You don’t need to tell me. The biggest thing worrying you about tomorrow is the number of people (from both sides, but especially from the other side), who are saying Celtic are going to “batter them” tomorrow.
I have been going to Ibrox since John Greig was manager and Rangers were a midtable side. Greig endured several years of humiliating results and grief from those who were previously only disappointed in him for being so poor as a player against Celtic. “Greig must stay” was a popular Glasgow ditty for a while. “Martin must stay” has a ring to it too.
There is an anchor game which is often in my head I want to talk about, not long after Greig left the scene. The sides met at Ibrox in November 1985. Jock Wallace – the man who eventually stopped John Stein and won two trebles in three years- was back in charge. Celtic would go on to win the league that season, Rangers edged out Dundee on goal difference to finish fifth, with the same points gap between them and Celtic, as they had to bottom of the table Clydebank.
Celtic were buoyed by the arrival two days earlier of big money signing Mark McGhee from Hamburg. Everyone expected Celtic to breeze to the points but they lost the game 3-0. Good Celtic teams have lost to poor sides at Ibrox for as long as the place has stood.
The managerial titan that is Barry Ferguson took Newco to Celtic Park in March and left with the points. It has been an entire year since we have beaten them over 90 minutes (a penalty win in the League Cup Final being the exception), which for a Celtic team who win so much domestically, is not a good look.
I have indulged in watching them a few times this season. Russell Martin’s suggestion that they have players who do not have minds on the task is on the mark. Punches are being pulled. Does anyone think they will pull their punches against us? Expect Newco players to throw everything they have at us.
We are not without our worries. Kairat’s soft-press was all it took to eliminate Celtic from the Champions League. We struggled to progress the ball quickly enough into dangerous areas. And when we managed it, the cutting edge was gone. Who can we expect to get the goals tomorrow?
Brendan’s record against Newco managers has been very good, but Ferguson was one that got away. Russell Martin could do the same if we don’t find a cutting edge. This is why Brendan is the manager and you and me just fans. He needs to find a fix for what ails us.
Welcome to Celtic, Marcelo Saracchi. The 27-year-old Uruguayan left back joins on a season-long loan from Boca Juniors, allaying fears of an over-dependency on Kieran Tierney. It’s a tall ask but I expect to see him at some point tomorrow.
That game in 1985; two weeks before it I walked into the Celtic Shop in town (top of West Nile St, I think). Stevie Chalmers from behind the counter said, “How can I help you?” “Six tickets for Ibrox”, I replied. That’s how easy it was to meet a European Cup winner can get away tickets back then. Enjoy the game.
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Trusty is out he has Plantar Fasciitis and this can take a while to clear, BR said it might be an operation.
No way would I play Hatate, he is more of a danger to us than any opposition,, he isn’t a fraction of the player we signed, maybe thinks he’s better than he is, not uncommon
I’d play 5 in the middle with as much size and power we can muster, so it would be 4 5 1 for me,with Mcgregor as the attacking midfielder, he’s doing nothing as a 6, our wingers dont go on the outside so they narrow the game, Forrest seldom plays well against them either, their LB is hopeless defensively but can cross a good ball.
That result midweek , and the two performances over the two legs , have knocked the stuffing out of my confidence for tomorrow.
The whole shambles around the Idah sale hasn’t helped. I can’t see how he can play tomorrow.
Has to be Maeda who has done well against them of course. Hopefully Tavernier plays.
If not Maeda , that leaves Kenny who’s seems more mobile than Idah but hasn’t been given enough time to show whether he has a decent level of goals in him. I can’t see how only assume he hasn’t been setting the heather on fire in training so far this season, otherwise he’d have been starting ahead of Idah.
If we had a striker – we don’t – who could hold the ball up and play attacking midfielders in that might have been an option.
I think we’ll play a patchwork with Maeda up front and hope for the best.
I wouldn’t normally worry too much about their attacking ( despite all the evidence to the contrary last season) but Miovski concerns me. I just hope he’s not match fit.
Anyhoo , I predict 4-0 to us.
;-)
KS
Tony CCV Scales KT
Nygren Engels McGregor Bernardo Balikwisha
Maeda as we dont have any other starting options.Swap for kenny after 60 minutes
I can’t see how only assume
=
I can only assume
The more things change… a throwback to the other Desmond. Our host also rates a passing mention.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UfpEo-31MmQ
Good to see our host and acolytes drawing from the Putin playbook.
When the present is grim and the future worse distract folks with tales of the distant past.
Some will buy it… but not many.
So we go as is
Get stuck right in about them
We need to get behind the team
The board can wait till after the game
Until then, I hope we can put in a 90 mins to further punish the hun
Then after Monday
We attack this useless recruitment shambles
“ Celtic need to examine long term transfer trend “
Brendan Rodgers
Again? Weren’t we promised great things after the last review?
I guess it would depend on who’s doing the examining but would a long term review be mainly about the Lawwells and ignore the short term problems that the Summer 2024 window caused?
What with this and his call for an inquiry into Tuesday nights disaster it feels a bit like hes distancing himself from anything thats gone wrong.
It’s not like he hasn’t made been part of it himself and made some pretty costly mistakes as well
That many calls for a review of the transfer business I think it has to be referred to VAR .
HH
Every now and again Keevins says something that is spot on. From tomorrow’s paper:
“Nobody needed a sixth sense to know the team were seriously flawed following the loss of Nicolas Kuhn, Jota, Kyogo and the much-missed Greg Taylor.
All you needed was a leather-upholstered seat facing the pitch.
Dermot Desmond has one which he uses every once in a while. Did the de facto owner of the club not hear any alarm bells in the distance?
Should Peter Lawwell, the chairman who has absolutely no responsibility for player recruitment, not have seen something and whispered in the ear of someone who does have responsibility for that kind of thing?
It surely can’t be the case that an arrogant stance was taken not to sign players before the play-off tie because the board know best and the fans are there simply to provide crowd noise?
It can’t be, can it?”
Comments from Brendan Rodgers are the only Celtic show in town
Regardless of the issues it will cause us through the middle, I think we’d get a lot of joy putting Maeda wide left against Aarons. I have rarely seen such a hopeless individual asked to do a difficult job. Play our speed machine and he will self-destruct for sure.
His record in Scotland has been great , but let’s face it we have been playing crap football teams
.Personally when all this shenanigans and lies by everyone connected to Celtic, I hope they are all away by January or in the summer.
JF – I think the stupid red card he got against Brugge might see him being dropped in favour of Tavernier – someone Maeda normally scares to death. At the moment, they might just about cancel each other out.
DeniaBhoy:
Yeah good point. Their central defence looks all over the shop, so Maeda, if he’s on form at all, should have a good either way. Still, I can’t say I’m looking forward to it.
●Three to ponder●
1) The only UEFA member without it’s own national league?
2) Where was the venue for Manchester United’s first European cup home game?
3) Which city rivals were the first to have both won the European cup?
●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●■■●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●
Loads of Celtic fans wanted rid of Taylor, and KT was the saviour.
Now Taylor is important
Losing Taylor isn’t the issue, that is ignoring the real issues with Celtic, we like to have money, we keep it, we don’t like to spend it on the first team or any of the teams, understandable when money was tight but that cannot be said now, even spending the 25m raised from sales and sell ons for this season alone would have given a budget of 25m, the policy of not recruiting has put us out of the CL where we earned 46m before gate money last year, it is madness to have done this but that is what has happened.
1 Lichtenstein
3 Milan
JF – I agree. I think tomorrow will be one of those games when literally anything could happen. The kind of game where a new signing who has no fear of the fixture shines. That could be Balikwisha for us or maybe Antman or Gassama for them.
I don’t think they will throw Miovski straight in without having a chance to actually assess him in training.
Our midfield will be the key and I wouldn’t be surprised to see any of Engels, Calmac and Nygren on the scoresheet. They are going to get plenty of chances. Barron will do his best to hurt someone but he, along with Cameron and Rothwell make up as poor a midfield three I can remember them having.
Fingers crossed. A win would provide all of us with at least something to smile about on Monday.
The reason we are not in champs league is down to one man and that is Rodgers. His lack of risk taking and tippy tappy , not using yamadas pace to unsettle their back line. Not getting in behind them. Over 2 games we barely laid a glove on them – esp #2 goalkeeper and a weakened side. It’s on tactics.
Sure , the board have not replaced certain players and they disgust me! But that team, with the proper focus and intentional tactics should beat Kairat. Rodgers spent more time taking about lack of this and lack of that – rather than focus on team capability.
I’ve no confidence we win tomorrow, when I should have. Gassama will tear Ralston to shreds
HRVATSKI
Yes One to get.
Off out for dinner, enjoy your evening gents, doubt anyone will be waking up with an anxiety attack in the middle of the night.
Que Será, será.
https://the-shamrock.net/2025/08/17/thousands-are-sailing-part-two/
‘THE HEADQUARTERS OF POPERY IN THIS CITY’
“The suburb of Bridgeton is an admirable illustration of this. Modern though it be, it has not been allowed to pass scatheless — the invaders having here also secured a refuge. A tenement of houses in Main Street was complained of as being ruinous, and in a state of disrepair; and it was remitted to competent tradesmen to inspect and report. The tenement in question is comparatively new, but, when we mention that it is known in the district by the name of the “Dublin Land,” it will be easily understood how it has become necessary for the Court to bestow upon it some share of its attention. Looking at this, and a hundred other instances of the pestiferous influence of these immigrants, we cannot help exclaiming—Repeal the Union.” – James Pagan – Glasgow Past and Present, 1851
2) Where was the venue for Manchester United’s first European cup home game?
maine road
Ryan Chtistie came on as a sub in Bournemouth’s 1-0 win
Kris Ajer unused sub in 1-2 defeat
Paddy Roberts unused sub in same game
Rocvo Vata came on as a sub and assisted in a 2-2 draw for Watford
Daniel Kelly came on as a sub in a 0-2 defeat for Millwall
Mikey Johnston starred for WBA in a 1-0 win
Bosun Lawal played full game for Stoke in same game
Lennys Dunfermline had a disappointing draw
Broony’s Ayr …same disappointing draw
Team for tomorrow
KAsper
Saracchi
CCV
Scalesy
KT
Engels
Cal
Hatate
Maeda
Shin
Bslikwisha
If the players are up for it, I think we could burst them by half time
Tomorrow will see two poor teams facing each other. They are at home and under pressure but we are doing better in the league. I think it’ll be a draw, or possibly not. :-)
It’s nuts that we’re in turmoil and yet we’re the only team in world football that have only concede 1 goal in in 6 games.
I have far too much time on my hsnds CSC
PeterLatchfordsBelly on 30th August 2025 4:49 pm
Good to see our host and acolytes drawing from the Putin playbook. When the present is grim and the future worse distract folks with tales of the distant past. Some will buy it… but not many.
*I take it that’s me your talking about, well first of all I have never been anyone’s acolyte, cost me jobs and money in the past but at least I can sleep at night, I am me and always have been and if you had truly known me you would NEVER have likened me to that St Petersburg fascist, I am an unashamed socialist who had family members travel to Spain to fight for the Republicans just as their forefathers fought for the same cause in the mother country
I don’t know Paul, spoke often with his dad Martin, and enjoyed his conversations, it seems we speak the same of our love for the Celtic, I was NOT particularly happy when I heard BR was coming back but accepted it and I am of the opinion he is seeing out his contract and like a lot of players and management before him will leave when its over, which is why I mentioned the connection between wee Shaun, Arne and Michel-Ange.
I only mentioned that we have always been a selling club, and that’s listening to my da and other members of the family, in response to yorkbhoy’s posting but expanded it a bit to show that we have enhanced on this policy in an attempt to bring good players to parkheid and NOT at the whim of an overbearing chairman.
If you don’t like it then do as Dionne Warwick once said “walk on by”
Tontine Tim👏👏👏
Tomorrow is all about getting that first goal
Make them face the hate and jeers from the crowd and watch them shrink and make poor decisions
If we score first, and score early – we will crush them (under the weight of the boo’s)
clunks on 30th August 2025 8:27 pm
we will crush them (under the weight of the boo’s)
=========================================
I’d like to crush temunder our lightning quick devastating attacks , but I’ll settle for the boos instead ._))))
Brendan IS an elite manager in games like tomorrow.
C’mon Brendan….smash these skint f×:£#@s.
Clunks….I’ve bet 1st goal -0 ro 10 mins.
Nervous wreck.CSC