Steven Fletcher has his own place in Celtic folklore. We bid for him in January 2009, the player made a public plea to Hibs to allow the deal to happen, but Rod Petrie rejected the approach. Fletcher would go to Burnley at the end of that season for a deal worth around £4m, which seemed eye-watering at the time for a striker who scored 11 goals the previous 12 months.
As Celtic ran out of steam in the spring of 2009 attention turned to what might have been had Fletcher signed. He was the one that got away. The whats, whys and maybes of that time are irrelevant now, but in short, Celtic didn’t value Fletcher at £4m and Petrie reckoned he could get that kind of money in England if he waited.
Before selling to Burnley he didn’t even put the customary call out to Celtic to entice a higher bid. Petrie wanted Hibs to be known as a team who could produce players for the English Premier League – a Hamilton Accies-Lite, if you like. It’s a legitimate strategy.
The player is 28-years-old and now free of the ankle injury which plagued him for over a year. He’s on an astronomical basic wage at Sunderland, who paid north of £10m for his services. Few Scottish footballers will have higher career earnings than him, but that contract ends in June. This season has brought 4 goals from 11 starts for a Sunderland team who sit in a relegation position.
The injury profile makes him a possibility for Celtic. Without it, as a free agent, he would remain in the English Premier League next season (whether Sunderland do or not). His agent will no doubt be shopping him around right now, as will Sunderland, who at the moment will be asking for a consideration to be paid to release him this month.
We must have signed 20 strikers since January 2009, very few as good as Steven Fletcher. I’d take him in a heartbeat.
I’m pleased Anthony Stokes (16 months younger than Fletcher) has a choice of clubs wanting to loan him this month. All three: Dundee United, Inverness and Hibs, would be good places for him. United are a better team than their abysmal points tally indicates, but they are desperately short of strikers. Stokes could transform them. Hibs and Inverness are both clubs looking purposefully towards the second half of the season.
Charity Q&A Night, Carfin
I’m on the (otherwise excellent) Q&A panel at the Xavier Centre, Carfin, on Saturday 30 January alongside two Libson Lions – John Clark and Bertie Auld, Celtic author and sports academic – Dr Joe Bradley, and Fifa referee – Willie Collum.
The purpose of the night is to raise funds for Lanarkshire Cancer Care Trust and the Young Adult Ministry. Tickets will be scarce, so if you’d like to attend, call Mick on 07827 975271 soon.
You know when you look at a line-up and just know it’s going to be a great night…..
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If we sign Fletcher, we would have to be paying him less than Griff
He’s not as good
Philbhoy.
Now if we could get Big Derk fit for 6 or 7 games……………………
I’ll have you know, Derk has been fit for 6 or 7 games before
He played 2 of them in 2010, 2 in 2011, one in 2014 and one in 2015.
so THERE!-))
GDT
LOL!
glendalystonsils
Funny
Though I genuinely cannot believe that we employ analysts who cannot spot stuff like that
http://www.celticfc.net/news/9891
Get them tf
http://thehoopsblog.com/2016/01/14/updates-of-the-issues-with-celtic-supporters/
FRED QUIMBY on 14TH JANUARY 2016 2:13 PM
“Cifti back to Dundee Utd – Stokes to Hibernian – Scepovic & Ambrose sold – Derk and Blackett chased
Sign Wasilewski (out of contact in June) from Leicester City – just the kind of experienced no nonsense centre back we need to bring on Simonovic and Boyata. Probably get him for around £1 million.”
We won’t sell Ciftci if we are already selling Stokes. Unless we bring somebody else in.
Wasilewski looked good but I’d only be interested in a bosman deal. He’s 35.
Nobody will want Derk. He will be here til his contract is done.
I don’t see us getting rid of Blackett and Ambrose. Charlie and Boyata are injured. Simo seems a bit injury prone too. We need the numbers (unless they get O’Connell back from Oldham)
Congrats to Mighty Tim. Grand weans are better than weans! You can give them back to the parents when the wee buggers get too annoying! Looking back through the blog but not all posts,it seems to me that some of the older guys are not thinking straight when replying to others’ posts. It is in ions from even a small sample of some people’s thoughts that they will never be persuaded that an opinion can be right or wrong provided facts can be established to support one opinion or the other. Stacks of folk on here will hold to their opinion till they die! It is a waste of time reasoning or even mis-calling them..As for the trantums ! ! Behave your age not your shoe size. In ions is opinions!
Herald headline – “Deila backs skipper Brown to give Celtic boost in Treble quest”.
Guess how many times Ronny uses the word “treble” in the article?
Clue – it’s the same as the number of WiFi bills Sevco have paid lately.
Ah well enough voted the SNP in, so going along these lines does that mean they won’t get voted back in if the don’t lift this daft act ? I don’t know I’m only asking.
https://stevenmcnamara4.wordpress.com/2016/01/14/offensive-behaviour-at-football-act-definition/
Timaloy
Did O’Connell not return to Celtic last week?
I would love a front three of Griffiths, Hooper and Fletcher.
Griff wouldn’t be able to hold down a regular place in any team in the EPL if he could he would have been sold, he is probably a mid English Championship player at best. That’s not putting him down that is being realistic about where we as a club are.
Fletch on the other hand is a player that could hack it at a number of mid to lower table clubs in the EPL so for those who are saying they wouldn’t take him as they think Griff is the better player I’d have to ask based on what? Fletch has been in the EPL and done it, Griff was down south where exactly?
BTW I don’t think he’ll sign as from what I’ve read about him in the past he likes the money that comes from being a footballer and he doesn’t strike me as being all that charitable. Would he accept £20k a week from Celtic when he could double it or more elsewhere? I don’t think so.
Also anyone who spits on a Rickshaw drivers back and post photos of it on social media thinking it’s funny should never ever wear the hoops IMHO.
Go this today from my MP John Scott
Dear RobinBoy
Thank you for your email regarding the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications (Scotland) Act 2012.
I share your concerns surrounding the application of this legislation, which I voted against in December 2011. I believed at that time that there were already sufficient laws in place to deal with this type of offending, and that the legislation was merely a knee-jerk, “something must be done” response.
I remain of the view that the Act should be repealed and support representations to the Scottish Parliament to secure this outcome.
I hope this is helpful
Yours sincerely
John
The Orange Bastard and fenian act had no real basis in legality although its motivation was twofold.
1. To stop any Celtic triumphalism as symbolized by “the broonie” in the upcoming dark days of liquidation.
2. Plain churlishness because Diouf wizny allowed to kick Lenny’s heed in during the same game.
That’s Scotland for you. Dont forget Celtic encouraged this law.
Knock Knock
Who’s there!
Fletcher!
Fletcher who?
Fletcher self go!
TIMALOY29
I genuinely cannot believe that we employ analysts who cannot spot stuff like that.
Who needs analysts? His dreadful fitness record was common knowledge when we signed him.
I know that as far as signings are concerned, we are grubbing for scraps from the rich man’s table,
but signing liabilities like Derk smacks of desperation.
Perhaps someone thought that signing a decent player from a decent standard of football (despite him being a broken down wreck) was either worth a long odds punt, or would be a good PR exercise.
Sevco have reportedly offered a six figure sum for O’Halloran
£101: 23 and a half pence
glendalystonsils
The Derk signing appears a bit of madness. We knew his nickname was “sick note” before he signed
Delaneys Dunky
Hooper will probably sign on permanently for Sheffield Wed or another Championship team
Your right about O’Connell, he is back after hardly playing Oldham
eddieinkirkmichael on 14th January 2016 3:54 pm
Griffiths is a better player now than when he was in England. Fletcher seems to be going backwards. Gone from 1 in 3 to 1 in 6. Interesting to see if any English teams take him on. I’d say maybe Championship.
Agree with the points at the end of your post.
Pitty, Celtic did not go for Michal Zyro. He signed for Wolverhampton two weeks ago with transfer fee to be reported GBP 400 000. Two days back he scored two goals for Wolves, playing on the new position – striker. Guy was desperate to move. He was hardly getting the place on the pitch after Warsaw bought Nemanja Nikolic and changed the system. Nikolic scored 21 goals in 21 games this season.
I meant – I doubt Celtic scouts know the market here.
Not surprising that a player of Anthony Stokes quality is still hogging the headlines. Even I was surprised to read his stats in Newsnow where he is credited with 95 goals in 191 appearences in the SPL and when you add on his many assists that is a formidable record for a footballer. Get a club Anthony and start playing football again.
Carlton Cole played quite well last week and his fitness level has improved considerably from his first outing when he was in very poor condition for a professional athlete -sorry Carlton, Celtic is not a retirement home. Remains to be seen if he can form a successful partnership with Griffiths.
sorry Carlton, Celtic is not a retirement home. Remains to be seen if he can form a successful partnership with Griffiths.
===================
Scary thing is he was signed in a protracted deal and following a few days(or was it a week?) long trial. The point of which is highly questionable given that he was clearly unable to play and now that he seemingly is…the transfer window is open again.
Baffling.
HH
Was Collum not ALLEGEDLY Dallas spokesman and rep ,when trying to save his skin in the lead up to the refs strike?
Zbyszek
Good afternoon and thank you for Zyro info,
Hmmmmm didn’t see that comin.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/35314746
GlassTwoThirdsFull on 14th January 2016 4:37 pm –
Agreed about Griff being better player now than when we signed him but for me you only have to look at Hooper to see what the real level of Griff is. Hooper couldn’t hack it at a small club in the EPL and I think although I prefer Griff he would be the same, so for me if you could get an established player from the EPL who is still in their prime then it would improve the team.
Again for me Fletch isn’t that player for various reasons.
Sevco set to appeal BBC TV live game decision
Seb Coe,running faster than he ever has before……..
What happened to the Michael O’Halloran money?
BSR
They are certs to be the Sky match.
Oh they are odds on to get the 12:30 sat. KO, no danger there.
Is it sky or BBC?
bada bing
Guilty of knowing what was going on with others accused of corruption, but he is the person to clean up athletics despite knowing and denying any cover up. Interesting he was was not named while others were.
TD67
Aye, them against the Ayrshire huns on Saturday and The salt & sauce derby on Sunday will be the Sky live matches choice.
Six teams bidding for Anthony Stokes on loan.
DD
It’s traditional and in the very fabric of Scottish society to have Sevco on TV.
BSR
Aye, a 4 year old tradition!