Europa door ajar for Celtic

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When we drew Maribor I wrote about their performance in last season’s Europa League, when they were eliminated by eventual winners, Sevilla.  Our man, Blaz, in Slovenia, also warned me that this was a settled team who had improved since ending Rangers’ interest in European football three years ago.

I watched Red Bull Salzburg destroy Ajax in Amsterdam last season with some sublime football, and my pal in Austria tells me not to put too much store in their 3-0 humbling by Malmo, who, apparently, rode their luck to an incredible degree.  Having said that, on the balance of probabilities, they are by far the top seed we would have chosen.

As Croatia Zagreb, Dinamo Zagreb bossed Celtic out of the Champions League play-off round in 1998, our first attempt at the tournament.  Zagreb’s stock has fallen since, so while you could make a good case to suggest we are far from ready to tackle any European team right now, this is a good draw.  They are also not Legia Warsaw, which would have been an unwelcome confrontation at this time.

So far, so good.  Then we draw a complete unknown from pot 4, who happened to eliminate Lyon in the last round.

Between now and the middle of next month Celtic have to be ready for these challenges.  We have an opportunity to progress in the Europa League, earn some badly needed coefficient points, and revenue in the second half of the season.

Bring it on.

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3,233 Comments

  1. Peter L is currently writing the live updates.

     

     

    It wisnae brown sauce by the way. Feeling I’ll now.

     

     

    Hail hail

     

     

    Estadio

  2. Neganon2

     

     

    No and I’m not paying to watch it either.

     

     

    I have no problem with the argument that lack of competition is costing Celtic money. It is crucial for attracting crowds.

     

     

    I do have a problem with that main competitor returning uncorrected.

     

     

    That lack of correction ( see my previous) is what bothers me.

  3. ....PFayr supports WeeOscar on

    CFC seem to be the only club who seem incapable of keeping players …. Everyone else seems to manage

     

     

    The convenient thinking nae stupidity of some fans is incredible

  4. My dear,dear,dear,friend.. the Singing Detective.

     

     

     

    Yes.. Ah agree wi Awe awe yer Points..

     

     

     

    especially, the McGeough, Remark,which ye made..

     

     

     

    As ye say.. Dyan, Never Recovered fae that Horrendous Injury tae his Jaw. that the Dirty son of A Spanish Lady Dug.. inflicted oan him.

     

     

    The Kid Loast his.. Mojo.. after that..

     

     

    n.. it looks like He wull Nevah Find It Again

     

     

    Pity.. Ah liked the Kid ..aloater..

     

     

    Today’s Team Selection is .. O.K.

     

     

    So.. Virgil,is No More..?

     

     

    That Figgers,

     

     

    We must cash in oan Him.. Afore ..the Rest figgers oot.that..

     

     

    Mebbe, he In NO AWE THAT.. after Awe!

     

     

    He wullnae be missed..

     

     

    Mulgrew, who Ah hiv taken A Dislike tae Seeing him as a Mid Fielder..

     

     

    wull do as good a Joab as Virgil evah did..

     

     

    If Mulgrew is returned tae his Best Position .. which is C.B.

     

     

    Ah am not a all Worried by the Departure of Virgil.

     

     

    Besides.. The Money we get fur Him.. wull Fill in The Hole in oor Financial Stocking.. which wiz caused by our TOO EARLY. C.L. elimination , thereof.

     

     

     

    We wull dae Fine , agin the Dundee..

     

     

    Nice Chatting..pal. as alwiz

     

     

     

    Kojo

     

    Still,Laughin

  5. Is this a world record for most comments ? Can we get a new article or are we waiting for a striker to sign first

  6. The honest mistake he did say could. So it’s all made up really isn’t it??

     

     

    I’m genuinely amused by how bad it’s got. Not even I would have predicted the level of stupidity being displayed and the level of lies being told.

  7. Lennybhoy…Supporting the DAM 5 and CFC until I die

     

     

    Cheers.

     

     

    Last year’s Plan B (or maybe Plan Z) was Pukki and that’s what frightens me.

     

     

    HH

  8. The list of players whose post-Celtic career I have any interest in is small.

     

    Should VVD leave, he will not be joining that list.

  9. Jobo Baldie

     

     

     

    11:54 on 31 August, 2014

     

     

     

    Nooooooooooooooo that disnae suit the agenda:))

     

    If he wants to go get as much as we can and hold the door open for him thanking him for his blip in our historys service.

  10. Auldheid. Thank you.

     

     

    So the next question for all of us is what are we going to do about it. Because I would dearly love to save celtic from a seemingly ignominious end?

  11. BIG-CUP-WINNERS on

    ernie005

     

     

    Someone not telling the truth eh ? Do you want to scroll back or will I copy for you :-)

  12. It’s a lovely day here.

     

     

    But it’s not matched by my mood.

     

     

    We’re doomed a’ tell youse!

     

     

    HH!!

  13. ....PFayr supports WeeOscar on

    What a truly depressing CFC first eleven

     

     

    Crap, crap and crapper

     

     

    And the bench is crap too

     

     

    Off out to watch the match

     

     

    COYBIG… Surprise me

  14. BIG-CUP-WINNERS on

    ernie lynch

     

    11:55 on

     

    31 August, 2014

     

    BIG-CUP-WINNERS

     

     

    11:51 on 31 August, 2014

     

     

    Where’s your reply?

     

     

    ———————————-

     

     

     

    ernie005

     

     

    HAHHA so base, but there’s a wee ego hurting in there………..

     

     

     

    You are a double agent ain’t you ? Must be, comical, beyond parody if that ain’t the case.

  15. tommytwiststommyturns on

    Anyone who stayed to the end on Tuesday was left in no doubt that the big man was for the off. He said his goodbye to the fans.

     

     

    Bringing a player like VVD to the club on the cheap, developing him and selling him for really big money 2 or 3 years later is a good strategy. Selling for half-decent money after only one year when you’ve been pumped out of the CL is not a strategy! It is complete and utter failure!

     

     

    The accounts will look good and the CEO and FD performance bonuses will be tidy. It’s madness for a football business to financially reward employees substantially while the football operation fails so badly.

     

     

    Look at that starting eleven today, or even Tuesday for that matter…if you can’t see the downsizing in quality, then you really are a fool.

     

     

    Lawell and Park GTF!

     

    T4

  16. Jobo

     

     

    He is….but unfortunately we will only be tooooo happy to oblige.

     

     

    He should be told he is under contract and is going nowhere…..but we would rather take the money again.

  17. I remember the Joe Ledley transfer.

     

     

    It was the last week in June Joe Ledley flew to Glasgow and had his Celtic medical prior to signing on a Bosman. 24 hours later, on 27th June, Ledley flew back to Cardiff. On the way to his chauffer-driven car at Celtic Park, a journalist asked if he had signed.

     

     

    “No comment.”

     

     

    This had the usual suspects on CQN going mental. Ledley had walked away from talks, according to several Celtic websites and the permanently enraged on here.

     

     

    Lawwell and the board were being slaughtered for refusing to meet the player’s demands.

     

     

    Meanwhile, a few of us made the point that Ledley’s current contract with Cardiff expired on 30th June and Celtic could not sign him until the contract had run its course. I and others were ridiculed and laughed at for our naivety.

     

     

    On 1st July, Joe Ledley was paraded at Celtic Park, having returned to sign on the dotted line.

     

     

    Does anyone seriously believe that if Scepovic had stalled on signing for Celtic, it would be missed by the SMSM? It is being talked about on here on the back of rumours.

     

     

    It’s terrible never to learn for your mistakes.

  18. I suspect Virgil has a contract clause with a price.

     

     

    I suspect there are offers on the table reaching that point.

     

     

    I suspect the club now have no say in what happens.

     

     

    I suspect that beating Maribor would have seen Virgil stay.

     

     

    I suspect the tabled offers were there when we took Denayer.

     

     

    I suspect a forward is not coming.

     

     

    I suspect I may need to change my moniker shortly.

     

     

    HH

  19. Dj67YNWAsupportstheresignartionofLAWELLandDESMONDtheSECRETHUNS on

    No VVD in the Celtic squad today……Good riddance to yet another foreign Mercenary!

     

     

    I thought we would be whippin’ bhoy’s in the Champions League had we reached the group stages. Now I firmly believe that we will be Chumps in the Europa League.

     

     

    ShowMeTheMoneyCSC

  20. So the big Dutch ponce pets the lip because he failed to get his Celtic team past a very average Maribor outfit and demands free of this burden of playing for the greatest club he’ll ever get lauded at and already the habitual brainwashed negative mindsets have him ‘being sold by the plc.’

     

     

    Jesus. F him and the horse he rode in on. Enjoy the turgid thrills of lower EPL, Virgil.

  21. BTW I don’t know if Scepovic will sign. I believe he will, but I have no insight into the transfer discussions.

     

     

    I’ll repeat that . . . I have no insight into the transfer discussions.

     

     

    Nor have the moaners claiming he has walked away or is stalling.

  22. Virgil strikes me as do many of the new young players in the game as one who knows he has the power, he seems to know what he wants and the idea of giving something back to us as a club seems to be beyond him.

     

     

    I’ve never bought into the hype about the Bhoy having seen him stranded by his own bad positioning many times and Efe’s role in bringing him on should not be underestimated, I had hoped he would stay and become a Celtic legend at least for those couple of seasons our mini legends stay for these day.

     

     

    Good player but nowhere near as good as he thinks.

     

     

     

    If he wants to go, then so long Son…

  23. The Honest Mistake loves being first on

    Neganon.

     

    No it’s not made up it’s there in black and white. You misunderstood what was written