Neil Lennon suggested Gary Hooper, unquestionably his favourite son, was Celtic’s best striker since Henrik Larsson. It’s an interesting question.
The list is long: Chris Sutton, John Hartson, Henri Camara, Craig Bellamy, Dion Dublin, Scott McDonald, Marc-Antoine Fortune, Chris Killen, Maciej Zurawski, Kenny Miller, Derek Riordan, Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink, Georgios Samaras, Robbie Keane, Diomansy Kamara, Olivier Kapo, Anthony Stokes, Pawel Brozek, Moh Bangura, Daryl Murphy, Miku and Lassad.
Apologies if I’ve overlooked someone. That’s 22 strikers in nine years (it’s a bit soon to consider Amido Balde), some of whom were loans, but the list doesn’t include the many Celtic youth players who got their shot at first team football, or those, like Tony Watt, who were signed for low fees from lower league Scottish clubs.
Chris Sutton and John Hartson were already at the club when Henrik left, but it quickly became evident they were past their best. Robbie Keane and Craig Bellamy were quality but only played a dozen or so games, so can’t really be considered as competition to Hooper.
Maciej Zurawski arrived a year after Larsson left and had a phenomenal first season at the club. He made his debut after the 5-0 reversal to Artmedia but inspired Celtic to a 4-0 win six days later. Maciej was on fire when he joined and only failed to score in five league games before the league win in April but he never found anything close to that consistency again. Record: 22 goals in 55 games.
Scott McDonald’s YouTube clip of goals in the Champions League and against Rangers will have featured heavily in the portfolio as his agent looked for a new club this year. His goals got us into the Champions League, beat European champions, Milan, and regularly put our (then) nearest rivals to the sword. Record: 51 goals in 88 games.
Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink arrived in summer 2006 and immediately outshone Zurawski. His debut as a substitute against Hibs transformed Celtic and won the game. His signing was pivotal in Celtic winning the title in 2007. Record: 34 goals in 78 games.
Georgios Samaras arrived 18 months after Vennegoor of Hesselink and alongside Barry Robson pushed Celtic over the line for three in a row. 2008 was a fabulous year for Georgios but although he’s still a forward, he’s not really been a striker since. Record: 41 goals in 138 games.
With 63 goals, 95 games, Gary Hooper’s scoring record is better than anyone else’s, but the challenge to be best since Larsson was simple, just outperform Scott McDonald. With all those strikers as competition, that’s not as high as the bar could be.
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Bobby Murdoch’s – one of my all time favourite cars.
lionroars67
09:09 on 29 July, 2013
Brilliant ‘Trojan Horse’ piece…….hahahaha
Just a wee carping thought on all this transfer activity and the emphasis in getting someone in before Wednesday.
The play offs were known about months ago.
And for just as long it was extremely likely that Victor and Hooper would be off hire.
Also, even without fees for the above pair, there is no shortage of money around Celtic Park.
So why was there no recruitment sooner?
Also on the Bangura front.
Surely a half decent lawyer could find a way round EUFA’s stance on loan players.
WEEMINGER
I confess to being a fan,always stopped to just gaze at it whenever I saw one.
67Heaven … I am Neil Lennon..!!.. Ibrox belongs to the creditors
09:19 on
29 July, 2013
Yes good bit of fun and a good story, now if only we had some people who we could rely on in the FA, but then we don’t do EBT’s pity we could have skipped a few steps………………… …
Jackson = odiuos bitter bhun
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS
09:25 on
29 July, 2013
That and the classic Volvo 1800s
Remember when it was armageddon
SPFL CEO Neil Doncaster “The Scottish Premiership, per head of the population, is actually the best supported league anywhere in Europe”
lionroars67
09:25 on 29 July, 2013
Hahahahahahaha….!!!!
fortunes favour mibbes
04:43 on 29 July, 2013
It’s cracking irony listening to certain posters here…..
Thom the Tim,
Aye.
Do you have a point of view on tragedy??
Wide open goal for you there.
If you’re grandkids went to a Celtic Game and got kettled?……
Things is, that WILL actually happen?
So the rest of us will be fighing for them while you sit there oblvious??
Aye, good on ye.
Thankfully, they’ll learn the lesson you have failed to learn in your 60 proud years of supporting a football club without having any flamin clue about what it means.
*****
Whenever youcome ashore, will you once again explain the content of another late night rant directed at me.
And, please, don’t come back with the same, ” I don’t remember that”, excuse you used the last time.
If you don’t remember, then, you should seriously seek help.
Good news that we are on the verge of signing Boerrigter. The manager has stated on several occasions that he was looking for a left sided attacker to come in and hopefully this is his mhan.
If he signs that will be our fourth signing not bad for a club not recruiting…
In an ideal world replacements would be lined up for those departing however as you probably know it’s not as simple as that. The majority of deals are done late in the window-even in the superdooperEPL-as clubs and players weigh up their options looking for the best deals available. It is also harder for us to attract players to the SPFL than it is for smaller EPL sides luring talent to their league. I think we’re working hard behind the scenes and the wheeling and dealing may have some way to go.
On Elfsborg I don’t think they are any better than anything in the SPFL and I’d fancy us over two legs against anyone in our league. Roll on Wednesday.
Thoughts and prayers with the Thai Tims.
“I didn’t assault the referee. All I did was grab him by the face.”
A club manager in Peru protests his innocence after a wrong offside call cost his team the game.
WEEMINGER
Also a Ghia design…..
You are a man of consummate taste!
Celtic_First
Has Walter taken a job in Peru?
ETims Content: Celtic Diary Monday July 29 http://bit.ly/12X7pQ3 #celtic #etims
Link to DR article today, it seems ole Jingle has been reading CQN many PL bashers, lazy journalism indeed
Celtic Football Club @celticfc 3m
The Ticket Office at Celtic Park is open until 7pm this Monday & Tuesday for supporters wanting to get tickets for the Elfsborg game. (PC)
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS
09:13 on
29 July, 2013
MACJAY. 0829
My Ghias…late `90s
Your Ghias…early `70s
Who`s the ould git now?
I wonder if Jackson runs his copy past Traynor prior to going to print…that seems to be the way of things.
I mean we have a CL qualifier this week and we’re signing players for real money and paying all of our bills…no good news there Keith?
hurtinghunCSC
BMCUW, Weeminger
Have to agree with you both re. Karmann Ghia and the stunning Volvo P1600/1800. I’ve often wondered why Volvo in particular, didn’t bring out a version of this for the 21st Century, having seen the success Fiat have achieved with their 500. Despite being a confirmed Audi man, I would certainly be interested if such a car was available.
HH
Don’t know how reliable this is:
Centraal Voetbal @centraalvoetbal 32s
BREKEND: Celtic heeft een bod gedaan van 7 miljoen euro op Alfred Finnbogason. #Heerenveen
Translation:
Central Football @ Central football 32s
BREAKING: Celtic has made an offer of 7 million euros Alfred Finnbogason. # Heerenveen
Well if the MSM are correct big Kelvin Wilson is very near to moving to Notts Forrest and Joe Ledley could be moving to Cardiff City the two deals bringing in 5 Million and taking our income from transfers out in this window to 23 Million pounds.It concerns me that we are letting to many quality players move on and in terms of European footbal lit could cost us dearly.Why are so many players allowed to let there contracts run into the last year at Celtic ? I suspect the terms we offer are simply not attractive enough we also have stoksie in his last year as well.To many players out and to many players in means the team can be disrupted and take time to settle and in terms of Europe we need to hit the ground running.I think we need to get the balance sorted out selling players isnot the only way for the club to make cash as we saw last season a good run in the Champions league can be very profitable. H.H.
MACJAY
It was tongue-in-cheek. Sorry,bud.
Frail: Fulham fixture was valuable exercise
By: Mark Henderson on 29 Jul, 2013 06:59
A YOUNG Celtic Development Side lost 2-0 to Fulham at the weekend at St George´s Park – the English FA´s National Football Centre – as they continued their pre-season preparations.
And while Stevie Frail was disappointed not to have garnered a positive result from the contest, he told the official Celtic website that it had been a valuable workout as the youths gear up for the start of the new campaign.
“We created one or two chances but didn’t play as well as we can do,” said the coach. “We had some decent passages of play and one or two of the performances were decent but we never caused them enough problems. They were older and more experienced but that´s not an excuse.
“Overall, it was a good exercise against an English Premier League side in really warm, humid conditions. It will definitely help the players in their final preparations for pre-season.
“Sometimes you learn more from a defeat from a coach´s point of view. It´s something myself and John will look at over the next couple of weeks and see if there is anything we can improve and work on.
“It was a really good exercise and it was good to go and play at St George´s Park. Although we lost the game there are still a lot of things to be positive about and to work on over the next few weeks.”
The young Celts are due to begin their league campaign on August 6 and they will take part in their final pre-season fixture tomorrow night (Tuesday) when they tackle East Fife at Bayview (Kick-off 7.45pm).
“We play East Fife which I imagine might be their first team, so that will be another game against an opposition we would hope to take something from,” added Frail.
“This will be our last pre-season game and then we have another week before we play Dundee United in the league.”
CELTIC (4-3-3) Trialist; Hoareau, O´Connell, Findlay, McIlduff; McManus (75) Kidd, Lindsay; McMullan (Nesbitt 85), Johnstone, George (Donnelly 67)
Not Used: Hart, Kelleher
Paul,
Can we expect a ‘Wilson Best Since Balde’ article soon?
Transfer-window anhedonia in Caledonia.
Twas ever thus.
Joe Fillipi – to me at the moment the situation is an interesting and unfolding one. I will not be particularly happy if we sell Ledley just now. Wilson I think we can cope without – if Mulgrew gets fit it still means we have a back four who are familiar with one another and we can then bring in a new player to complement the mix.
Ledley concerns me though. I think for tougher games in the CL we will need Ledley, Brown and Kayal – all combative, fit players who will battle for 90 minutes. I think our midfield is in need of reinforcement not losing another player.
If Joe or any of the others leave before January at the earliest to let new players ‘bed in’ I’ll be disappointed.
It seems to me we don’t need to sell anyone else just now. The Elfsborg tie is crucial in all of this. It is going to be massive.
Joe Fillippi
Celtic only let players whom they do not want to contracts run down. If they want to keep them they offer contracts at least the same as before and in line with the club pay structure.
If a player wants to stay he signs. If he wants to go anda good bid comes in and the assessment is it outweighs the cost of letting him go then he goes. If the cost in terms of disruption is too high then he stays.
He always has the option of signing another contract then leaving ( like Stan Petrov did).
It is a balancing act with factors the club do not have control over. Your disruption point is correct and is a factor in deciding who to let go and when as is an assessment of who takes their place.
I would be surprised if Celtic let Ledley go unless for big money because of the disruption factor but if Joe wants to go he is in charge as are all good players in a market where quality is scarce.
Joe ledley has said he loves it here and wants anither contract.
Why would kelvin wilson go back to fotrest after that little runt treated him si badly last time?
Just my thoughts on transfer out talk.
blantyretim
Big Kelvin’s got family problems has he no and I can’t see Joe Ledley going this season, he strikes me as a Bhoy who gets Celtic, he would be a big loss for us…
Joe Ledley and Adam Mathhews got the Celtic bug.
New contracts please.
Sp.
I know but forrest fgs..
Davis ignored him and froze him out of the team for months.. wee man syndrome suffering davis has a big chip on his shoulder.
..
Years ago this sort of thing from the Daily Record used to annoy me, now I know it is all written by the Sevco PR company I just pmsl.
ARTJOMS RUDNEVS has handed Celtic the most emphatic of knockbacks by insisting he’d never move from the Bundesliga to Scotland.
blantyretim
We do some strange things for our families though, he never struck me as a Bhoy who looked very happy, always looks like he’s got the world on his shoulders, good luck to the Big Man, I liked him before he came to us and I will be sad to see him go…
If Joe Ledley goes this window I’ll be very surprised. Mind you, that has happened before.
;-)
roy croppie 10:02 on 29 July, 2013
Jackson has never had the best interests of Celtic at heart – he’s just a hurting Zombie … as well as a sh1t journalist.
I would not want either Kelvin Wilson or Joe Ledley to leave. I do understand if Kelvin has family problems that he may want to go. But to the manager of the team who treated him so badly……
Ledley’s current contract will probably include his considerable signing on fee in his monthly salary.It won’t be matched in a new deal.I think Brown is on around 25k a week as top earner,some guys like Ledley,Sammi might be offered same deal .If not they might look elsewhere.
Feeling a bit nervous about the CL games coming up but nothing like last season.
Maybe that will change on wednesday