The No. 1 rule of the transfer window is: get your first choices, and there is no doubt that Ronny Deila wanted Stuart Armstrong and Gary Mackay-Steven. We’ve tracked them for months, Ronny will have watched both players many times, John Collins will have watched them more often, and the entire scouting team will have watched them dozens of times, so on that basis alone, I’m happy.
I spoke to someone at the club early last month and there was some concern that some of our key players would ‘Do a Kelvin’, and present as not in the right frame of mind to play, unless we agreed to a transfer. While we are still competing in four competitions this was a major worry, but those players who were wanted elsewhere were happy to get their heads down and work to the spirit as well as the letter of their contracts. Happy at this too.
Stuart Armstrong is every inch a Ronny Deila player. He can run all day, gets into the box to support – or go beyond – strikers, and closes space in front of the defence. He will allow us to play to plan a lot oftener.
Last summer’s window was characterised by the signing of wingers. Wakaso, Inge Berget and Tonev all arrived on loan, while Callum McGregor emerged as a first team contender on his return from loan, and during the early season outshone all of them. None of these players are now considered as first choice, nor is Derk Boerrigter, who was recruited from Ajax 18 months ago and has proven every adage that ever existed for oft-injured players.
So we’re not short of wingers, but we need good ones, and Gary Mackay-Steven is another known quantity. He is fast, skilful, and will lend a creative hand to Kris Commons, who had shouldered those duties alone for years.
I’ve no proper information on Michael Duffy, who joined the development squad from Derry City.
To paraphrase Neil Lennon, this is only the beginning. Of the 10 outfield players who started at Hampden on Sunday, only one was a Ronny Deila signing, the rest were recruited by one of his predecessors. The summer transfer window was overwhelmingly misconceived, as the regime change cast a shadow over processes. As well as the wasteful wingers, two strikers were signed, neither of whom could dislodge last January’s late stocking filler, Leigh Griffiths.
Mackay-Steven and Armstrong will both make an impact at Celtic, but it will take more than a couple of players to craft the squad into the image of Ronny. More work will be needed in the summer.
Hibs, Hearts, Queen of the South, Ross County, St Mirren, Motherwell, and the SFA will all be alarmed at the flagrant influence Mike Ashley exercised at newco Rangers yesterday, despite his written agreement not to get involved. While the SFA must react accordingly, I’m not sure five players whose appearances are measured in minutes, not games, are ready for a promotion fight. It can take good player months to settle into a new team, and the potential for disruption, especially if the ‘manager’ didn’t play an active role in the process, is considerable.
The upside for newco is that these players settle quickly, take a Premiership place off Hibs, Queens, Motherwell or St Mirren, and leave a lot of clubs wondering what the point of having rules in the first place is. The only appropriate sanction the SFA can levy is a player registration ban, which would be the club’s second in their short history. Clearly a one year ban is not long enough to teach them a lesson.
Whatever you think of Ashley, you have to admire him:
On the last day of the window, he has 5 unwanted Newcastle players he is unable to loan to anyone else.
Realising he had no takers, he sends them to Ibrox, easing the Newcastle payroll.
Newco pay the players with Ashley’s loan, which they still have to pay back. If his men are kicked out at an EGM, these loans mean the new regime have even more money to find. It’s almost as though he wants to burn through the entire £10m loan before the EGM, leaving a new regime with an empty bank account and crippling debt.
It is a thing of Machiavellian beauty. Hibs and the rest are right to be upset, and Stewart Regan will feel humiliated, but I find the whole episode hilarious.
Welcome to Celtic, Gary, Stuart and Michael.
Well done Celtic on a productive transfer window. As always, it’s too early to tell how well we’ve done, but the perennial adage of leaving the window stronger than we went into it seems assured. Well done Mike too, keep up the good work.
Start your League Cup final weekend at the CQN11 St Patrick’s Dinner, at the Kerrydale Suite, Celtic Park, on Friday 11 March. Email me for details, celticquicknews@gmail.com
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Hun?
The Observer’s science editor explains.
‘Why this hun’s on the run’
Robin McKie
http://www.theguardian.com/football/2003/may/18/sport.uefa
https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQ78lOL_3hs2R5XHzNL7EpsKLiU4wwzYARA7E2AbBhHunFokv5K
ERNIE LYNCH
Not read that article in a good while.
He gets what being a football fan is about-love of team,and ribbing your rivals. And expecting it back.
ernie lynch
I worked with McKie. All the genial, laughable old uncle act on the surface but just bellow a rancid wee bigot
Meanwhile,God gives as good as he gets with Stephen Fry.
http://www.thedailymash.co.uk/news/arts-entertainment/melchett-was-weakest-blackadder-character-says-god-2015020294966
Given that PL is on the executive at the SFA, it is high time that Celtic fans bombarded him with demands for him to take action, by officially citing McCulloch for his assault of Griffiths on Sunday.
That brutal attack could have caused him very serious brain damage, yet nothing, not one single word is reported by the referee or anyone else associated with the game.
Whilst I am wholly opposed to many of the postings on here which lambast PL for just about everything that happens, what exacty IS the point of his position at the SFA?
As far as most of us can see (except the Sevconians of course, who blame him for almost all their woes) he doesn’t appear to DO anything.
Some come on PL, let’s see some action.
Elbows McCulloch’s assault on LG is as clear a case for being cited as any I have ever witnessed.
Let’s see some action here.
OG RAFFERTY
Blows my 1157 post to smithereens,haha!
BMCUW
Public face is all that. He made comments to me that if I had reported them would have seen him sacked.
I must admit that I find it utterly hilarious reading the various reports of the Celtic – Sevco game.
Before the game, we had reports about how disrespectful Celtic players were and how Sevco players felt the gap between the 2 clubs wasn’t that great.
Now, we have reports saying that the lack-lustre nature of the game was entirely due to the vast gulf in quality between the 2 clubs.
Gotta love them SMSM reporters…
mea culpa
On the case mate :-))
Reading on cqnmagazine that we were in for james mcclean ..said months ago he would be good signing for us.
Anyone know if we were in for him ?
Would be surprised considering we got GMS and another 3 or so players who can play left wing.
Statement from the MST (Monkey Supporter Trust)
We are a large and varied group of mammals of the primate order which has no connection to the blue order. Our species includes all primates that do not belong to the categories hun, human, ape, or prosimian; however, monkeys do have certain common features with humans, apes and prosimians – we are however offended at any comparison with Huns. We are excellent climbers, and most are primarily arboreal (live in trees) unlike huns who live in middens. Nearly all our spieces live in tropical or subtropical climates. Unlike most of the prosimians, or lower primates, they are almost all day-active animals unlike huns who walk around zombiefied of an evening. Our faces are usually flat and rather human in appearance, with eyes pointing forward, and we have stereoscopic color vision (surely you are getting why we are offended now). Our hands and feet are highly developed for grasping; the big toes and, where present, the thumbs are opposable (how much more do we need to stress our offense). Nearly all have flat nails. Monkeys habitually sit in an erect posture (more evidence to back our case). We cannot swing arm-over-arm (the spider monkey is an exception) but move about in trees by running along the branches on all fours (ok we give you that one); their skeletal structure is similar to that of other four-footed animals (and that one). Monkeys live in troops of up to several hundred individuals and travel about in search of food, having no permanent shelter (aye alright, that one to). As in apes and humans, the female has a monthly reproductive cycle, and mating may occur at any time, but in some species mating is seasonal (not that one though). Usually only one infant is born at a time; it is cared for by the mother for a long period. There are two large groups, or superfamilies, of monkeys: Old World monkeys (Cercopithecoidea) and New World monkeys (Ceboidea) (yeah yeah yeah Oldco\Newco. We get it! But you see we are just really one club and do not truly associate ourselves as two species, organssiations, companies et cetera et cetra and so on…)
Signed
Monkey Magic
MWD
Brilliant :-)))))
MOONBEAMSWETDREAMS
Please inform the MST that I understand their desire to draw a line between them and the huns.
Personally I have never referred to the huns as monkeys,having other terms of endearment which I prefer,but I will be careful not to let my standards slip in the future.
Jobo
I don’t read STD’s or is it TSD’s posts, so I’d scrolled by his pish yesterday morning, not realising his dig.
Don’t read his crap and get your tail back on here!
I enjoy your weather reports even if yer miles away fay were a live!
I AM JOBO!!!
Evidently the words ‘irony’ and ‘hypocrisy’ have been removed from the Sevco guide to the English language.
In the latest report of Kings attempts to wrest power from MA, the last line states:
“If any individuals behaved improperly then it is important that they are held accountable.”
Utterly hilarious.
Talking of huns…….and monkeys…..and people….
This is fecking superb.
http://i.imgur.com/1DjTIsV.jpg
And it’s official :)
HH
OG RAFFERTY
I reckon he’d have been out of his depth against you,mate.
Tbh,win the ‘friendly banter’ part of the conversation and they revert to type.
I’m kinda looking forward to being back in Kilwinning in six weeks for that very reason!
THE EXILED TIM
:) :) :) por cierto
THE EXILED TIM
That is brilliant,mate!
Cheers for that.
I’ve referred to them as monkeys for as long as I can remember, they hate it. I was told by one of them only yesterday that I was racist for calling them that…
WESTENDOFEASTEND
Doubtless by someone who casually refers to you as a tattie-muncher?
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS – tarrier or bead rattler is his usual term of endearment…
BBC guy said there was going to be a war of the different fractions at Sevco’
WESTENDOFEASTEND
Aye,sounds about right. Probably knows all the words to The Famine Song too.
And a good few others.
As has been said,they don’t do irony. But I’ll tell you what,for all their supposed supremacism,they don’t half do victimhood.
GlassTwoThirdsFull
12:30 on
4 February, 2015
BBC guy said there was going to be a war of the different fractions at Sevco’
—————–
i guess they will be vulgar fractions then.
Glasstwothirdsfull
Genius
Jimbo67
FOGHORN LEGHORN
Fffs,don’t be confusing them. They’re not very good wi numbers.
Dave King outlines the future for Sevco, speaks of the interests of transparency and vows that nothing will be swept under the carpet. The task, he says, will be similar to that of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa.
Judge Southwood:
“We saw King testify in chief and in cross-examination for four days and are unanimous in finding that he is a mendacious witness whose evidence should not be accepted on any issue unless it is supported by documents or other objective evidence. It was remarkable that King showed no sign of embarrassment or any emotion when he conceded that he had lied to the Commissioner in a number of his income tax returns. In our assessment he is a glib and shameless liar….As his evidence progressed it became clear that he has no respect for the truth and does not hesitate to lie”
Can’t think of a better man to head up the Commission.
I can just see the Sevco report now….
2/3rds of the of the Sevco board support the DK group.
The other half support MA.
(:-)
MEA CULPA
Bunnet tipped for that,nice one!
WishidsaidthatCSC
Mea Culpa
:-)
new article posted.
It occurred to me that the Hoots 1st XI is conceivably going to comprise of a huge compliment of Celtic players from here on out.
I have an image in my mind of certain sections of the Tartan Army booing their entire teams every touch of the ball.
Cue Continental journalists scratching their heids.
Just listening to SSB and that so-called prat of a Celtic supporter that goes by the name of Laurie is on. Turned off immediately what a crawling get cannot wait to see 4 OF games next season. His words! Sickening.