Neil Lennon was right to emphasise the importance of discipline ahead of tomorrow’s game against Rangers; there must be a high probability that 22 players will not be on the field at the end. Beram Kayal in particular should expect tumbling Rangers players anywhere in the vicinity of his tackling.
Rangers’ squad is sufficiently thin that there was no chance they would allow the opportunity to appeal Elbows McCulloch’s red card to pass. McCulloch is seen as part of the problem by a lot of Rangers fans, concerned at their recent malaise, but he is as experienced on these occasions as anyone who will play tomorrow. Celtic will need to dominate him and Steven Davis if they to win the midfield battle.
It was at least three years ago Celtic Quick News prefixed McCulloch with the name ‘Elbows’. An elbow is the face is remarkably effective at asserting dominance, something McCulloch knows too well. It may be that the player’s overt physicality will be inhibited by his recent red card, just as team mate Shauny Aluko declined to tumble in the box when presented with the opportunity on Saturday after recently being out-ed as a diver.
Both teams will deploy unfamiliar central defensive partnerships, which will worry both Lennon and McCoist. Rangers’ Jelavic has looked like he wants to be elsewhere in recent weeks but it he gets an opportunity to put himself in the shop window he is likely to take it. Winning the early battles may sap his enthusiasm.
I don’t know about anyone else but I’ve written a couple of versions of my match report already but in all of them Gary Hooper and Georgios Samaras are match winners. If Celtic can win the midfield battle these two – hopefully Samaras from the wing – will win the points for Celtic.
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Charlton in for Stuart Slater, 6 month loan with option for job with burger king.
If Celtic can’t win tomorrow I’m going to be quite disappointed .
This is our chance to take over , push on and watch them disintegrate.
They will happily take a draw and will park the bus and do that long ball thing.
Can see sammi bursting into the box , frightening defenders , Whittaker making a mess of it and gollum giving a penalty , my guess is on 12 mins.
Cmon the hoops
Make sure we score the pen
.
Paul67..
Well said Re; Sammi..I Reckon he will Be the Main Target Man..For Ally’s Hatchet men..Good he is Our Most Experienced Player..and Will Not react..
Hope his Team Mates do what Jinky’s Team Mates did..Just Keep giving Him the ball to Run at them..
Summa
Hamiltontim
Wait until you try and clear it up!! Is Peterhead game on TV
hamiltontim
LOL
Moon Sand ?
can ye smoke it ?
aye, Mister, i had a ball too
some man Santa ! brought me Old Spice
true story !
…the Old Spice, i mean
haha
2-0 the morra, for Celtic, hopefully
tough one
Jury’s Inn, major major sesh, 1230hrs
Hail Hail the celts are here, 03.30 sailing, look on the bright side more drinking time, cant wait to se the rankers players banging off big Wanyama,
2-1
Ledley
Hooper
A wee story on Rangers Official Site. They used to describe STV as a “license to print money”. Sounds like you could replace “print” with “launder”:-
“RANGERS Football Club and STV are working together to capitalise on commercial and brand opportunities in Scotland and internationally.
The two organisations have agreed to explore opportunities on a variety of online commercial prospects including content development and brand promotions.
The new partnership kicks off tomorrow when the live RangersTV international online Old Firm match coverage will be promoted on stv.tv, which has an international reach of over half a million unique browsers per month.
Rangers’ Chief Operations Officer said: “We are delighted to be working with STV to develop and maximise joint online brand and commercial opportunities that benefit both organisations.
“Rangers is an international brand and we aim to utilise all platforms to maximise the brand both at home and abroad.
“The partnership with STV is part of optimising these opportunities and we will be developing new initiatives throughout the season.”
Bobby Hain, Director of Channels at STV said: “We are delighted to be working with Rangers in the online area and believe that this arrangement will be hugely beneficial to both parties.
“As STV’s unrivalled reach and impact continues to expand across all platforms, we aim to work with a wide range of football and sporting organisations, creating opportunities for them to promote their brand in innovative ways.”
BT
Will be up in Finbars on Friday afternoon if you want to come up and throw drink into me,promise Ill no bring any pink elephants with me
.
24hrs to Go..
Summa
Terry
Well done mate…
Bhoys here is a link to the call…..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJo0TLBlZuY&feature=player_embedded
Summa of Sammi
I hope Sammi is the focus of attempted Hun thuggery because counter to some misinformed opinion – he ca look after himself. He can also out run, out smart , out jump and out tackle most opponents…
Sammi will burn them off tomorrow!!!
in exactly 24 hours,…we shall take charge of our own destiny…
LETS DO THIS!!!
BT
My elephants will be made of the weans ‘Moon Sand’ :(
Terry – Well done amigo, i wasn’t going to have a drink tonight but i’ll raise a glass tae you for making me laugh yet again.
I hope you enjoyed your Christmas dinner, did you give the red wine a lash this year?
slainte
tony
Daily record / stv partnerships
Do they not get enough favourable media already. Guess they are going for the homegrown Scottish 50p s
Thank the lord for new media
SFTB@19:43
Considering the state that STV are in under the current leadership, don’t expect this ‘venture’ to have the cash rolling in to both companies
Also by aligning themselves to Rangers, STV have just ensured themselves a drop in viewing figures until further notice
Yep, realise Hooper will start, but don’t agree.
Here is my preferred team to face the wounded animal on Wednesday evening.
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Forster :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
Cha ::::::::::::: Wanyama :::::::::::::: Mulgrew ::::::::::::::::::: Ledley
Forrest :::::::::::: Brown ::::::::::::::::: Kayal :::::::::::::::::::::::::: Ki
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: McCourt :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Samaras ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
I do this with some trepidation, knowing that the mere sight of eleven names arranged anonymously on an internet blog can arouse some to the most seething fits of indignation. I am doubly troubled by my inclusion of McCourt, much though I wanted to avoid doing so.
I admit it’s unfair on Hooper, who otherwise deserves a start (and I’m sure will get one). However, for me there is no escaping Paddy as, on available evidence, the best partner for our Greek warrior – he is Sancho to Sammi’s Quixote (at least, that’s what Lenny will say in his press conference).
The basic premise for Neil’s eventual choice should, in my opinion, centre around the inclusion of several key performers who have either historically been dependable against Rangers, who have good recent from, or who are simply too good to leave out – preferably a combination of all three.
Chief among these is Samaras. He positively relishes these games, has played brilliantly in nearly every one, and is in scintillating form. Let anyone now dare snipe from the sidelines, claiming his saved penalty last season cost us the league, when he has been the chief architect of a dramatic (and, by most of us, unforseen) turnaround in the fortunes of the club he loves so passionately – they will be met with the same scorn and ridicule they were ready to heap on both him and those who defended him.
The other players who, I believe, should not be left out are, in descending order, Forster (yes, I have finally capitualated), Wanyama, Ledley, Cha, and Mulgrew. Izaguirre would also make that list but for the question mark surrounding his fitness.
In goal, for the first time this season, I have Fraser Forster. At no time (other than individual matches where he had a poor game) have I derided this man’s talent. My choice was made out of favouring the Pole, rather than denigrating the Englishman. Against Rangers at home, he has been outstanding, as has his recent form. No arguments from anyone there, hopefully.
One of the most important things for Neil to consider is how players link up with one another. This is the reason I would like to see Forrest, who I otherwise wouldn’t be in favour of, as he has so far not proven equal to these matches, or indeed our European ones; that’s no slur on him – he’s still very young, and will learn with every game.
The 4-3-3 Neil Lennon has been employing recently has worked, without ever achieving take-off, if you get me. For this game, while I wouldn’t be dismayed at seeing us line up this way, I think a formation featuring two wide midfielders has the edge, for two main reasons.
Firstly, McCourt behind Samaras has never been bettered, in my opinion, and I am surprised the only occasion we have seen it was at Ibrox almost a year ago. Paddy performed a workmanlike role extremely well, allowing Samaras to give free rein to put on the kind of display he brings to his national side, and the kind I bet he wishes he could show Celtic fans every week, without the burden of being part of a British, meat & 2 veg, strike partnership.
Of almost equal importance is our left, where Ledley and Ki offer Neil one of the best pairings down that side, although this is based on limited evidence (the recent 2-1 Aberdeen game, where both were superb).
Everything else follows on from there. Down the right, Forrest and Cha are the best RB/RM duo, and have accrued a commendable 19 points in 7 games together. That leaves central midfield and central defence. Although neither Brown nor Kayal have particularly good recent form, both play well in these games, and their pairing in the middle is one of our most effective.
Wanyama and Mulgrew at CB are not only vital, their partnership on Saturday was one of the best I’ve seen. I couldn’t disagree more with those calling for Victor to be moved to CM. As a midfielder, he’s been good. As a defender, he’s world class.
So there it is – yet another unlikely line-up, I’m afraid (well, the attack, at any rate)! As I mentioned, the expected 4-3-3 would be still be a very good side (and tactically may be the better option to trouble McCoist’s inevitable 4-1-4-1), but if the Paddy scenario isn’t on the cards, I’d rather have Stokes/Hooper than a front 3.
Pearcesdad
They’ve been told that any of it not put away is getting swept into the bin. Think Peterhead game will be on BBC mate.
TC
Have had offer to meet in Bar67 at 1pm. Depending on the impending elephants I may just take the car :-)
Coorslad let me know if that happens, as I know someone who is going up at 12:00 to prepare the display.
V
.
Rangers manager Ally McCoist has stressed the importance of his players keeping their discipline in Wednesday’s crunch Old Firm derby.
The Scottish champions witnessed the dismissals of Lee McCulloch and Dorin Goian in Saturday’s 2-1 Clydesdale Bank Premier League defeat at St Mirren.
Although McCoist thought both of those red cards were harsh – the club has appealed against McCulloch’s sending-off – the Rangers boss will be mindful of what happened the last time they visited Celtic Park.
Steven Whittaker, Madjid Bougherra and El-Hadji Diouf were all shown red cards on a night of drama which saw the Hoops triumph in the Scottish Cup tie thanks to Mark Wilson’s winner.
Summa
Nor v Tot
30mins
nae goals each
Hamiltontim
Cheers, put the whole fecking lot in the bin, or stick it in a curry?
Paul67,
Agree with you, I think the middle of the park is the vital area to dominate. And if we win the battle there we will win the game. In my opinion at the moment the best midfielder in the club is big Victor. Although he has been playing very well at CB I think we have been missing him in the middle of the park in the last few games and that has impacted on our performances. Thought we were a bit flat at times on Saturday.
Hope Lenny plays Victor in midfiled with Kayal. Not too concerned who else is in midfield, but if we have they two in the middle of the park I am convinced we will win comfortably.
Dan
Paul67
I dont know any hun who fancies Whittaker up against Samaras. He has been dire in recent weeks.
rangers backline has fell apart last two games when faced with quick interplay on edge of box.
Ours to lose tomorrow…
HH
.
CultsBhoy..
Re; Sammi..Agreed in Total..
Summa
Pearcesdad
Anything aside from Disney channel that can sustain their interest for that length of time is ok in my eyes!!
Summa of Sammi…. says:
27 December, 2011 at 19:40
Good point about Sammi’s experience, he will have the most experience of Big games tomorrow night.
I actually think your main man will be the star of Celtic’s second half of the season and will run Victor all the way for the Player of the Year. ;)
A Georgios double tomorrow night could spark his big charge to the POTY.
In our last 3 league games Cha has been one of our biggest threats. I hope that Matthews return to fitness doesn’t mean that he will automatically take up the right back berth.
Torontony says:
27 December, 2011 at 19:48
Aye Tonybhoy had a fine rioja wae the Christmas dinner white teeth turned grey job,here’s tae a vintage Celtic display.
Win the battle then put oan the agony an the style.
the_eriugena Eugene
To clarify. Under the new commercial deal any link you post to STV site or repost from any STV twitter account could provide revenue to RFC.
2 hours ago Favorite Retweet Reply
Retweeted by vagelisgeo
half-time
Norwich 0 Tottenham 0
Delia is providing the fans with mulled wine and mince pies during the break
well done Missus
nice gesture !
.
Petec..
Yes l Slightly disagree with Paul67..I Would say Sammi & Skoosh to RIP Rangers..See what l Did there..or Did Paul67 beat me Too it..:O)
Summa
when you look at the -15 point spread before the Motherwell game on November 6th and compare it to today’s -1 it gives you a warm cozy feeling and the internet is our friend, however I’m never comfy with these fixtures and I fervently pray that we come out on top.
My team would be
Forster
Cha, Wanyama, K.Wilson, Mulgrew
Kayal
Brown, Ki, Ledley, Samaras
Hooper
I’d go with that lineup knowing I have Forrest and Stokes in the wings
HamiltonTim, Royal Society Christmas LEcture on BBC4
.
Police statement
The following message was received from the office of Campbell Corrigan, Assistant Chief Constable of Strathclyde Police ahead of tomorrow nights match.
Assistant Chief Constable Campbell Corrigan asked that I make contact with various supporters groups in advance of the Celtic v Rangers fixture on Wednesday 28 December 2011.
He would like to reassure supporters that the policing response for this fixture will be exactly what it has been at previous fixtures. Strathclyde Police will be in attendance to work with the club, stewarding provider and supporters to ensure a safe and pleasurable environment for all. This game will be treated like any other routine Old Firm fixture. While some police officers will be present with hand held camera equipment, they will not be deployed unless there is an incident which necessitates their deployment and only on the instruction of the Match Commander.Hmmmmm..
Summa
Adam, the only change I would make to that would be pushing Ledley back to left back and Mulgrew replacing Wilson. The big guy hasn’t convinced me yet and he’s short of match practice… Not a game I would bring him back for. I’d keep brown on the right and play Forrest on the left with Sammi ahead of him, playing just behind Hoops
Sammi and Forrest on the same wing would cause Whittaker sleepless nights for months to come. And it would take them by surprise….
It does leave us short in midfield against their inevitable 5 but I think this team would win and win comfortably.
mhaddog
The missus is in charge of the remote just now. What’s it about mate?
bbc4 9pm
movie
napoleon’s “Waterloo”