We saw a thoroughly professional performance from Celtic in Stockholm last night. AIK were always a team we should have beaten, but ‘should have’ does not always happen, as our previous encounter proved.
James Forrest, Mikey Johnston and Odsonne Edouard were on fire, while Christopher Jullien and Boli Bolingoli looked more comfortable than in previous outings.
Lazio finished eighth in Serie A last season, behind all the big names, but a decent ‘Best of the Rest’. Rennes are off to a flier, top after three wins from three games, including a win over PSG, but finished 10th in Ligue 1 last term. They will be better than anyone we have faced so far this season but this is why we want to be in European football.
Cluj are the team I wanted most of all. They are a strong pot 4 team but we were awful against them and need to put it right. This is a challenging Europa League group providing lots of opportunity to prove a point. Bring it on.
48 hours from now, we will be in action at Ibrox, where we were outplayed twice last season in games that ultimately cost nothing. Those experiences seem to have left some in our number with a bedwetting disposition ahead of Sunday. Steven Gerrard has added ten to his squad while Celtic, if you read some coverage, have done little transfer business of note. This is bollocks!
Gerrard starts from a losing position. His team have not won any major trophies. Celtic have been imperious on a level never previously known, three consecutive trebles!
Of Newco’s ten additions, two were for money (Helander, who they did not pay the reported £3m for, and Edmundson, sending £700k to the English fourth tier in return). Two are loans (Ojo and King), but the bulk are the Tried and Tested Free Transfers route to building a successful team (Hastie, Jones, Stewart, Davis, Aribo, Barker).
Bargain bucket- teams are easier to assemble than teams full of players who command transfer fees, but when the trophies are handed out, they are seldom on the receiving end.
By contrast, Celtic have so far spent £12m reassembling their disrupted defence (Jullien, Bolingoli, Elhamed), with Bauer on loan – and an option to buy him. There is also a quality left back on his way.
Fraser Forster is here on loan (he’s not cheap). We took advantage of the cross-country opportunity we exploited to sign Moussa Dembele, to capture Luca Connell for £350k, and I expect another first team addition (as well as the left back) before the window closes.
Celtic got everything wrong on one game this season but have all of the most productive, successful and valuable players in the country on the field at Ibrox on Sunday. We cannot take any game for granted, and I have seldom gone to Ibrox without concerns, but Celtic will blow Scottish football away again this season. I’m not buying the Newco threat.
582 Comments- Pages:
- 1
- 2
- 3
- 4
- 5
- 6
- 7
- ...
- 16
- »
COYBIG
goldie
Cluj – chance for partial redemption
TRAD!!!
correction P67 we wuz not outplayed. we were outfought.
and sometimes a quality boxer can get taken down by a gutsy pug.
sleeves rolled up.
re euro draw; glamour can be tough sometimes!
Full house group,I would imagine.Rennes off to a flyer.Lazio,3-0 winners away,in 1st league game.
QUADROPHENIAN on 30TH AUGUST 2019 12:49 PM
Sorry not Sorry ;)
HH
Good for you Paul…..
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/correction-daily-record-story-published-19037479
Naughty boy Phil.
We do have the quality to win on Sunday, it’s only a matter, as Quadrophenian says, if we have the fight.
Fixtures will be interesting.Could do with a flyer.It seems,no matter what group we qualify for,we always get a stinker.
Quality new left-back? Hmmm curious.
Signs seem to point towards Taylor which would do me fine.
We were never going to replace a KT quality left-back with a KT quality left-back as they cost £25m.
Get Taylor in and Turnbull in January and the window won’t have been as bad as made out.
Good bit of glamour in the draw, winnable?
I think we can qualify.
An absolute Belter of a Group.
Lenny 😎👍🍻🇮🇪
Excellent article Paul – good perspective on where things are at in the SPL right now. Sunday will be our toughest game in the SPL all season but we are the champions and I’m confident we will turn them over.
Tough draw.
We were likely to get a good team in pot 1 so Lazio can’t be too much of a surprise.
Rennes in pot 3 is tough though.
TRAD – you now have ‘form’ – HH ;)
Draw was everything you would want for this competition.
Excellent games big nights.
I think the draw that you would not want would be what Man utd have.
Play CMcG in his correct position on Sunday. We have players who, if they turn up, will win.
Good draw BTW
Loving our group. We’ve a realistic chance of topping it and while we could have got easier than Cluj from pot 4 – I’m already looking forward to playing them again.
Roll on Sunday and 3 points.
We were always going to get a tough team from Pot1. Delighted we got Clu. Could have done a lot better than Rennes, Glad to avoid this Battle of Britain shite, overall we want to test ourselves in Europe, we have our chance now. Let’s go.
I think Paul’s wider point is correct but we know that Celtic were looking at both Barker & Arribo.
I’m no bedwetter as I’m still very confident Celtic will be lifting the trophy at the end of the year.
But heading into a fixture we have lost twice in a row with a makeshift defence is a bit of a worry.
We all accept Boli needs time. He’s yet to fully look comfortable for Celtic over 90 mins.
Bitton will be playing out of position and tested physically.
Bauer may be playing with one training session with his teammates under his belt!
The bedwetters were ON the park,last 2 visits to Poundland
Hrvatski………………………..Naw!!!!!!!!!!!
:)
Nae kliks bud…….please!
HH
By the way, I’d probably put McGregor on the left-wing and throw Ntcham into central midfield.
I love Mickey but he’s looked lost at Ibrox in his last two trips.
QUADROPHENIAN on 30TH AUGUST 2019 1:01 PM
Haha, its just luck really. Well luck and a lot of skill ;)
HH
All teams in our group top of their leagues (or joint)
Timaloy29, Mikey has looked out of his depth at Ibrox, but he was played out of position.
He isn’t a centre forward.
Play him in his position, he’ll do good.
I’m never keen on these games , especially not going in all confident.
I hate thum.
Evenw hen we should win, we often don’t and it’s as if Celtic are not really there and the huns steal the show.
I expect the worst on all fronts especially ref-wise and for it to be blood an’ snotters punt an’ rush game.
I’ll be watching it from behind the couch.
“TIMALOY29 on 30TH AUGUST 2019 1:07 PM
By the way, I’d probably put McGregor on the left-wing ”
I usually agree with your posts but central midfield is Calmac`s domain. He is possibly the best player in Scotland ( or Cletic
In other news – sevco cited again
Maybe fake news
“TIMALOY29 on 30TH AUGUST 2019 1:07 PM
By the way, I’d probably put McGregor on the left-wing ”
I usually agree with your posts but central midfield is Calmac`s domain. He is possibly the best player in Scotland ( or Celtic`s best…same thinh :-)) ) so I would leave him where he is. Always,
JJ
Release fake news that Sevco have been cited a third time. Next,the two real cases will be presented as being less important.
JJ
Now, in terms of discrediting Uefa, I wouldn’t put it past the darkside huns to have a spurious klaim ooot there only for them to come out and decry the veracity of such reports.
Result? The mouth-breathers get to say that the klaim is wrong ergo all klaims against the huns are wrong.
The media landscape in scoddland gets more like Trumpland, everyday.
HOT SMOKED on 30TH AUGUST 2019 1:11 PM
“TIMALOY29 on 30TH AUGUST 2019 1:07 PM
By the way, I’d probably put McGregor on the left-wing ”
I usually agree with your posts but central midfield is Calmac`s domain. He is possibly the best player in Scotland ( or Celtic`s best…same thinh :-)) ) so I would leave him where he is. Always,
___
Either that or do the same with Christie.
Play McGregor and Brown with Ntcham off Eddy.
I just worry about Mickey with Bobby Madden the ref. He will be getting kicked up in the air.
Hot Smoked………….
zactly!
KINGLUBO – Saw your post on the other thread. If you log in, the problem you were talking about should disappear.