I was holding a candle for Fraser Forster until the start of this week. Goalkeeper is arguably the most important position on the field and Fraser had a huge impact on Celtic last season. More than anyone, he was responsible for the League Cup Final win in December and his performances home and away against Lazio was the difference between the teams. If only he was in place for last season’s Champions League qualifiers.
At 32-years-old he could easily have five years left at the top, we know he can do the job, so his signing was top priority. That £90k per week contract at Southampton always had the possibility to cause problems and so it did. Fraser’s star rose at Celtic and even if Southampton want to move him on, there is a better chance he will be able to go elsewhere in England and maintain, or improve on, his current salary.
Instead, we will hopefully console ourselves with a 26-year-old who, on paper, fits the Celtic model better. At the money quoted, he is not cheap, but he has been tested in Europe, internationally and in a competitive league. There is value to be had as clubs across Europe form recovery plans. Those who trade well in this period will be big winners.
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Good afternoon, friends.
*** CQN PLAYER OF THE YEAR 2020-21 ***
Buoyed by the encouragement of many of you on here and elsewhere I’ve decided to run the ole ‘Player Of The Year’ survey for season 2020-21. Last seasons results are still to be finalised as we have at least 1 but hopefully 2 cup games still to come but in terms of the forthcoming season all players start back at zero points.
I’m sticking with last season’s uncomplicated format. After each game you pick the 3 players that you think performed best, in no particular order remember, and stick their names in a short email to me at CQNPOTY@GMAIL.COM . You can vote at any point up until 10pm on the day following each game. I’ll then tally up the votes and the Man Of The Match will earn 5 points, the next best performer will get 4 and so on – so the 5 players that receive the most votes will be awarded points. Of course, you don’t need to concern yourself with those intricacies; all that you need to do is stick 3 names in an email following each game and I do the rest 😉
This wee initiative will start, obviously, with the Flag Day opener against Hamilton on Sunday. Voting will open after the final whistle and remain open until 10pm on Monday evening. The first results will hopefully come out before 10.30pm on Monday.
You don’t have to sign up or register. You don’t even have to post on CQN so lurkers, friends, family can all vote if they wish (but by separate emails if possible). And you also don’t have to vote after every single game – just those for which you manage to actually see the 90 minutes 😉.
This is just a wee bit of fun to generate discussion as much as anything. At the moment, I’m just hoping that season 2020 21 is completed as expected (in more ways than one)!
Jobo
I would have loved big Fraser as our keeper but who can blame him for looking after No.1 the money available in England is crazy think 99% of employees would do the same thing.Im sure the big man loved playing for Celtic but wasnt “born into Celtic”.
CORKCELT on 29TH JULY 2020 1:40 PM
Think they will pay out now?……….
THE HAND OF GOD on 29TH JULY 2020 1:42 PM
Regarding BLM I think the slogan has been adopted rather than the political ideals of the founders.Im happy for our players to show their support.
……………………
You’re absolutely correct. I doubt if any of the players taking a knee gives a second thought about the BLM organisation. What most people are showing support for is the reality of the principle that Black Lives Matter. Most of those who object, mainly on social media and in online newspaper discussions go on about Marxism, police defunding, the organisation being run by lesbians etc. Most of the detractors, as far as I can see, tend to have right wing thoughts and many support Rangers (Union flags etc beside comments). However, it is gratifying to see that Rangers have many sensible fans also who support the principle of BLM and are not put out by their club or Scottish football in general taking a stance in support of BLM in common with other leagues throughout Europe. It dismays me slightly that some Celtic supporters find fault with this given the demographic of most of our support and the discrimination that previous generations of Celtic supporters had to endure.
Good on you JOBO, I for one is delighted.
But might be some last minute submissions from me as
usual due to those pesky peninsula rebels no letting me
travel back up the road. 8-))
H.H. Mick
Candle well and truly back in the windae…
eltonjohncsc
“Good strikers are like dinosaurs – they are an endangered species”
Err no. Dinosaurs aren’t endangered, they are extinct.
Wit a fud!
Don’t blame big Fraze blame the football clubs for this obscene insanity:
“Gareth Bale set to exact £60m revenge on Real Madrid that could help Man Utd seal cut-price £23m deal for team-mate
It looks like Real Madrid are admitting defeat in their efforts to oust Gareth Bale, according to reports in Spain
Gareth Bale looks set to exact a £60m revenge on Real Madrid, according to reports in Spain.
AS report the Spanish giants have come to the conclusion Bale is “unsellable” and will look to offload other players this summer instead.
It means Bale is increasingly likely to see out his contract until 2022, which will mean the club forking out around £60m for him doing very little, according to the reports.
Bale reportedly earns up to £600,000 a week before tax, leaving him with around £350,000 net earnings a week.
And it’s those wages that make it unlikely any club will be able to make the 31-year-old an offer that comes close. The reports say Bale is determined to make Madrid pay every penny.
It’s claimed he is now likely to stay despite the fact there appears little to no prospect of manager Zinedine Zidane picking him after a complete breakdown in relations.
The upshot is Madrid will now look to move on a series of other players instead to help pay for planned new summer additions. This includes accepting a cut price offer for James Rodriguez, who is reportedly set for talks with Manchester United over a bargain £23m transfer.
Like Bale, the 29-year-old Colombian has found himself a peripheral figure under Zidane despite costing the club £63m back in 2014 .
He would leave the club on relatively good terms though, unlike Bale.
The Welshman has riled some fans, media and officials at Madrid with his recent behaviour, but his agent has maintained the Wales star is going absolutely nowhere. .
Bale was an unused substitute for a series of matches following football’s restart, angering the local media with his antics in the stands as his team-mates won every match to lift the La Liga title.
He then cut an awkward figure as Madrid celebrated that success in front of the watching world before he was left out of the squad completely for the final league match as Zidane asserted his authority.
“Gareth is fine. He has two years left on his contract,” Bale’s agent, Jonathan Barnett, told BBC Sport.
“He likes living in Madrid and he is going nowhere.
“He is still as good as anyone else in the team. It’s up to [Real Madrid manager] Zinedine Zidane.”
Bale has reportedly been a target once again for Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur, but they would not come close to offering the type of wages Bale is used to.
Likewise a loan deal appears to be off the table.
Barnett added: “Of course there’s been interest but there’s hardly a club in the world which can afford him.
“Gareth is one of the best players in the world. The best players in the world do not go out on loan.”
Bale is worth £114 million and was recently named as the highest earning UK sports person , aged 30 or under, before he turned 31.”
GREENPINATA
Utter tripe. Stick to posting your support for Brexit and quoting the extreme neo liberal polices of Ayn Rand instead of having a go at BLM.
Not overly disappointed about Forster.
Hopefully new keeper is good with distribution and comes for crosses, as Forster wasn’t
Any word on Ajeti?
I really like the look of him
Theoriginalsadiesbhoy…I think you are spot on with your assessment its unthinkable that Celtic fans would not support the principle of the BLM campaign it resonates with the treatment of the Irish diaspora in Scotland which is still far from perfect but not as bad as it once was.Lovin’ the More blacks more Irish more dogs T shirts.
WEEBOBBYCOLLINS on 29TH JULY 2020 12:46 PM
Timaloy29…I used to love boxing when it was on cooncil telly…Hearns, Hagler, Sugar Ray etc.
Nowadays, I don’t even know who any of them are…
…………………………
That struck a chord with me. As a young child I used to love watching boxing on the telly with my Dad. Reuben Carter, Hagler, Sugar Ray on Saturday Grandstand and the International Amateur contests that were a regular feature of those days. I also loved watching it in the Olympics ans Commonwealth games. Who could ever forget Tom Imrie or Teofilio Stevenson? I loved boxing – as viewed on the telly.
However, in my late 20s I actually attended a charity amateur boxing night at Airdrie Town Hall with my mates. The bouts featured adults right down to kids of about 12 years of age. For the first time I noticed the red marks the boxers left on each other’s torsos and face and the hysteria of the crowd encouraging the boxers to damage one another. As a teacher, I found it distressing when the youngsters were involved to listen to grown adults baying at them. I became ‘a snowdrop’ overnight and I’ve never really watched boxing since. Not condemning anyone for supporting the sport, just my own reaction – which surprised me at the time – and how it affected me. I could have used a few lessons on the science of boxing while growing up though.
FRANKTERRY on 29TH JULY 2020 2:11 PM
GREENPINATA
Utter tripe. Stick to posting your support for Brexit and quoting the extreme neo liberal polices of Ayn Rand instead of having a go at BLM
——————
In your opinion.
Maybe you should stick to your nice suburban lifestyle rather than indulge in a grown up debate about equality.
PS : For the umpteenth time I did not vote for Brexit.
We need Ajeti,to put the ball in the neti
Hat,coat….
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/53521312
Article headline and paragraph 8 tell you all you need to know about the reporting guidelines in place at Pacific Quay.
RAY WINSTONE’S BIG DISEMBODIED HEID on 29TH JULY 2020 2:03 PM
“Good strikers are like dinosaurs – they are an endangered species”
Err no. Dinosaurs aren’t endangered, they are extinct.
Wit a fud!
……………………….
That jumped right out at me when I read his comment too. Some brilliantly stupid comments from football people over the years.
It wiz no bad Bada.😉😁😉
If footballers were on their knees praying before every match they would be met with scorn in the ‘liberal press’ dismissed as out of place in a ‘secular’ society. That said if we are going to adopt this practice in Scotland, let it mean something….in Scotland.
Let us dedicate it to Sheku Bayou, who died at the hand of 9 police officers, in Kirkcaldy in May 2015. Five years ago.
Neither PoliceScotland nor any of the police officers have been prosecuted.
Black Lives Matter?
FF, like Boruc in his prime, has a special aura about him that gives the defence extra confidence. Brilliant shot stopper and when it came to penalties, you always fancied he would save them.
Thanks for the memories big fella. Hope you don’t regret your decision. Think you will.
“Good strikers are like dinosaurs. They are an endangered species.”
Defoe sues for libel.
TOSB. Aye there were a disproportionate number of them featured in the Colemanballs column in Private Eye.
The only extenuating factor I could come up with for the Posh chairman’s comments is that maybe he lives in The Land that Time Forgot, where (endangered) dinosaurs roam the land.
Your criticisms of the BLM movement could just as easily have been applied (and doubtless were) to the CRA in Derry in the 60s.
And by those with a similar mindset and agenda.
CELTIC MAC on 29TH JULY 2020 2:31 PM
If footballers were on their knees praying before every match they would be met with scorn in the ‘liberal press’ dismissed as out of place in a ‘secular’ society. That said if we are going to adopt this practice in Scotland, let it mean something….in Scotland.
________
That’s rubbish. Players bless themselves and often go onto their knees in prayer (particularly Muslim players)
Nobody says a thing.
I should also state, there are plenty of people with Sheku Bayou’s name in their window alongside their Black Lives Matter posters here in Glasgow.
I don’t know if it’s because we have been discussing BLM but I’ve suddenly got an advert appearing on my screen highlighting Colin Kaepernick Taking a Knee.
WEEBOBBYCOLLINS on 29TH JULY 2020 12:46 PM
Timaloy29…I used to love boxing when it was on cooncil telly…Hearns, Hagler, Sugar Ray etc.
Nowadays, I don’t even know who any of them are…
____
Tyson Fury is pretty inspiring for fat lads like myself. Was massively overweight, lost 10 stone or something crazy. Came back to draw (he was robbed) with the Heavyweight Champ and then cuffed him in the rematch.
© Bournesouprecipe
‘The Athenian Fenian’
Brilliant! 😊
Tyson is something else.
Actual Box Office.
timaloy
I am talking about every player at every match, a slightly different situation to individual players blessing themselves after scoring a goal.
CORKCELT
Paddy power has us at 9/4 on to win 10 in a row
Der Huns are 7/4
Surely nobody would take 7/4 and have to wait 10 years! I know they’re gullible but c’mon 10 years
Opening game of the season for Hearts is . . . against Dundee. That should be interesting in the lounge afterwards.
GREENPINATA on 29TH JULY 2020 2:22 PM
FRANKTERRY on 29TH JULY 2020 2:11 PM
GREENPINATA
Utter tripe. Stick to posting your support for Brexit and quoting the extreme neo liberal polices of Ayn Rand instead of having a go at BLM
——————
In your opinion.
Maybe you should stick to your nice suburban lifestyle rather than indulge in a grown up debate about equality.
PS : For the umpteenth time I did not vote for Brexit.
——————
Out if interest, what alt right website did you get your bullshit Ayn Rand quotes from? Because you obviously had never read any of her work or indeed knew anything about her. Putting up quotes from a place of ignorance doesn’t seem a way to conduct a grown up conversation now, does it?
So much for the ‘Corona bargains’ from the lower English leagues . £10m for a Peterborough striker!?
If I was Gerrard, I’d send Defoe back down South and buy Shankland. Save the club a fortune and get a player who will score for fun in the SPFL.
If Morelos is sold, they can get Kamberi and/or Dykes from Livingston.
Three decent forwards and all for less than Defoe’s wages.
Weebobbycollins…
“My big concern is Barkas is not as scary looking as Forster…”
He looked quite scary when he was playing keyboard for Sparks :-)
Gareth Bale – Likes living in Madrid so much, he refused to learn any Spanish, gets Toni Kroos to do his translating for him.
Something far wrong when a world class footballer player is content to sit on his arse collecting money in the prime years of his career.
TOSB
Never had time for boxing,just not my thing.I remember when mcguigan was boxing for Eastwood my cousin(Gerry was a clerk in Eastwood) ” just the man, as he approached me in Belfast city centre”Yes Gerry what is it”?I replied”Here Joe two tickets for the McGuigan fight”.I thanked him for the offer,and suggested he give them to a fan of the sport,which I was certainly not.As for kick boxing and wrestling,no way.
DENIABHOY on 29TH JULY 2020 3:34 PM
If I was Gerrard, I’d send Defoe back down South and buy Shankland. Save the club a fortune and get a player who will score for fun in the SPFL.
If Morelos is sold, they can get Kamberi and/or Dykes from Livingston.
Three decent forwards and all for less than Defoe’s wages.
___
Defoe just signed a new deal.
Apparently they don’t want Kamberi either.