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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Am I the only one who has some sympathy for these five Newcaslte FC starlets who have likely been coerced into ruining their careers at the ultimate of hell-holes?
First lesson on the training ground – how to angrily scoff down a bag of monster munch.
“Nah, no good enough son – think, bulldug chewin a wasp..”
regarding willie Henderson, he was often found mixing with the celtic players along with jim baxter, remember a story with bertie and wee Henderson sitting taking about a cup final that was played in the mid 60s, willie asked bertie what kind of bonus they were on for winning the cup,,£25 pipes bertie ,only to be ridiculed by Henderson saying they were of £75, aye says bertie but ours was guaranteed
@Moonbeams
I will be a party member. You have to become part of the process for policy and leadership.
How else are politics influenced? Complaining about life on a football blog?
13:29: Celtic fan launches fund for injured Rangers supporter Daily Record A disgusted Celtic fan has launched a fund to collect cash for a young Rangers supporter who was seriously hurt as he attended his first Old Firm game
The 10-year-old fan was hit in the face with a bottle and lost three teeth after the minibus he was travelling on with his father was targeted by yobs.
Now Hoops fan Rod Lee has set up a collection on the website Go Fund Me and hit out at the thugs who maimed the youngster.
The collection has already seen gifts of more than £300 handed over since its launch.
LB
Ffm
Was thinking along the same lines myself.
Perhaps we should start a” free the geordie 5 campaign ” :-)
Turkeybhoy
Thanks for the reply
I suppose as Celtic fans we are always loathe to accept the Media version of events knowing that will try and portray celtic/celtic fans in a bad light at any opportunity.
Still I think its terrible that these things happen and its possible even very likely that whoever threw the bottle didn’t intend to hit the boy,probably just a silly young man full of drink who threw it. ( and I confess I was once a silly young man who did similar things thankfully without the tragic outcome of this case)
Anyway on a lighter note,the signings seem good but more pleased that we have kept Commons and VWD to be honest.
Now if only we could get a decent manager )))))
Inter / Mancini Press Conference.
Unhappy with the results. Supporters have every right to express their feelings.Icardi was in the wrong.Keep making defensive mistakes.Very good players / very good squad.Will continue to play attacking football..Need to take their chances / need to stop the defensive errors.Faith that they are on the right road / will click .Blah Blah Blah.
Well at least we have weakend our opponents in the league cup final,would have liked some players too strengthen our cup campaigns,as for all our wingers as ronny rhge diddy does not play wingers it,s a waste of time buying them
paul67
12:34 on 3 February, 2015
Hmmm I thought that Beram was available for selection for the first team
S O T.
what’s your take on the tie with us and inter…do we have a realistic chance? celtic park will take care of itself, it’s in the san siro I am worried about, although I this the very large playing area might just suit us…
Hi P67
I reckon we have a good enough team to win domestically, and in a hunless world I would expect that to be the case for quite some time. But surely one of the best ways to ensure that we can dominate domestically for a very long time is CL qualification.
I guess when we signed Willo Flood we left the transfer window in a stronger position,
But time will tell if
we have left the January window sufficiently strengthened so that the so called transition period will be over by the time the CL qualifiers come around
and if we left the transfer window in a strong enough position that we can reasonably expect CL group qualification in the summer time
For me CL qualification is the target and forward planning is required to get us there. Have we done enough?
By the way the match on Sunday was fine, but it wasn’t as good as beating Rangers!!
“One match in particular against chelsea he had good game.”
Proudbhoy,
Ferguson? Are you sure?
HH
50 shades of green @ 13:39,
Good shout. Someone get in touch with Vic and Bob !
I am not as optimistic about how much desire and determination we showed in the last transfer window to improve as much as was practicably possible to do so.
2 years ago we were a Champions League team.
6 months ago it was proven beyond doubt that we are not.
What have we done to attempt to rectify it? Bought 2 x Dundee Utd players and we are supposed to be happy!?
The wingers you mentioned are on loan and have proven they are not up to it – so could have been sent back to their clubs and the wages used to have another go.
Coming out of any transfer window with Anthony Stokes as a very likely candidate to occupy one of the winger positions is just not on in my book – and that is the case because we can not rely on the fitness, or form of James Forrest.
I do find it a welcome irony that we signed a central midfielder 2 days after Nir Biton went from bhoy to man!
Up until Sunday at 3.30pm I wouldnt have had him in my team because of what I perceived as having a lack of the 2 accompanying items to supplement your meat.
So no, the board are continuing with their mantra of doing ‘just enough’ so I am not a happy hoopy (well thats no necessarily true because the recent memory of pumping the cream buns is still fresh).
As is the aggressive reaction from the cream bun dressed in blue at the game after a few of us (we were next to the Celtic dug out) played the old game of ‘pretend your pointing at someone’.
Paranoia is a fantastic thing!
GMS looks like he should be the lead in Oliver!
Deceptive though; seen him take a good few dunts and get back up.
Really pleased about SA.
I would think he would get a shot at the left of the 3 attacking midfield initially. Broonie and Nir looked settled.
I worry that Kris will be gone in the summer but you have to plan ahead
“Hmmm I thought that Beram was available for selection for the first team”
Mick1888
He was. But his apps suggest he wasn’t what you’d call a first team regular.
I wonder if any of our Derry based Tims, with an ear to the grapevine, can find out if young Ferguson was a willing conscript or Shanghaid to Govan.
I suspect the latter.
Eyes Wide Open
Not long ago James McCarthy was just a Hamilton player. Robert Snodgrass was just a Livingston player. Andrew Robertson was just a Dundee United player.
Would any of these guys get in our team now? Think on that.
Are you glad we passed up on Johnny Russell to sign Teemu Pukki?
What is the Stars
Sorry, I have to disagree
Anyone who throws a bottle in the direction of others, just because they support another football team, is not a silly young man, but a thug., and needs caught.
I am really sickened by this, and can envisage the outcry on here had it been a young Celtic fan. Things are substantially better from the days when we went to a Celtic Rangers match with a green painted hard hat, but even one incident is far too many.
I hope the young lad makes a speedy recovery
HH
P67-instead of the word oftener you could have used the word “more” …oftener :)
Ticket for Saturday.
‘Woo’ and indeed ‘hoo’. :))
coneybhoy
13:50 on 3 February, 2015
Wee GMS had the rat nevin look about him :-) HH
No 16 & 14
https://twitter.com/celticfc/status/562611945661288449
:-)
HH
thomthethim for oscar ok
13:54 on 3 February, 2015
The way the orcs have reacted to him I don’t think he’ll stay long :-) HH
This is worth a wee watch , from Sunday’s game
http://videocelts.com/2015/02/blogs/incredible-video-coverage-of-celtics-hampden-victory
wonder if jimmy ‘the bigot’ bell will get his training gear for him ????
mickbhoy1888
13:09 on
3 February, 2015
Delighted we are signing potential Scottish talent however can Celtic justify the money being spent on the academy at Lennoxtown and our Scottish scouting system if these players are slipping through our fingers at an early age
======================
The best players at this early age aren’t usually the ones who make the grade.
Liverpool and Fulham had GMS at a very young age, thought he was going to make the first team, revised their opinion probably a number of times before deciding to let him move on, when he was picked up by ‘Airdrie’.
So if Mackay Steven is a class signing for us and does the business in Europe, wins us domestic trophies left right and centre etc etc – does this mean the two English clubs were correct in their intial assessment of GMS and ultimately wrong to let him go, a decision made after assessing him at close quarters for a significant timeframe?!
Even at the 18-20 age group it can still be extremely difficult to pick out who will have a long future in the game at the top level.
I’d say Fulham probably thought they were right to let him go but bet they wouldnt mind having him back now.
Expecting us to have all these guys on our books from a young age is not realistic.
We’re not the only club with a large scouting network.
HH
Geordie Munro
No enough woohooz thr.its Celtic your goin to see.:-):-)
WoohoowoophoopwoohooCsc:-)
geordie munro
13:47 on 3 February, 2015
—
Well i think i’am
Memory i have is him beating a few players then getting chopped down.. think it was by goldenballs lampard.
Ferguson is very small and light..was surprised how decent he looked when he first appeared. Must have faded abit
Those wondering about duffy
Spoke to mate back home who goes to all derry home games and good fee away.
Said duffy doesnt seem the most skillful player but very fit and always in the right place at the right time.
Hopefully he does the biz for us.
Willie Henderson.
I thought he was a good player.Memories of a screamer v Celtic in a Scottish Cup QF
In 1964..The Deady Bears won 2- O .Game played just after Celtic had returned from Bratislava.The Deady Bears team marked Celtic’s success v Bratislava.by applauding Celic onto the park
Proudbhoy,
I’ll bow to your knowledge ;)
Geordie mate at work reckons he hasn’t. But he’s not all there :)
Cults…,
That doesn’t surprise me in the least, shameless like all meeja propagandists.
Spread your poison you’ll get no quarter at my door.
Whats story with guidetti.. have we any chance of keeping him ?
I know he is on a poor run but theres a goalscorer in there and he also has that bit of fight in him.
Say hello to the new Bhoys.
Michael, Stuart, Gary hope you enjoy many seasons of goals, wins, trophies and glory.
I trust the Club will monitor the situation at Stenhousemuir so that young McMullan isn’t marooned in a mess.
An tearmann,
Oops Soz :) Yes you are correct. I’m quite excited.
Not been to an away game since Tommy b Thursday I think!!???
I’m less excited about breaking it to ‘she who must be obeyed’ :))
TheBatteredBunnet
Re the loan signings, I follow your point that there is no limit.
Was there not something similar in dutch eredivisie when Vitesse Arnhem took a lot of Chelsea players on loan? I would argue an amendment to laws re loan players may be in order some time soon as it dont sit comfortable.
http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/apr/01/chelsea-vitesse-arnhem-roman-abramovich
HH
Geordie munro
—
Ferguson made his first team debut at left back on 25 August 2010, in a League Cup tie away at Accrington Stanley.[6] He then played in the next round of the League Cup, on 22 September, away at Chelsea and he assisted in the first goal in the 4–3 win.[7] He made hisPremier League debut on 5 January 2011 against West Ham United as a second half substitute.[8] He made his first Premier League start against Wolverhampton Wanderers on 2 April 2011.[9] Ferguson signed a new five-year contract on 27 May 2011, having made a good impression in the final part of the season.[10]
Next part went on to say he picked up ankle injury and pre season so was then loaned to birmingham when he regained fitness.