Luis Palma secured two league winners’ medals, one Scottish Cup and one League Cup between his arrival at Celtic in the summer of 2023 and his departure 18 months later. Champions League goals which earned a point against Atletico Madrid and help Celtic to a win over Feyenoord will be among Luis’ highlights in Glasgow, but it was his 87th minute opener in Motherwell, setting up a dramatic 1-2 Celtic win, that lingers most in the memory.
With the club chasing Jota in January 2025, Luis went on a six month loan to Olympiacos. That moved allowed Luis to collect a second league winners’ medal in season 2024-25. He was then jettisoned to Lech Poznan for a further loan last summer as the club pursued replacement Michel-Ange Balikwisha. Again, Luis ended the season with a league winners’ medal, his fourth in three years!
His time in Poland has been an outstanding success, prompting Lech to break their transfer record to exercise the buy-out option they had on the loan agreement. Sevilla was ready to pounce, had the Lech passed on their option, at which point Celtic’s small loss on the player would have flipped to a profit.
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Hail.Hail
Don’t know where that full stop came from
Feeling lonely here
Written off as a poor man’s Haksabanovic within 20 minutes of appearing in a Celtic shirt, he’s another player from that window we failed to get the best out of.
We cant afford to keep doing that, or last season won’t be a one-off
Another Mark Lawwell failure departs the club. The amount of money this family has cost us over the years needs studied.
If we’ve learned anything it’s that we need a manager who works with what he’s got and a support with a bit more patience with players.
Balikwisha has been a dreadful signing so far.It must be an attitude issue as those in charge of signing him couldn’t be that piss poor at their jobs could they?
Or sign better players Celtic40me
Just for a bit of mischief – would most fans now accept Roy Keane working with Martin and Shaun rather than Robbie ?
And if we are a ‘club like no other’ what is the characteristic that sets us aside? Shirley the fair minded social conscience of the fans? Including the values of anti bigotry, equality, fairness and social integration… how do you do these things apolitically these days Robbie?
Thing is my main memory of Palma is the goal that got disallowed against Lazio back in 2023. Late in the game at 1-1 the ball gets played over from the right and Chilli somehow finishes from the left side of the box, cue bedlam. Turns out Maeda, who might just have been offside had caught the ball with his toe as it headed towards the lhs, and after an interminable delay, the goal was disallowed. Who says VAR is good for the game, not that night it wasn’t. And worse was to come, if my worst memories serve me well, CalMac in or around the halfway mark, ‘passes’ the ball back to CCV around the centre circle, who cant find his feet, gets robbed ball goes wide right and then crossed to the far post where Pedro heads in the last minute winner…..
That Palma?
Intriguing.
Is the moral of the tale …
Put them out on loan WITH an option to buy or not.
Flip side likely applies to loanees we want to bring in.
Much of it down to luck I suppose.
BTW – I assume the player can still say
“Naw thanks, Lech. Better weather in Seville”
CELTIC MAC on 4TH JUNE 2026 12:28 PM
Ifs and buts, but that would have been his third goal in 6 champions league games that season.
The huge downgrade from Jota would have been bad enough if it had just been replacing a winger with a not nearly as good winger, but we couldn’t even manage that.
Never a winger in a million years and completely unsuited to a 4-3-3.
Awful recruitment in a shambolic window that was the beginning of the rot setting in.
The Kuhn money must be out of the biscuit tin and all but ready to be speculated.
Any day now. . . . .
World class excitement brewing.
celtic40me
Did seem to be more suited to playing in European games, in terms of impact.
Good player, and good luck to him, time to cash in……
celtic40me on 4th June 2026 12:21 pm
If we’ve learned anything it’s that we need a manager who works with what he’s got and a support with a bit more patience with players.
Second part I totally agree with . First part is a two sided coin . Those responsible for bringing in players must ensure that the manager is starting from the highest possible baseline . That has not been happening . Leaving BR to one side , Martin O’Neill clearly thought that most of the January signings did not meet his baseline .
Capable of flashes of brilliance but hampered by a poor attitude was my impression.
Not interested when there was defending to be done and not really a team player.
The stuttering run up leading to a missed penalty then missing the retake and giving the ball away v the sheep at hampden leading to a very late equaliser when trying to play the glory pass rather than draw the free kick by carrying the ball towards the corner summed him up for me.
Paul67
Ah yes , if only we’d kept Luis and not bothered with £5M Michel – Ange no wonder Dr Football got sacked.
Cataclysmic recruitment CSC
By fat the most applicable story to Donkey loving CQN is Arsenal donating socks to prevent infection in the legs of Norfolk Donkeys.
Mule-tivation in action and at least one prominent CQNer will be delighted at this caring act.
Bray-tastic I say.
HH.
AT- have you got a link to this fellas works ?
I am intruged by this.
Even as a young bhoy in the 70s , I could honestly say that my grandfather (born during ww1) often spoke of the board (the families) as parasites , in it for themselves and had been since they became a limited company.
Sweeneys and McCallums books, imho, explain much more of this, and there is no doubt for me, in a conclusion that the original founders, firstly split my McQuillan, and more so after the cycle championships and the limited company evolution, became more interested in the enterprise making monies to pay the debts, than they did for the charity outcomes.
Several of the founders became rich in their own businesses, Celtic being a side endevour, again my opinion.
However, again my opinion, the rampant self-interest of making monies for the family , became much more a thing with the succession of the sons and grandsons.
I dont like this fellas take that hisorians ignore this, infact the depts of works this passed 30 years goes indo great detail of those going against the original visions.
I do not know from the early days who is giiven “hero” status that didnt deserve it for their founding efforts at the time.
——————–
An Tearmann on 4th June 2026 5:41 am
From an anonymous Celtic historian
I have long held the view that the history of the club and Walfrid has been fabricated, rewritten to suit and is, frankly, shameful.
Many who are lauded for their role in the history of Celtic are no heroes in my eyes.
They, and their families, saw an opportunity to make big money out of Walfrid’s initial vision of doing good, and within a few short years all the charitable ambitions and the whole raison d’etre of the founding fathers was hijacked in favour of personal profit for the few.
In my view, that is an uncomfortable truth never to be spoken of by historians and biographers.
20 comments of which 5 basically say
“I hate the board”
🥱🥱🥱
Decent player.
Started well.
No pace.
Brendan bounced him.
Hey ho.
BTW – an unpalatable fact for the whispering
Brendan wanted Balikwisha.
He said so.
🤫🤫🤫
Greenpinata
Back when, they used to put socks on the horses, but I haven’t seen it in donkeys
Emdy know where my coat is? 😂
THE RETURNOF WEERON on 3RD JUNE 2026 11:41 PM
DD has sat quietly in the shadows since his childish comments directed at BR.
————————————
The angry man wasn’t it ?
I think his ‘comments’ like a lot of things at Celtic just now split the support and its reception was mixed at best. That’ll teach you boy! – delights those that didn’t like BR in the first place and turns haters into “ pond life “ ( read that on here from a Celtic supporter )
I think DD knew the squad was deficient despite his evisceration, hence came the ahem cavalry in January. Some ‘ Celtic can do no wrong’ stalwarts knew it as well and wanted strengthening, but prefer the easy blame the manager route which was pre packed last summer.
I agree Celtic should have left it with the official Celtic statement issued minutes before, DD exposed his weak indecisive boardroom that is overseen by ‘ the owner ‘ in his separate rant.
The problem is always the same at Celtic ‘the budget’ no net spend, no investment, the more we have vaulted the higher the turnover (a record in BR’s last year) the smaller the budget seems to get.
FWIW – I think the plan ( if we had one) seems to have been Robbie Keane after Brendan Rodgers had done his 3 years? there are links from a year ago. Circumstances changed, more and more mistakes were made, the unexpected MON miracle gave DD a dilemma.
HH
If only we signed players that were first or second on the list rather than 5th or 6th ….we might actually get somewhere…..and stop managers getting pssd off !!!…
GLENDALYSTONSILS on 4TH JUNE 2026 12:40 PM
Those responsible for bringing in players must ensure that the manager is starting from the highest possible baseline . That has not been happening . Leaving BR to one side , Martin O’Neill clearly thought that most of the January signings did not meet his baseline
Agreed, recruitment has to be better, it cant be much worse than it has been recently. We also need more development players and a manager who will develop them, which will involve a commitment from the manager that should be a key part of his job.
Theres very little blame on Martin and Shaun for January being so bad but Martin did say himself it was the two of them who were recruiting.
QUADROPHENIAN on 4TH JUNE 2026 12:23 PM
Here’s an interesting question:
With hindsight, given how much success we had with him as boss, would we have employed a manager who’s first job after leaving Celtic was talking loads of oil money legitimising a regime that kills people because they are gay?
Is his legacy tainted by the person he turned out to be?
Robbie Keane, was working in Isreal before they started destroying Gaza and left at the end of that season, and was working for a Canadian owner (albeit a zionist).
Brendan is paid directly by the Saudi government, they own the club he works for.
Regarding Robbie Keane’s employment and experience in Israel – I wonder if it’s even on our board’s radar as a factor.
When you fill up your car the chances are the fuel came from Saudi or another middle east country with a human rights issues.
Just saying.
🎶 Dum dum dum, da-da, dum dum dum, da-da…🎶
The Quiet Man CSC 🇨🇮
As I have stated numerous times on here,Palma was never a “Flop”. His record stands up to any winger,Jota,Kuhn,included.10 goals,and 13 assists in the League,and unlucky not to have netted 3 CL goals in 6 games.All before December.Curling free kicks in,bending shots around defenders for goals,and his unbelievable assist for Oh,when he picked him out from the touchline with the outside of his boot,to bullet in a header.These are not the actions,or the Stats of a” Flop”.After watching him play,” Magically”,their words,for his duration with them,they broke their transfer record to sign him.
” He disnae chase back enuff”.Just fek off.I want my wingers doing all their work in the opponents half.
BTB,
Brendan did not ” Bounce him”.Maeda had been injured and came back.Facts,not Myths.
I remember posting, at the time, that I thought Delap was a bad deal at £30m – but he’s not alone.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c87q2jel22vo
” No pace”.Must all be like Carthorse’s in Poland.Fejk knows how he got all those goals and assists for us.
A mystery 🤔
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c302gelj8evo
I wonder if one’s zeal for these tournaments gradually reduces as one gets older?
Particularly when thinking back to fabulous events we witnessed when we were younger … which, at the time, were all about the football.
This one though feels different to me.
Just can’t get excited about it.
TB @ 1:40pm
You jest surely?
The guy was in the team. Then he wasn’t.
He was bounced for someone else.
Then sent out on loan by Brendan. Twice.
It happens.
No judgement. No wailing. No teeth ground
Back to
Don’t know what the problem is, Scotland are playing at 2am. Should be cool by then🥵