Individual errors no longer costly

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If ever we needed a perfect example of what the Celtic players have gone through in recent weeks it arrived in the first half against Dundee United on Saturday.  One week after Wilfried Nancy blamed “individual errors” for the loss of three goals, Auston Trusty committed a classic of that particular genre.

As the last defender, Trusty tried to clear the ball away from the onrushing Owen Stirton, but the United striker got the better of him and was bearing down on Kasper Schmeichel, before Liam Scales flew in to block his shot.  That’s what happens when an individual error takes place and you have a covering defender.  The same chance under Nancy would inevitably led to an equaliser and an entirely different rest of the match.

One of my regrets from the defeat a week earlier was that Yang did not get the attention his excellent goal and performance merited.  He has now drifted in from the right to open the scoring in two successive games.  Right now he is our most effective winger.

The coolest head in Glasgow belonged to Benjamin Nygren.  With the Unted keeper ready to block, Benjamin feigned to shoot, forcing the keeper to commit before pitching a shot high into the net.  The Swede is by some distance the most prolific goalscorer at the club; something to ponder when we are without a confident striker.

*individual errors will, of course, still be costly on occasion.

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  1. I bet oor board were/are keech at keepy-uppies.

     

     

    FFS sign a striker.

     

    Clone Henke if ye have to.

  2. CELTIC MAC- Tounekti showed signs of life on Saturday, he looks a confidence player, maybe getting a Bowie type striker in ,could be the making of him

  3. JUSTSHATERED on 12TH JANUARY 2026 2:35 PM

     

     

    But surely that is part of the process, asking about player via his agent if he does want to come?

     

     

    Agents will never tell you their player doesnt want to come. He’ll pile high as many offers as he can to get as good a deal at as good a club as he can.

     

     

    Our process should be to identify the best players who will come, value him at Whay we th ok hes worth, put together the best deal we can afford at the right price and hope no one else comes in from a bigger league.

     

     

    The sensible way of doing it is to avoid all this by looking for value in poorly scouted markets using data analytics and scouting, and developing talent, instead of chasing unicorns ending up with no one and pissing everybody off

  4. Welsh is Motherwell class because Rodgers and Ange made him so.

     

    Efe Ambrose and Kelvin Wilson were of a class which was good enough to repel Mess/Xavi/Iniesta/led/Barcelona/class because Neil Lennon made them so.

     

    I think that Nygren could be Larsson-esque if he was played as a second striker in a 4-4-1-1 with a big striker playing next to him.

     

    Who would the big striker be?

     

    There are a handful of ‘rabbit out of a hat’ types of strikers playing in the SPL right now, and I don’t even know their names, but I’m sure that MON & Shaun will know them.

     

    I’ll take a look for them………

     

    They play with Killie and Livingston.

     

    Big useful lumps always a handful, and Ashley HAY from Dundee as well too.

     

    So splashing the cash does not always bring a superstar our way.

     

    Has everybody forgot about Rodgers and Engels experiment? lol

     

    Remember when MON bought Didier Agathe from Hibs as a striker yet converted him int o a right wingback and he did not too bad.

     

    Lubo – Henrik – Bobo – Didier – for under 2 Million was an example of the Celtic Way.

     

    Marcus Dackers from Killie, Tete Yengi, Cristian Montano from Livingston, any of these with Nygren as second striker would work up some good stuff under MON & Shaun. Imho.

     

    Maybe dim Tims have become snobs all spoiled and stuff looking doon their noses at potential[managed properly rabbits out of a hat signings] because Rodgers was a Snob and dim Tims have also been Rodgered?!

     

    What a time to be alive!

     

    Creating a Celtic FC were the Great Mr Stein wouldn’t even get an interview = NOT THE ANSWER!

     

    All seating has created thousands of cliques full of dim Tims.

     

    The price of replacing the great DESMOND WHITE with, Jack McGinn, has utterly destroyed the beautiful game, whereas DESMOND WHITE would FOREVER have been revered THROUGHOUT THE WORKING CLASS GAME OF FOOTBALL, as the Man who rumbled up a Rebellion to SMASH Thatcher’s all seating bs trap full of lies that killed 97 Liverpool Comrades RIP.

     

    God bless the Trolls who can see through it all CSC

     

    HH

     

    oot.

  5. the bada bing

     

     

    Good performnce. His winter break to Morocco done him the world of good.

     

    For a right footed player he has a helluva left foot. Quick too. What I liked was that when he created a bit of space he made good decisions, getting the ball away quicker. though some of his crosses had no takers. There are the makings of a very good attacking formation at Celtic now, just need to supplement it with goals, from within if Jonny can take some chances, or from without if we can bring a goal scorer in. Might still lose Maeda if there is interest out there….

  6. Author Paul67

     

     

    With respect I think your leader is missing the point.

     

     

    Liam Scales is a “genuine” Celtic player, he’s no pretensions about his ability, he’s not a Billy McNeill, but, Liam, God love him.

     

     

    He knows his limitations yet his awareness in saving Trusty’s embarrassment is exactly what Martin O’Neill needs and will cherish in his team going forward.

     

     

    Liam’s performance on Saturday sets the standard for his teammates for the remainder of the season. We don’t need any show ponies, we need players who know their limitations but also recognise their responsibility to support their team mates.

     

     

    We, the Celtic supporters, need a team we can cheer to winning the championship with everyone of the team playing their part.

     

     

    Again I point my finger at Maeda and ask is he a fully committed Celtic player?

  7. Was impressed by Dundee captain yesterday.

     

    At 27 he has his best years ahead of him.

     

    He gets about the field and shows a bit aggression.

     

    He been about a bit but sometimes that can motivate you to be better and prove people wrong.

     

    Just found out he’s a Celtic fan as is his family .

  8. bournesouprecipe on

    I think we’re preaching to the converted if the recruitment team are warned not to go near the English Premier League for a quality striker.

     

     

    Chris Sutton and John Hartson was a long time ago, back when we were trying to compete in Europe, never mind Falkirk. In fairness what’s £6M is 2026 and does Dermot take account of inflation?

     

     

    FWIW I’d rather have a loan than a Tisdale punt, till the infamous ( recruitment guys ) is sorted out.

  9. MAOLMUIRE O MUIRGHEASA on 12TH JANUARY 2026 3:39 PM

     

    In RPI terms, £6 million in 2006 is roughly £10.14 million today.

     

     

    I think inflation on transfer fees over the last 20 years might be a bit higher than the rpi.

     

     

    Aston Villa paid £10m today for a 17 year old with 5 appearances for Metz and 3 caps for Luxembourg

  10. Creepy crawlies out in force this afternoon. You do realise that the board are supposed to be working to a strategic plan for the football part of the business?

     

    That doesn’t include asking us for suggestions.

     

    Shambles of an organisation.

  11. Maolmuire O Muirgheasa on

    Inform UEFA that the corruption in Scottish football jeopardizes the integrity of their own competitions And shareholders could threaten to sue them for failing to police their member associations.

     

     

    If nothing, the publicity would be priceless.

  12. Rumours that the Stephen Welsh deal has fallen through, as Celtic can’t agree terms with themselves

  13. bigrailroadblues on

    Come writers and critics

     

    Who prophesize with your pen

     

    And keep your eyes wide

     

    The chance won’t come again

     

    And don’t speak too soon

     

    For the wheel’s still in spin

     

    And there’s no tellin’ who

     

    That it’s namin’

     

    For the loser now

     

    Will be later to win

     

    For the times they are a-changin

     

     

    Bob Dylan 1964.

  14. Maolmuire O Muirgheasa on

    “Martin O’Neill admits Celtic’s lack of transfer activity left him with no option but to recall Stephen Welsh from Motherwell.”

  15. Back to Basics - Glass Half Full on

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cj3vj7ex748o

     

     

    We’ve seen this sketch before.

     

     

    Managers are human.

     

     

    They dream, aspire, and are greedy for success

     

     

    Why else would they leave a job which has turned into a dream job …

     

     

    … through their efforts, the efforts of others, the environment being just right and the group collectively catching the same wave?

     

     

    … to take up a nightmare job you’ve deluded yourself is your dream?

  16. bigrailroadblues on 12th January 2026 5:45 pm

     

     

    For the loser now will be later to win for the times they are a-changin

     

     

    Bob Dylan 1964.

     

     

    *and they were exactly 1 year later when 1872 went from a 2 time treble winner to SFA

  17. dessybhoy on 12th January 2026 1:04 pm

     

     

    The club is a shambles and now we bring back Welsh who is Motherwell standard.

     

     

    *so were Joe McBride, Dixie Deans, Brian McClair and Andy Walker, they turned out not so bad plus mibbees just mibbees young Stephen has matured more in his time at Fir Park, after all wasn’t Stevie Clarke having a look at him for a place in Canada and Mexico.

     

     

    As for 27 year old Joe McGoals, we were his 6th club and had prolific goalscorers big Yogi, Stevie and the Buzz Bomb at the time so it didnae really make any sense in that jubilant summer where we were now holders of 2 cups won within 6 days, sandwiched by a 1-6 loss at East End Park, so why were we looking at Joe, well he had ripped our cup winner big Billy a new one in the semi where we were fortuitous in getting a 2-2 draw but snuffed him out in the replay which we won comfortably 3-0.

     

     

    After a disastrous spell with Wolves who bought him from killie for £12,500, a lot of money at the time, failing to break into the first team, he moved on to Luton for £8,000 where he only managed 9 goals in 25 games, he rediscovered his scoring form with the Jags, with a ratio of over a goal every two games, and his reputation improved further when he signed for Motherwell in 1962 for another £8,000 fee, Joe was Motherwell’s top goalscorer in three successive seasons.

     

     

    Anyway that summer Joe asked for a transfer, hmmmm, so we offered £22,000, while Dunfermline 3rd in the league that season 1 point behind first place killie and runners up hearts, as well as being runners up in the cup having beaten Hibs who had knocked 1872 out in the quartets in which was Jock’s last game for them who were incidentally in 4th place 2 points above 1872, this was when it was 2 points for a win then, while we were languishing in 8th place 13 points behind the winners having won 16, tied 5 and lost 13, as opposed to the Pars who had won 22, tied 5 and lost 7, who offered £22,500, which was accepted by the steel men, so who would a nomadic player choose.

     

     

    At the time I mentioned to my da about losing him, his response having supported the leather belts, as he called them, was along the lines of Jock being a big burd man knowing Joe would choose us, and so the one who played in the same school team as future Bank of England vice chairman Brian Quinn, turned the Pars down and Well reluctantly accepted our bid, and that’s how transfers sometimes pan out.

     

     

    As for all this hysteria that we ALWAYS wait until the last minute, actually we do and the only time that I can recall us NOT doing so was when Ange took over and wanted his guys in AQAP, but in saying that he did wait util the January windae tae get Maeda in, failure to do proper research results in the likes of Paddy Turner and Hughie Maxwell being signed, good players as well as good Celtic mhen but just NOT the right fit at the time

  18. Celtic in my opinion are still recovering from the shock of the Kairat calamity of being knocked out of the lucrative Champions League which has rocked the club to its foundations and probably has resulted in the departures of a CEO , a Director Of Football and two managers in the space of 5 months. The reasons have been well documented at this stage.

     

     

    Martin is back for a third time bringing tactical stability with Shaun and busily scouring the January sales for difficult to get adequate recruits to bolster their team for the title run in. Thankfully it was a successful return on Saturday for both guys and their team with a comfortable win.

     

     

    Listened to the game on radio with Packy assisting on the commentary. Martin said he would relax and watch an NFL gridiron game later and I tuned into a rugby game which was a thriller at Lansdowne Road. Grreat weekend of sport.

  19. TT

     

    There is zero comparison and you know it,it’s not the fault of Stephen Welsh, he should have been allowed to leave find his level and have a career, a victim of a board who do not prioritise the first team and the development of its footballers.

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