Celtic got what they deserved at Rugby Park yesterday. An inspired early goal by Ryan Christie limited the damage to two dropped points but that aside, Kilmarnock coped easily with everything Celtic could muster. After being caught out by Christie, Danny Rogers in the Killie goal did not have a save to make for the rest of the game. Who would have thought?
Post-match, Neil Lennon referred to Christopher Jullien’s slow start to last season. After a poor performance at Fir Park he was dropped for the infamous defeat to Cluj at Celtic Park. Chris got better then and he will do so again, but he lost Nicke Kabamba in dangerous positions three times in the first half.
He does not have problems with big stirkers, as was alleged on TV commentary; the significance of that goal by Lyndon Dykes at Livingston could not be more overstated. But he is a big lad who clearly needs a better preseason.
Crossing was poor, control cumbersome and the physical battle was often too much. The lack of physicality is a concern; we are small and light in several areas. One of the hottest strikers in Europe spent much of the game a spectator, despite our most valued creatives playing. It really was a team dropping points together.
The manager changed the shape of the team on 65 minutes but to no effect. Olivier Ntcham had the last 10 minutes but by then Killie were settled and Celtic, increasingly desperate. You know me and Olivier, I would have introduced him earlier. Or, had him on from the start.
Neil has dropped points at Rugby Park before and he knows how to build a response. No one was “thrown under the bus”, as he said later. Until then, we have to live like others, not at the top of the table, for a change.
We are going to face a lot of packed defences this season and play on a few plastic pitches. There can be no complaints, let’s just get better at overcoming both.
Given a choice of winning yesterday, or facing two away draws in Champions League qualification, I would take the draw with Killie and home times against Reykjavik, then either Ferencvaros or Djurdargens, the prospect we face after different types of draws yesterday and today.
Home ties until we are well into our season is a huge bonus. There is still work to do, but the prospect of a Lincoln Red Imps rerun is receding. Wish we could attend these games.
Sweden is Europe’s Covid herd immunity test case and the test has not gone well. It remains to be seen what travel restrictions visitors from Sweden are in place when the second round takes place on 15 and 26 August.
412 Comments- Pages:
- «
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- »
Well done Boli – ended the ten. Sturgeon to call the season.
Staggered if it’s true that Boli went to Spain for four days last week.
Was this known about? Surely not.
What are our squad management protocols in these terrible situation? Something sadl lacking.
As for Boli himself, and Griffiths for that matter….get rid of now. No respect for the club, their colleagues and fellow citizens.
Think they could possibly have jeopardised our CL placing.
Time for the management to hold passports in the club safe. Pathetic? yes. Necessary? After this, Absolutely
Well done Hibs – guess we are in Europa
I don’t believe for a minute that Lennon knew anything about this….however.
Considering Boli was training on Friday it appears Lennon has given the team Monday,Tuesday,Wednesday and Thursday off last week.
Seems like a long time to me
Poor decision-making on and, now, off the field by Bolingoli. Dumb as it was, I feel for the lhad who GT has made an irrelevance. Did he not think he’d be spotted? Possible he nicked off, feeling he’d be nowhere near the squad and, on return, was surprised to have got the call to play. Do we keep him, trying to recoup his fee or get shot to alleviate wage drain?
IMO, Jullien and Kris are every bit as good as Ake, a recently confirmed 40mill bombscare.
DAVID17 on 10TH AUGUST 2020 10:48 PM
In fact, they should bag Boli.
hi David
.i do understand your sentiment as this has a lot of implications for football as a whole and this coming season.
but at this moment let’s take a breath and have some caution
sacking a player for what exactly?
how would that help a) him b) Celtic? in today’s meeja? in reflection
We have a duty of care here,just go careful me thinks
hh
Come on you Bhoys in Green.
As Kitalba linked to the Prayer Breakfast frae BC.
We need a left and right wing to really FLY.
LOVE is Unconditional.
The system of grading the Exams,is the same as the one that will be used in England next week.I would guess that the politicians were led by the Education Boards on the methods used to grade.Quite rightly so.
That they made an are of it,is blatantly obvious.
Would it be good for Scottish football, and therefore in Celtic’s best long term interests, (think Five Way Agreement) to throw the league this season?
It’s about the only logical explanation for what has been going on.
boli-bain
went to spain
in a chocolate airoplane..
when he came back
he got the sack
Is this why a left back is being touted
Hangings too good for Book.A good kick up the are is what’s needed.My auld Maws favourite saying.
Boli.
TURKEYBHOY on 10TH AUGUST 2020 11:34 PM
Politicians, north and south of the border,had one objective, to see a modest increase in the overall pass rate, and that’s what they got.
Sturgeon will now try to game events to make this a wedge issue between Holyrood and Westminster.
AN TEARMANN on 10TH AUGUST 2020 11:31 PM
Gross misconduct. Forget COVID for a minute. Are players allowed to leave the country at anytime without notifying the club? How does that affect drug testing for example.
As for the COVID situation, players were given special status to return under the strictest conditions. As a club we widely supported the NHS and key workers. His actions are a slap in the face to those very workers and to his colleagues and peers. He will be mutually consented imo.
THE Scottish Government say they could put football back into cold storage as they attempt to get to the bottom of the Boli Bolingoli affair and what appears to be another ‘serious’ breach of coronavirus protocols.
Crucify him. Bowing knees. Mark 15.
Our Lord and Saviour certainly isnae Sky.
EVERY LIFE MATTERS.
FUCK em and their Law.
Stop it.
The ‘pond life’ are now calling for us to be awarded a 3 nil defeat on sunday for breach of rules.
COVID Guidelines not in league rules?…if for example a Rangers forward had been spotted eating at his favourite ‘all you can eat’ buffet during this period would that make him technically ineligible?
!!BADA BING!! on 10TH AUGUST 2020 11:56 PM
The Scottish Government will be delighted to have something to draw attention away from the mess they’ve made of the exam results.
Pardon my French.
Workin’ with an Incredible Pole. Fitba he has nae Inteeest.
I like it in a Glasgow Shipyard.
Play Music Peter.
An Amazing Man is Tom.
If we can be penalised over Boli – have no doubts we will be. The journo’s who pleaded for Aberdeen and given and take’ will be screaming for points deduction and disqualification- we have given them the opportunity.
Our management are lax – we now have the ‘moral molehill’
x
If Only I could.
I’d mak this Fallen World a better place.
Lenny has the smallest guys in the World to work with.
Bombs & Bullets in the Post.
Lenny is the Man.
Come on Neil – Euro Glory too Legend.
Hatem.csc
RON67 on 10TH AUGUST 2020 10:19 PM
so when is a lone striker not a target man
Since the better teams stopped humping the ball forwards and started playing it on the ground through the middle. Its not unusual to see a technical fast striker play on his own in a 4-1-4-1, a 4-2-3-1 or a 4-5-1
As far as Celtic goes, Leigh Griffiths scored 40 goals in a season as a lone striker, he was first choice as lone striker when Brendan Rodgers took over, not for long after Moussa found his feet but he did start with Griff on his own up top. Rodgers’s style of play, pretty typical of a lot of progressive coaches is based on retaining possession with quick transitioning, passing through a high press from the keeper through midfield. We didn’t play long balls to a traditional target man and he didn’t buy players to do that.
He did it when he went to Leicester as well, Vardy played as a lone striker in a 4-1-4-1.
in the more technical leagues in Europe there have been lone strikers who aren’t target men for a long time. In Italy its quite normal, Inzaghi was one of the best, Crespo, Batistuta, Higauin. Lazio have Immobile who scored more goals than anyone in Serie A last season who often plays up front on his own. He’s a hardworking willing runner, but he isn’t a target man. Lazio were level with Juventus at the top of Serie A before everything stopped, they had a system that worked.
Even in the English Premiership you’re seeing smaller quicker more skilful players playing in the role. I didn’t see much EPL football after the lockdown but I did see Antonio playing on his own up front for West Ham and Kean at Everton. Of the bigger clubs Chelsea use Giroud as a traditional target man, Kane at Spurs looks like he should be but he isn’t, Aubameyang played up front on his own when he first went to arsenal but he’s playing as part of a three now on the left. He’s doing a good impression of Thierry Henry who played up front for Arsenal on his own in in a 4-5-1 the season they made it to the Champions League final. Slightly different to Torres who played lone striker at Liverpool and scored a hatful of goals without looking anything like a target man.
Players at the highest level who are playing the role at the moment who aren’t target men are Benzema who is a unit but isnt asked to play as a hold up man, and Haaland who must be the quickest footballer on the planet and an absolute killer in front of goal. Upcoming stars include Odsonne Edouard who has played most of his football in European competition as a lone striker :)
Obviously this is football at the highest level, a manager will want a lone striker in the SPL to do a different job to a manager of a team in the EPL or European competition. But Eddie’s destined for the highest level and he’s already doing a job in the position well enough to be getting interest from the bigger clubs who play in a way he’d be suited to.
It is conceivable that our entire squad may have to isolate because of Boli – I’ve got my boots polished and have hatched a plane to lose two stone and forty years by Wednesday, just in case😀
JINKYREDSTAR on 11TH AUGUST 2020 12:55 AM
Saint Stivs ready for the 11 jersey, A proper left winger.
St Stivs – I’ll wear my old number 8
So who else is stripping on Wednesday?
JINKYREDSTAR on 11TH AUGUST 2020 1:09 AM
St Stivs – I’ll wear my old number 8
So who else is stripping on Wednesday?
=============
a mungos 8 ?
What Boli did beggars belief.
He must NEVER be near a Celtic strip again.
Possibly single handedly jeopardised 10IAR.
Unforgivable!
What control does Lennon have over these players?
We thought that the Aberdeen players were daft but, FFS, Boli takes stupidity to an entirely new level.
Hammer him with a massive fine, suspend him indefinitely and let him rot.
Like to see the players’ union and his lawyers try to defend him.
A joke of a player and a joke of a human being.
Disgusted!
LG had a house party with 15 people where some people got together for hugs
Boli boli deliberately put his club and other players at risk against the advice of the club and Goverment
Gross negligence is the “lack of slight diligence or care” or “a conscious, voluntary act or omission in reckless disregard of a legal duty and of the consequences to another party.”
He put our club and Kilmarnock and other SPFL clubs at risk
There is a investigation going on
If it’s gross misconduct ( gross negligence ). He should be sacked. End of
This has been the longest and worst 36 hours of my life reading posts on here. Having watched the Celtic since the 50’s the 1-1 defeat to Kilmarnock must rank among the heaviest defeats in our long history of 1-1 defeats. If we dare to lose a game I will need to miss CQN for about 3 weeks before the gnashing of teeth (real & plastic) stops.
BUY PLAYERS! Going by Jobo’s POTY 3 players we have brought in, Julienne,Polish Paddy and Ely who received a combined total of “Nil Poins” so that does not seem to be the answer. Time will tell, after 2 games undefeated hang in there Bhoys.
Bolingolli! Great move by NFL & our CEO to send him to Spain after reading the comments on here. Keep the ” supporters out” says Lenny “I would rather listen to Tuppeny arcade than listen to some of they CQNers supporters? at my back in Parkheid.
Enjoy you day,it can only get better
HH
I miss canamalar alot.
Mega.
My Sabres of Paradises.
An incredible source was Tower reck….
Mair than 24 hours.
Now about Lot…..
And Shved still won’t get a game !
Good morning bhoys from a rain soaked Garngad
So if we have to play 18 year olds/youths against St Mirren then I’m afraid that is exactly what we have to do. It just shows what we all thought football players are so far detached from the ordinary working man its unreal they think because they get wealth beyond belief that they are untouchable.
I would honestly fine Bolingoli the amount we paid for him then once its paid sack him.
Is the game against St Mirren going ahead as the Aberdeen game against St Johnstone at the weekend was cancelled, feckin idiot.
I also thought you had to have played 2/3’s of a season before it got called, but this is exactly why we could not afford to slip behind that manky shower of cheating bassas from Govan and yet the second game in we were utter pish. Incredible.
Before the Super supporters start with oh it’s a draw and everyone’s going mental pish, it was the manner of which our whole team competed and our management team sat with arms folded that upset people.
HH
D :)
Boli’s Selfish and Stupid behaviour ?……….Words fail me.
As others have pointed out, how can ANY Celtic player feck off abroad (or stay at home ?) and miss 4 days of training….without the Manager/ Coaching staff etc knowing about it ?…Words fail me yet again.
For many years I have always said that football players are mostly as thick as two short planks ( NOT ALL Players)..Boli has just proven me right…sadly.
IF Boli did miss training for ONE Day never mind FOUR….What explanation have Celtic got for him being selected for the squad for Sundays game ?
I fear that there will be dire consequences for Celtic FC that are still to emerge due to Boli’s behaviour and/or Celtic’s “role” in all of this….I hope that I am wrong ?
It will not just be Boli who will be “Investigated”…….?
HH.
Sorry…but I am uttterly sickened by Boli’s behaviour and I am also at a loss to what Celtic knew or didnt know about his trip to Spain and missing training etc etc ?
Talk about “Shooting ourselves in the foot” ?
HH