I watched Liverpool lose their fifth consecutive home game in the EPL last night. One of the best teams in Europe over the last four years, which famously benefits from fan motivation, sit seventh in the table and out of a European spot for next season.
Even on current form, Liverpool would destroy Celtic, but the parallels in the two clubs decline are clear. Virgil van Dijk’s injury enforced absence at Anfield had as big an impact on Liverpool as Fraser Forster’s loss to Celtic. Both sides lost significant numbers through injury and, if anything, Celtic fans have a greater reputation for encouraging their team than Liverpool’s.
Jurgen Klopp, the urbane football intellectual, looks lost. We see unflattering bouts of temper as he struggles to understand where his Midas Touch went. Jurgen is among the game’s very best; Neil Lennon should take comfort that what happened to him can happen to anyone.
You and I have often said that a team operating at 90% is unrecognisable from the same players at full tilt. When one or two things go wrong at the margins, an entire edifice can crumble. Watching Liverpool also suffer does not sweeten the pill, but it is a lesson that football can destroy even the finest spreadsheets.
492 Comments- Pages:
- «
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- 8
- 9
- 10
- 11
- 12
- 13
- »
The Welfare sent for me today to inform me of my father being taken ill to hospital. Tried to get me to crawl for a special visit with my family. I was distressed about my father’s illness but relieved that he has been released from hospital. No matter what, I must continue.
I had a threatening toothache today which worried me, but it is gone now.
I’ve read Atkins’ statement in the Commons, Mar dheá! (Atkins pledged that the British government would not budge an inch on its intransigent position.) It does not annoy me because my mind was prepared for such things and I know I can expect more of such, right to the bitter end.
I came across some verse in Kipling’s short stories; the extracts of verses before the stories are quite good. The one that I thought very good went like this:
The earth gave up her dead that tide,
Into our camp he came,
And said his say, and went his way,
And left our hearts aflame.
Keep tally on the gun butt score,
The vengeance we must take,
When God shall bring full reckoning,
For our dead comrade’s sake.
‘I hope not,’ said I to myself. But that hope was not even a hope, but a mere figure of speech. I have hope, indeed. All men must have hope and never lose heart. But my hope lies in the ultimate victory for my poor people. Is there any hope greater than that?
I’m saying prayers — crawler! (and a last minute one, some would say). But I believe in God, and I’ll be presumptuous and say he and I are getting on well this weather.
I can ignore the presence of food staring me straight in the face all the time. But I have this desire for brown wholemeal bread, butter, Dutch cheese and honey. Ha!! It is not damaging me, because, I think, ‘Well, human food can never keep a man alive forever,’ and I console myself with the fact that I’ll get a great feed up above (if I’m worthy).
But then I’m struck by this awful thought that they don’t eat food up there. But if there’s something better than brown wholemeal bread, cheese and honey, etcetera, then it can’t be bad.
The March winds are getting angry tonight, which reminds me that I’m twenty-seven on Monday. I must go, the road is just beginning, and tomorrow is another day. I am now 62 kgs and, in general, mentally and physically, I feel very good.
Friday 6th March 1981
There was no priest in last night or tonight. They stopped me from seeing my solicitor tonight, as another part of the isolation process, which, as time goes by, they will ruthlessly implement. I expect they may move me sooner than expected to an empty wing. I will be sorry to leave the boys, but I know the road is a hard one and everything must be conquered.
I have felt the loss of energy twice today, and I am feeling slightly weak.
They (the Screws) are unembarrassed by the enormous amount of food they are putting into the cell and I know they have every bean and chip counted or weighed. The damned fools don’t realise that the doctor does tests for traces of any food eaten. Regardless, I have no intention of sampling their tempting morsels.
I am sleeping well at night so far, as I avoid sleeping during the day. I am even having pleasant dreams and so far no headaches. Is that a tribute to my psychological frame of mind or will I pay for that tomorrow or later! I wonder how long I will be able to keep these scribbles going?
My friend Jennifer got twenty years. I am greatly distressed. (Twenty-one-year-old Jennifer McCann, from Belfast’s Twinbrook estate, was sentenced to twenty years’ imprisonment for shooting at an RUC man).
I have no doubts or regrets about what I am doing for I know what I have faced for eight years, and in particular for the last four and-a-half years, others will face, young lads and girls still at school, or young Gerard or Kevin (Bobby’s son and nephew, respectively) and thousands of others.
They will not criminalise us, rob us of our true identity, steal our individualism, depoliticise us, churn us out as systemised, institutionalised, decent law-abiding robots. Never will they label our liberation struggle as criminal.
I am (even after all the torture) amazed at British logic. Never in eight centuries have they succeeded in breaking the spirit of one man who refused to be broken. They have not dispirited, conquered, nor demoralised my people, nor will they ever.
I may be a sinner, but I stand — and if it so be, will die — happy knowing that I do not have to answer for what these people have done to our ancient nation.
Thomas Clarke is in my thoughts, and MacSwiney, Stagg, Gaughan, Thomas Ashe, McCaughey. Dear God, we have so many that another one to those knaves means nothing, or so they say, for some day they’ll pay.
When I am thinking of Clarke, I thought of the time I spent in ‘B’ wing in Crumlin Road jail in September and October ’77. I realised just what was facing me then. I’ve no need to record it all, some of my comrades experienced it too, so they know I have been thinking that some people (maybe many people) blame me for this hunger-strike, but I have tried everything possible to avert it short of surrender.
I pity those who say that, because they do not know the British and I feel more the pity for them because they don’t even know their poor selves. But didn’t we have people like that who sought to accuse Tone, Emmet, Pearse, Connolly, Mellowes: that unfortunate attitude is perennial also…
I can hear the curlew passing overhead. Such a lonely cell, such a lonely struggle. But, my friend, this road is well trod and he, whoever he was, who first passed this way, deserves the salute of the nation. I am but a mere follower and I must say Oíche Mhaith.
Covid affected Celtic more than most from the moment Boli Bolingoli jumped on a plane
Try telling Odsonne Edouard El Hamed Nir Bitton and David Turnbull who all tested positive that Covid had no influence, not to mention a virtual team that had to self isolate after Dubacle.
How did other teams fair? , some better than others but there’s no question Celtic were hammered by Covid, and yes it was a contributory factor in the loss of at least a title race, which was over before we lost at Ibrokes IMO.
David66,
Re NFL – not many managers are truthful when still in the post and it wouldn’t sit well with any future employers.
Also, if I had the option of biting my tongue for a few more months in order to get 6 or 7 figure payout I’d bite your hand off for it – if I wasn’t biting my tongue of course 😃
Like you though I’m glad it’s over and I just want to fast forward to the start of next season.
David 66 ! Carefull there m8 , I said after the st mirren defeat that he was staying out of spite and got abuse for it , still think it was out of spite, and of course money
Majestic – There is many Gardens of god but only 1 true Garden of god..
The Good n the Bad The Garngad.
I know exactly what you are saying with Neil but it’s a bitter pill to swallow.
D :)
The club itself needs to take responsibility for this season on the park, the signing strategy, the squad makeup, years in the making through various windows, the managers decision to give players time off after Kilmarnock as they worked hard which gave Bolingoli time to fly to Spain and back for what reason? The manager’s training methods, in my opinion we are still not fit enough to last 90minutes, nothing like it, then Dubai and the positive case of a player with ruptured knee ligaments out for the season but able to fly 7000 miles on a round trip causing 13 to isolate due to a positive test, why was he there other than for his own morale?
NL in my opinion should have been sacked after Cluj in the CL qualifier last year after playing McGregor at left back and would not see the error in his decision making.They will always use we won 4 trebles in his defence , we were successful but have not made progress as a club as we are again in a state of rebuild when the manager goes wrong, it should not be like this.
Yes the club has been called out by the FM a point i raised with my MSP as it was applied inconsistently, but, you are as well talking to a bag of rice for all the sense they made,they are not interested in any criticism or comment on this.
Own up to what has gone wrong , treat the support with respect and get things right going forward is the only option now in all areas of the club. the mess it is in takes the focus away from the corruption in the game here, maybe the intention.
The Scottish Cup to be defended can we score enough keep them out at the other end , time will tell.
Wishaw Tim – I have never been 1 for censorship as The old gameshow used to say “say what you see”
D :)
The only point re the conclusion from Paul is .
We have been getting worse(albeit still being good enough for Scotland) for 2 years .
The rotten mob despite what many Inc me did not want to see were getting better and closer the scales tipped this season to them aided by much poor management off the park.
The warning was the games vrs them and to be way they progressed in Europe. I to was sucked in a bit by they are not that good …well the sad fact is they are a good bit better than we think and better than us in their football operations .
Took me till about 6 months ago to realise we were in trouble still many people I speak to think we are just going to bounce back next year I have serious doubts on that .
Our demise was flagged in advance I don’t think Liverpools was .
HT
I saw that someone criticised you for these annual remembrance post .
I’m sure that I’m not alone in saying that I like them very much.
More power to your elbow.
TT
TT
You are not alone!
pitymevin
Aye fantastic achievement. No huns in the leauge for 4 seasons and you are going on about 9 leauge titles.
yep pitymevin
9 titles won playing by the rules
the self harm of another club is their problem,
they own the reasons why they were defecated out the league! ask a hun why?
but this shite old firm narrative that somehow we won 9 as they were being cheated by same ol Alloa…nonsense .
hh
SPIDEY101 on 4TH MARCH 2021 8:40 PM
So AT set me the task of building a starting 11 – in a 4-4-2 – for £30m. He kindly excluded wages. The players in question had to be 25 or under.
The team/squad I’ve gone for are naturally callow and I think Europe would be tough, but (properly coached) I think they could win the league and the potential is high. I tried to keep it realistic – no “Messi on a Bosman” types. So here goes:
GK – Freddie Woodman – Newcastle – Bosman.
Perpetually on loan which saw him spend time at Kilmarnock and Aberdeen. Now at Swansea, who have the best defensive record in the Championship. Could be Forster Mark II.
RB – Felix Passlack – Dortmund – Bosman.
I suggested Svensson which kicked this whole thing off. However, I misread his age and he’s 27 (not 25 as I thought). So to keep within parameters, I’m suggesting Felix Passlack of Dortmund as an alternative. He’s 22, a German u-21 international and out of contract in summer. A product of the Dortmund youth system, His time and Dortmund has largely been spent on loan – he’s had stints at Hoffenheim, Fortuna Sittard, and Norwich. Between the 4 clubs, he’s only played around 90 games, so really needs to make a sensible decision on his next move to kick on. I think he’d do well for us (though he is a bit of a gamble) and the Frimpong example would probably convince him that a move to us could be good for his longer-term career.
LB: Juan Miranda – Barcelona – Bosman.
More appropriately Barcelona B team as he’s only made 4 appearances for the first team (3 in the Copa Dep Rey and 1 in the Champions League). He would be a consummate gamble as his first team experience is limited – he featured in 12 games on loan at Shalke and (so far) 16 on loan this year at Real Betis. He’s playing regularly now for Betis, featuring in 12 of thier last 14 games.
Like Passlack, someone who needs to make a sensible decision for his next move and we could fit the bill. He’s 6ft1 for those who like/want tall full backs.
CB: Cameron Carter-Vickers – Spurs – Bosman.
An American international, he’s clocked up over 100 appearances in the English Championship. He’s bounces around on loan for a few years now – Stoke, Swansea, Sheffield United, Luton, Ipswich, and currently Bournemouth- and I can’t see Spurs offering a new deal.
CB: Benkovic – Leicester City – £5-8m.
We know all about him and his career post-Celtic hasn’t been great. I think if Leicester could get their money back (£10m) or some of it with a stinking sell on, they’d let him go. At £5-10m there’s room to make a profit long-term, and we know there’s a player in there.
RM – Youssef Ait Bennasser – Monaco – Bosman.
24 year old Moroccan international, with 90 games in League 1, and has been around the loan block in France. As I’m not a professional scout I’m restricted to Google searches, but he looks to have a bit of skill and good close control. He’s a CM by trade but can play RM and DM, so I’ve put him in there with a view to him tucking in to create a middle 3 if we need more numbers in the centre or to allow Passlack to bomb on without us being left light at the back.
CM – Junior Bacuna – Huddersfield – Bosman.
A 23 year old Dutchman who was capped at u-21 level before choosing to play for Curacao at senior level.
He’s been at Huddersfield since 2018,
playing 21 games in the Premier League and 69 in the Championship. He was picked up from Groningen where he had played 83 games.
DM – Dejan Ljubicic – Rapid Vienna – Bosman.
23 year old Captain of Rapid Vienna, he’s played almost 120 games for Rapid in the Austrian Bundesliga. Almost moved to Chicago Fire a year or so ago but controversially failed a medical. Chicago said he had an ACL injury but Rapid checked and couldn’t see it – echoes of Hartson to Rangers there.
LW – Marco Grull – SV Reid – Bosman.
A gamble (again) in that he’s in his first season in the Austrian top flight having been promoted last season. This season he’s got 9 goal contributions (6 goals and 3 assists) in 18 games for a team who are struggling (3rd bottom in the league). Overall he’s got 57 goal contributions (26 goals and 31 assists) in 67 games, so think he’d be a decent addition given he’s only 22.
CF – Mohamed Bayo – Clermont Foot – £5m
In his first season with Clermont Foot in France’s Ligue 2, he’s had 23 goal contributions (18 goals, 5 assists) in 38 games. In season 2019-20, he had similar numbers in the French third division- 22 goal contributions (16 goals, 6 assists) in 36 games, so he’s showing the ability to step up and at 22 has some good goal numbers in France.
CF – Luke Jephcott – Plymouth Argyle – £5m.
21 year old youth product, he scored 7 goals in 14 games in Plymouth’s prompt season helping them escape League 2. This season he has 25 goals in 37 games, showing the potential to step up.
I’d use the spare cash to bring in McKenna (£4m – Nottingham Forrest), Ferguson (£5m – Aberdeen) and Nisbett (£3m – Hibs) as well as bringing in Ostigard (Brighton – Bosman – 30 games for Coventry in Championship and around the same in Bundesliga 2 for St Pauli. Norwegian U-21 centre back) and Campbell (Motherwell). Rounding the squad out with some existing players, it would look like:
GK – Woodman / Bain
RB – Passlack / Welsh
CB – Vickers / Benkovic / McKenna / Ostigard
LB – Miranda / Taylor
RM – Forrest / Bennasser
LM – Grull / Johnson (last chance for him)
CM – Soro / Turnbull / Ferguson / Campbell / Ljubicic / Bacuna
CF – Bayo / Jephcott / Nisbett / Klimala (I think there’s a player in there).
AT – the 25 max age was a killer. I had to leave out folk like Junker at Bodo/Glimt, Rui Silva at Granada, Quaison at Mainz and Magnussen at CSKA who I’d otherwise have been interested in…
================================
Thank you Spidey for a comprehensive answer(ex mckenna ha) no i am jj it shows the range of talent available.
i would expect our club to have something akin to your answer for each position.
i would like to see us raid eastern europe for talent.
thanks again for taking the time to research.
much appreciated.
:-)
HH
Bob – spot on, our decline has been on the cards since Rodger’s second season when we started the “just enough” approach – in the January window that year we got Comperr and Musonda on loan, which isn’t exactly the sign of a club looking to push on.
BSR – I take the point, but of those only Eddy was a first team player at the time – the rest were back-up/squad players. At a push El-Hamed was but he’s been injury prone anyway.
Dubai is on the club – most folk said it was a terrible idea to go and just too risky at a time when the infection rate on Dubai was growing. And if you are going to go, don’t take injured players on a jolly – keep the bubble as small and tight as you can!
If Neil Lennon was hanging around to spite the fans, it would surely be the imbeciles that were telling him to GTF…
PRESTONPANS BHOYS on 6TH MARCH 2021 9:48 AM
Good morning from a very sunny East Lothian, BBC breakfast programme going on about how the Huns recovered from administration to win the league. Where do you start from that pish😵😱
###
The Celtic board, by their self serving silence, have enabled that narrative to become established as the truth.
Not by accident, but by design.
They (the board) should not be allowed to get away with it.
No worries AT.
I expect the club will have more info and data on players and have a range of folk they have looked at in each position. I think the problem is largely around the decision on which ones to go for – the Toney v Ajeti dilemma.
I’d also like us to look at the Eastern European market more – I like the look of the Zagreb keeper – Livichenko I think his name is – but Man Utd are already linked at £15-20m, so we’ve missed the boat.
Our strategy under Hammond seems to largely be to buy British and hoover up younger players – Frimpong, Connell, O’Connor, Alofobi – I can see the sense in it post-Brexit and when we see the fees we got for Dembele and Frimpong. But I worry that (1) we focus on that too much and (2) most of them go the same way as our youth players and never get near the first team.
See Scotlands shame out celebrating 1-in-a-row.
Covid clowns
SPIDEY101
Re. Dubai.
Julien hadn’t even had his operation when he went on the jolly
Spidey101
Really enjoyed your player profile post.
Appreciate you taking the time and effort
HH jg
St Tams – that’s shocking then! We made/let him fly half way around the world with that injury so he could have a jolly 🤦♂️
James gang 👍
Thankfully there was no internet when we found ourselves 4-0 down to Partick Thistle Nil, insides 37 minutes in the cup final.
Oldies CSC
St Tams
Has he had surgery, I got the impression it was non surgical treatment he was receiving, granted a rupture should be surgery as the damage is too great?
BOURNESOUPRECIPE on 6TH MARCH 2021 11:49 AM
Thankfully there was no internet when we found ourselves 4-0 down to Partick Thistle Nil, insides 37 minutes in the cup final.
oldies Csc
9 y.o me was taken to Shawlands to get claes.
instead of been taken to the game.so a strop was on.disbelief was the word for it.askin the score.! stays way me
hh
Spidey,
Your post about available player was excellent.Just emphasising what I posted last week.There are good options to be had out there.TET was always going on about the bargains from middle placed Spanish teams.
Why are some posters still rabbiting on about Lenny and PL.They are history now.Even in leaving,PL seems to haunt some peoples waking hours.Its unhealthy.
Stuart from Mogwai on Off the Ball
AN
Warsaw, Sion thrown out of Europe handed us extra opportunities to progress, we have never made it through the last 16 in Europe in the last decade and the huns have done this on their third attempt.
The point being made is the fact they have clawed back so quickly as the board never gave the manager ( any manager) the choice in the transfer market.
It also funny how you choose your own narrative, but dont comment on the
£52 million to £100 million under BR and what did we do. We did not back the manager and give him the full resources he deserved,
If you are happy with the current set up and content with the constant failures in Europe good for you.
Me I’m not and even ten years ago these same issues were being commented on. The same board members that have never raised our profile in europe.
The same board that are going to repeat there plan for success.
Last minute. com
We have a European championship this year and a lot of our players will not be at the training ground come the end of season.
We have CL qualification straight away.
What time does this leave to let the new manager run the rule over his squad and get his ideas across. But it’s ok it’s all in hand they know exactly what they are doing.
Yes they do know exactly what they are doing, they are stealing a wage and do you think that DD would allow this in any of his other business. NFC.
I have been saying that I cant believe that DD became a billionaire with this attitude, if he is that stupid to accept this from a CEO, stadium closure in europe, failure to prepare for next season (every season)and the opportunity to qualify with a prospect of £30 million for an outlay of say £500k and that’s being very generous.
Im not saying DD is corrupt and this is how he made his money, but the way he is letting one of his business fail on a regular basis doesn’t do anything to say he has great business acument.
Or as long as it breaks even it’s just a play thing, we deserve more, much more.
Cheers Turkeybhoy.
There’s good value to be had out there and, once we know who the new manager is and what style we’ll play, it would be easier to look at those markets. This summer we don’t have to worry about EU nationals getting work permits, so this is a last chance to really make the most of that.
I stuck to Bosman’s in the main when doing this as it avoided the “would his club sell him” and “you wouldn’t get X for that money”. Where I did spend money I think I was pretty generous in the fee paid for Jephcott and with Bayo it was a guess. I probably scrimped a bit on Benkovic but I genuinely can’t see Leicester recouping £10m and reckon we could probably do a £15m and Benkovic for Eddy deal (which everyone could sell as £25m).
I expect our scouts have lists of players who would do a job for us – I think we’ve just limited ourselves to “who will have ups in de if we sell on”, sticking largely to the British market, and PL’s involvement killing deals like Toney.
PRESTONPANS BHOYS on 6TH MARCH 2021 9:48 AM
Good morning from a very sunny East Lothian, BBC breakfast programme going on about how the Huns recovered from administration to win the league. Where do you start from that pish😵
____
Start by complaining to the BBC, points of view? BBC report fake news and at it’s heart is institutional bias to favour the old establishment club.
God help us if Barkas and Julien had balled it up the way the Arsenal pair did.Dear God.
PITYMEVIN,
I have no idea what you expect Celtic to do about the timing of the EC,and the timing of the CLqualifiers.Just rabbiting on with negatives,how does that help anyone.You have no idea what will happen,none of us do,but just keep posting g negatives.Sure it makes you feel good.
Today’s weatherman on BBC news channel, is obviously a Tribute Act to Ken and Kenneth from the Fast Show……
Absolutely shocking scenes from ipox
What is the point in us all following guidelines when 1 club are allowed to do WTF they like with impunity.
I think I will have my Quadrupel treble party before the Huns game in the Celtic park car park.
Feck it
D :)
https://videocelts.com/2021/03/blogs/latest-news/the-kennedy-call-compare-and-contrast-how-new-fan-based-celtic-media-compared-with-the-mainstream/
This link has a 40 minute audio of a zoom call with Celtic Podcasters, John Kennedy and David Turnbull. Lots of good questions and interesting to hear how Kennedy responds. I thought he spoke really well.
Turk, we know the dates these games must be played.
Fail to prepare, then prepare to fail.
Not negative just realistic
!!BADA BING!! on 6TH MARCH 2021 1:21 PM
Today’s weatherman on BBC news channel, is obviously a Tribute Act to Ken and Kenneth from the Fast Show…
—-
Is that the Welsh boy with the big red hair. He’s hilarious. Wales’ answer to Sean Batty?
SPIDEY101,
That’s great. Love it when our supporters are able to provide insightful information into potential signings. Have you seen any of them play?
Ziggy- that’s the one, I thought last week it was a Comic Relief sketch,but he was back on this morning…