement shortly after the hour was a planned change.
You and I have discussed deflected goals often. When you are up against a packed defence, a deflected shot from the edge of the area should be something you work on. Against the likes of St Mirren you will seldom get enough space for a free shot, but a shot is still worthwhile. Fire in enough of them and you will leave the stadium with a smile as wide as Luke McCowan’s yesterday.
Post-match, Brendan Rodgers said, “I’m fed up talking about transfers. We’ve got until the end of the window. We concentrate on what’s here, a lot of work going on behind the scenes to improve the squad.”
I let his comments to Sky Sports on Friday go; we had a game to prepare for, which some of us take seriously, but we will pick them after we discuss the European draw. Nothing has changed since Friday, though. “A lot of work going on behind the scenes” is not something which somehow appeared over the weekend.
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Thanks, from Antwerp.
The Baddies are a hard team to beat as sevco found out last season, they only won 4 points against them, a hotly controversial wtf else and a draw with 2 losses.
What caught my attention over the weekend was they dropped 2 points and we gained 2, both in the 87th minute, love it, oh and the blog is a lot more pleasanter this past 2 days, it was hard work for a wee bit there but the lack of the usual suspects is plainly obvious.
What I would love to see at the satrt of each season, is for BR to be given a set amount of budget, say. £20 million to spend. Any income from player sales shpuld of course be added. Ain’t gonna happen naturally.
KINGLuBO
Having said that, ;ast tears incomings are a way short, so, must give the board a bit of slack
kinglubo
!!Bada Bing!! on 4th August 2025 6:40 pm
Looks obvious that we are waiting to see if we qualify for the CL,before we spend significantly, same as a few years ago,a a meek cowardly approach, with no ambition
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agent – thanks celtic so you meet the selling teams valuation, and match the players demands, so we agree INSERT NAME HERE will join you as soon as you get in the champions league
works both ways.
SS- Aye ok,it’s only a story,and BTW your theories on Lennoxtown are shite,I posted that IMO it’s not paying it’s way,we have lost a few prospects recently, Doak is the only one who has done anything, I think we should look at academy’s abroad, particularly Portugal, Spain,France,and try and get experienced guys in to try something different, I wasn’t questioning the qualifications of Maloney, McManus, O’Dea,I think it’s worth a try,but the nepotism within the Club prevails.
I’m going to tune in to the Hertz game to see if they can walk the talk.
Chris Sutton in the studio reminded me of something he said yesterday when Ian “OF” Crocker told us the last time the OF drew on the opening weekend was 1984.
Sutty said something along the lines of “1984 indeed”.
Clever comment.
He’s no doubt read it and knows “lies is truth” when it comes to the SMSM and anything to do with the OF.
!!Bada Bing!! on 4th August 2025 6:40 pm
Looks obvious that we are waiting to see if we qualify for the CL,before we spend significantly, same as a few years ago,a a meek cowardly approach, with no ambition.
Sadly, I think that you are right. It MIGHT make sense if we didn’t have the money, but we do.
Just take 20 million of the 80-ish million we have in the bank….
Buy 2 (or 3) good players in the positions that we need right now. Stronger squad to get through the qualifier.
If we qualify, we have a stronger squad.
If we don’t qualify, life goes on. Maybe sell a couple of players who aren’t getting much playing time. Either way, the squad would be stronger than it is today.
Cheers,
Weeron
In this window alone the huns’ next transfer sound is €18.01 million.
Celtic at this point has turned a profit of €18.29million (exclusive of Frimpong sell-on).
So a €36.3 million differential. At the same time we are starting Yang and can’t afford to leg Tillio go.
So I really do hope there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes. I really do.
Why hoard so much cash? Is there even a plan? Or has it just become pathological?
The board have already called Rodgers bluff by allowing him to spend £11 million on Engles, £10 million on Idah, last season, and people usually throw Trusty into that mix, but I think he deserves a reprieve as the circumstances of his judgement are not taken into account, a lot of the time.
Is it Trusty’s fault that there are acres of attacking space in front of him because of the far advance tippy tappy midfielders,
Some people judge Trusty because he does not go on maizy runs over the halfway line, or spray beautiful passes out from the back???!!
So these judges would cast Billy McNeill, etc, etc, as failures as well?
Who appointed the chattering judges who do a lot of misjudging? Who taught them to read players in such a way?
Is it actually Rodgers fault that Trusty isn’t favoured so much because Rodgers managerial demands are utterly askew of what should be the asks of a central defender?
How about a defender gets rid of the ball out of danger areas so therefore he is a good defender?
How about opposition defences have twigged that the way Walter Smith dealt with the threat of Aiden McGeady, ie: double up on him and the threat is snuffed out, is the way to snuff out Celtic’s present wingers, and everybody knows this, apart from Rodger?
Maybe the board, off the record, have said to Rodgers about the unjustified layout on new players last season, has not represented any big bids coming in for these players and that lies at Rodgers door, for being given very expensive machines, but not knowing how to function them?
Rodgers keeping agitating for new players demonstrates a club not all on the same page and publicly displaying this, suits who?
The Kelly’s and White’s were accused of pocketing monies from a gate intake in which almost half 50% of the gate monies went to the opposition teams, AND, a third of the actual gate figure were lifted over the turnstiles for FREE.
So, if these rewriters of history who run blogs and write boring ass licking books, are lying about this, and they are, why should anything else that they say be taken as fact?
They know who they are.
Weeron
Great idea, pity you aren’t on our Board.
Shinnie o.g. 😂
Watching Hearts v Aberdeen. It looks like Hearts have narrowed the width of their pitch by increasing the distance between the touchline and the front of the stand under the TV cameras.
This is clearly to mitigate the customary manhandling and abuse of and spitting at opposition players retrieving the ball or simply taking a throw-in.
Not before time.
Hope they both get beat.
Livingston game could be be getting re arranged ti midweek , Celtic emailing CSCs it’s subject to change
Just got this,could be true
!!Bada Bing!! on 4th August 2025 7:49 pm
SS- Aye ok,it’s only a story,and BTW your theories on Lennoxtown are shite,I posted that IMO it’s not paying it’s way,we have lost a few prospects recently, Doak is the only one who has done anything, I think we should look at academy’s abroad, particularly Portugal, Spain,France,and try and get experienced guys in to try something different, I wasn’t questioning the qualifications of Maloney, McManus, O’Dea,I think it’s worth a try,but the nepotism within the Club prevails.
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to participate in european football we are obligated to have an academy that produces footballers FOR THE FUTURE OF THE GAME.
we can argue that the pipeline of future celtic level players has been shut off.
Celtic in turn could say our whole youth set up has coaches who were celtic lennoxtown products, and went on to play in champions league and for their country.
Callum James and Kieren can probably tell you who they owe their career progress to.
Maybe foreign coaches from one of the great academies would be good for cross-polination, sure didnt Tommy visit Ajax ? Juve ? and somewhere else.
Isnt Brendan considered from early coaching a developer of youth. As a strength.
I do not believe our academy is broken, i do believe its future is brining in youth from abroad, if allowed.
ps. KT fee, paid for 10 years or so of academy costs.
Anyone know anything about football?
I’m the first to admit I do not so if anyone can shed some light on what either of these teams is trying to do it would be much appreciated.
Great strike by Shankland.
The Blogger Formerly Known As GM on 4th August 2025 8:39 pm
Anyone know anything about football?
I’m the first to admit I do not so if anyone can shed some light on what either of these teams is trying to do it would be much appreciated.
gAES a wee hint .Which game ye watching
Ruled offside.
all that praise f Aberdeen for winning a Scottish cup, they didnt “win it” they didnt play football, they got lucky on a day we gave away the biggest blunder of the season, and didnt take 3 great chances.
they were pish in the whole second half of the season, and nothing changes now, he will be chased by christmas.
jam tarts though might do soemthing without the distraction of europe.
Aberdeen looking very poor all over the pitch. Hearts running them ragged.
SS- We can agree that it’s a very short list that progress to the 1st team,all I’m saying is we could try something different
Hello, Devil’s Advocate here
Could it be that some potential signings are waiting to see if we qualify for the Champions League before they sign?
Instead of the accepted wisdom that the Board are waiting until we qualify for the Champions League before signing players
Dons defenders seem a tad ungainly.Like Giraffes with their legs on backwards.
Scum now have hunners of wingers.
And we’ve got nane. 😥😥😥😥😥
Mc Phail Boy,
H,mmmm.Naw.Miserable bassas.
!!Bada Bing!! on 4th August 2025 8:53 pm
SS- We can agree that it’s a very short list that progress to the 1st team,all I’m saying is we could try something different
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Aye, I agree why not.
My nephew spent a summer at the Barcelona school in Tenerife. I seen him play and train, at the age of 13, his father is Tenerifian.
He got asked to commit and him Scottish mum wouldnt let him.
Brother in law introduced me to a Barca coach, who had been a first teamer back in the 80s, I need to look him up again.
And this is a believe it or not moment,
I asked him how easy is it to work with a Scottish kid, he said 2it is ideal, I spent alll my coaching summers at Largs with Jose”.
nae kidding.
Oh my, what a miss.
Dons Yengi makes Idah look like Lewandowski
Milne of Hearts has looked really good. 3-4 superb crosses from the left and a great shot off the bar
Shankland must be on the Ozempic, leanest he’s been for years.
Could I be right in thinking that the Celtic Board aren’t giving Brendan Rodgers isn’t because he isn’t committing to sign another contract,
Tom McLaughlin on 4th August 2025 3:00 pm
Had a great Scotch Pie at half-time yesterday. My guest said it was the best pie he’d tasted in years.
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nudge nudge , wink wink, say no more😎
Imagine we could possibly be waiting to see if we qualify for the CL before we sign any required players . what a dam disgrace , Thems are at least making the effort to get to the top table . And going by Saturdays narrow but deserved win , it is plainly obvious we are badly in need of quality signings , Lawwell and his cronies are taking one helluva gamble not just for the CL but domestic games as well ,we could find it tougher this season .
You wouldn’t mind so much if it was just about waiting to see if WE qualified…..
!!Bada Bing!! on 4th August 2025 8:22 pm
Livingston game could be be getting re arranged ti midweek , Celtic emailing CSCs it’s subject to change
Just got this,could be true
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I was literally just about to book my flight. I suppose it is if we get Kairat and have to travel that far.
Nonsense VAR check wasting time.
Bloom doing a good impression of ‘The Scream’ there.