The return of the winter break to the Scottish football programme is welcome. There are a couple of physiological reasons for this. Players are never truly 100% fit during the season, they always carry knocks and scrapes. Allowing them time away from competitive action will allow minor abrasions to recover with less risk of a more significant injury.
The way a player can train during the season is also limited by impending football games. Endurance training requires lots of stamina-sapping exercise. This is possible in the early weeks of preseason but its’ simply not practical to push players’ endurance limits at the start of the week and expect them to play at the weekend. Even less taxing training is possible when a player has two games a week.
A three week break from games in January will allow training programmes to be implemented which simply would not be possible otherwise. A mid-season foundation layer of fitness can be laid down which will allow legs to appear fresher in subsequent months. This foundation layer should also prevent injuries.
Can’t believe it’s been 18 years since the League Cup final was played pre-Christmas. I’ve fond memories of the last one – against Dundee United, at Ibrox. The 90s brought us a Scottish Cup win in 1995 but that League Cup win came early in a season we believed we had a genuine title chance for the first time in years.
It felt like, and proved to be, a profound moment.
It was also our first League Cup since 1982 – the Hampden in the rain final, another great memory from a period we were so far out of the picture in Europe domestic competitions were always the ambition. For those to young to know, the Celtic end at Hampden was like a 90° ash park, with three inch wooden planks standing upright, which some decades earlier held back the ash to create long-gone steps. Good job we won.
I see Aberdeen’s inspiration, Jonny Hayes, is out for a month. As we know to our cost this season, losing your top players costs points. We’ll see how it affects Aberdeen on Friday.
Mangers Premium Seat Competition
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Sack the fans
What is the point of a ‘squad’ then?
Surely not
Árd Macha,
2nd, is the first loser
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-south-scotland-35603241
Jungle Jim Hot Smoked
Just back from a meeting and read your reply.
Correct with the translation and my God that was an awful question for the young bhoy to face.
Árd Macha
Gearoid/Thomthetim
The 1916 documentary with Liam Neeson well worth a watch,very good stuff
Much better than RTE’s dreadful drama Rebellion,Bad acting,bad use of sets/locations.historically inaccurate,imposing 21st century politically correct views on people who had just emerged from 19th century feudalism.
Anyhow for those looking for something to do in Dublin on Good Friday (pubs closed)
St Kevins Boys organise a very good schoolboy academy competition
Teams This year are Barcelona,Deportivo,Lyon,West Brom,St Kevins themselves and a little known team from the east end of Glasgow.
See the potential Messi/Jinky of the future
Here is link ( I will be available for lifts/directions as I live near the ground)
http://www.skbfc.yourclub.ie/news/6548
– See more at: http://www.celticquicknews.co.uk/ajer-on-board-as-strategy-rolls-forward/comment-page-11/#comment-2779333
Paul 67 –
More importantly, the 3 week break in early January 2017 should leave us well refreshed for our upcoming last 16 Champions League game ;-)
kitalba on 18th February 2016 12:05 pm
Seriously? Taking the injury that’s just blighted Aberdeen. It’s occurred after the winter break and may have happened regardless of underlying fitness. Without a ‘squad’ who comes in to replace Hayes?
West End of East End on 18th February 2016 11:33 am Mate, learn to scroll on by, tis easier than giving them the oxygen they crave. We have been slaughtered by injuries all along the back 4 all season, never had the chance to play a stable platform to build from, back in the day when the huns were 15 points ahead we had the same problems in the full back area. I was slaughtered/ridiculed on here for saying that we’d win the league when we got a settled back 4, the rest is history. Aberdeen lose ONE player the other night and it’s meltdown that he’s out for a month. The ‘jungle management’ WILL shout at you, IT’S WHAT THEY DO, they’ve done it forever. Remember watching us take Lyon apart with pure, beautiful football, twenty odd passes before Henrik nods it in from 2 yards out. From pass 3 the ‘jungle management’ were howling, “git it in the f’kn boax you”……….muppets. Keep the faith, you are right, we WILL win this league by a street but we need to stick wi Ronny as he builds his young side.
As a smug, snobbish, pathetic, quisling, victim, I look forward to Saturday’s game at CP.
Hope Roberts and Christie feature at some point.
Well of course Hayes’ injury shouldn’t affect Aberdeen at all as they have more resources than (nearly) all the other teams and certainly Partick.
That’s what the MSM always say anyway when we have injuries. I am sure they will say the same about Aberdeen…..
Good Afternoon.
Here is something about the world’s greatest goal scorer…
https://theclumpany.wordpress.com/2016/02/18/pen-ning-for-waghorn/
Posted this at the back end of the last blog then that bugger Paul67 posts a new article and someone asks why do we need a squad…!
I’ve been looking at this accusation that we are only signing midfielders. Since February 2015 we have signed 1 goalkeeper, 6 defenders, 5 MF & 3 forwards.
Out of the defenders we’ve signed only 2 have not been out with injuries, Tierney & Sviatchenko (Tierney signed a new deal) Simonovic, Boyata, Janko & Blackett have all been out at some point. Same with Lustig & Mulgrew who didn’t sign within the last year.
In the midfield, established players who have been out at one time or another Bitton, Brown, Commons, Forrest, Rogic, McGregor & Johansen. That’s 7 established players who have been out injured not including suspensions. I’ve not included Dirk for obvious reasons :-)
I don’t know what Ronnie’s first pick 11 has been this season. I doubt even he knows. When you look into it a little more rather than shouting from the side, you can see the problems he’s had over this season. I’m not trying to make excuses for some of the poor performances but I would really like to see all players back from injury to see what his first 11 would look like.
Source: http://www.celticfc.net/team
weeminger:
The squad we have defeats any need for a break. Bearing in mind we are humped out of Europe and we are no longer renowned for being compassionately altruistic.
The article stinks of ‘EXCUSE’….
——————-Bailly——————-
Janko-Boyata-Ambrose-Blackett
———-Allan–Mulgrew————-
Roberts——-Rogic——-Christie
—————–Kazim—————-
Or is a one horse race not good enough for the sensitivities of ‘New’ Celtic’ fans, now in a one horse race is it imperative for us that we cripple the oppositions’ ability to compete to ensure our limp success?
Have we become Huns?
Have we?
Have WE become the NEW HUNS?
kitalba on 18th February 2016 12:24 pm
So now that we’re having a break. What do you advocate? 1st 11 plus backup. Is that not a squad? Or are you going hardcore and having 1st 11 and bring in a youth if there’s and injury?
Beware of Timposters.
The Wits posting above lives in North Dublin, our Wits (and his butlers) live in Dublin 4 lol.
HH all
Paul, with all due respect that has got to be the biggest load of tosh…. if you compare the training intensity to say that of a boxer or even more so a top class tennis player to football and I talk from experience there is no comparison… I find it hard to justify without referring to recent alleged lifestyle decisions taken by a first team member.
And if Aberdeen were to drop points to a team with less resources then the MSM will surely be shouting from the rooftops that their manager should be sacked…..
Delighted to see big Sadie close to match fitness. In his games prior to injury I thought he looked a player and Lustig is not the force he once was. Another piece of the jigsaw, hopefully, falls into place.
HH
weeminger:
I’m just the son of a wee boy who was brought up in Glasgow playing football on a black ash pitch. Nothing stopped the game, ever.
Maybe the need for bigger dividends and smaller margins and longer heated driveways and cosmetic slavery in the bright new world of Celtic F.C. can’t remember the roots of their core support.
Maybe there is not a single member on our board that ever went to ground on a black ash pitch?
Maybe the board are quite happy to pass out free carbolic soap.
It is a one horse race mate and we are trying to ensure that it remains so.
Never mind…
Here we go 10 in a row.
And in our case it is 11 + 40, or there abouts.
TBB @ 12.24
I’ll bite.
The reserve eleven that should still be good enough to beat ICT?
Eurochamps67
FullgazebothissaturdayCSC
League Cup 1997 at Ibrox.
I was there and Marc Rieper was imperious.
Jungle Jim Hot Smoked.
I forgot to add my thanks earlier, so eh, thanks.
Back to Work CSC.
Árd Macha
kitalba on 18th February 2016 12:40 pm
With respect that has got absolutely zero to do with modern, professional football.
Wilbur55
The training regimes of boxers and tennis players are indeed more strenuous and intense than fitba players. Preparation for matches includes far more non physical work for a football team. Team bonding, tactics specialist practice for different types of player. Eg goalies/strikers/heading/corners/free kicks etc.
Saying that, there is no excuse for well paid professional athletes not adhering to their fitness programmes/dietery schedules.
I would imagine that Celtic implement best practice in this regard. If a team has markedly higher fitness levels than Celtic, then we should examine our methods with a view to improvement. The management cannot be blamed if the individual players don’t comply.
Gearoid
Drat I am exposed.
The batman cup final great day. Won the sweep on the bus that day. Big Marc Reiper boom 1-0.
ger57 on 18th February 2016 12:52 pm
How often to Tennis players get clattered by their opponents? How many fights does a top boxer have a year? It’s apples and oranges.
I truly believe that a number of fans are staying away because they know that, in the absence of Rangers, the results don’t really matter.
However, as a fan, they are not comfortable accepting this as the reason so instead blame it on the poor product on the field. This is nonsense, as the product is pretty much the same as it has been for the last 10 years – although i’d wager at times under Ronny we actually play better passing football than under any of the previous 3 managers.
A co worker said to me 2 weeks ago after the Ross County game that he just couldn’t face going because of how poor we have been recently. I pointed out we had scored 20 goals in January – aye, but the footballs rubbish he says.
The other argument is that we should be well clear of Aberdeen – Aberdeen get 3 points for a win. They’d be 2nd in the majority of the last ten seasons based on points total.
Previously, you could have a bad season in Europe but as long as you were in contention for the league, everything would be forgiven if you beat Rangers. Ronny doesn’t have that. Instead, he has his most important game at the very start and no redeeming opportunity until the following summer. Every defeat is a crisis.
As I see it, fans would rather have Michael O’Neill. That to me is crazy. We need a developer of players. We have 7 or 8 very promising young players, Fasan, Janko, Jozo, Tierney, Ajer, Henderson, Christie, Nesbitt and Roberts. They won’t all play every week under Ronny but they will all train with the first team every day and get good exposure.
Ronny, Celtic, and the fans are all suffering from Rangers demise. Its not in doubt.
weeminger:
Mate, with every respect to you alone, it has a hell of a lot to do with the ‘new’ Celtic strategy, and the ‘new’ is failing when ‘benchmarked’.
Bring back the fish suppers I say. And footballers who love the ball more than their very own hubris and image.
Ask the old ‘living’ Lisbon Lions’ who still work the club what I mean by that.
One or two of them are brave enough to go on the record.
We are a mediocre football team. Mediocre…. Full stop.
I don’t perceive any corporate ambition to be anything more.
Soft dividends. Soft dividends when you have a sucker consumer base.
Here’s an interesting note on distance a tennis player covers running –
http://www.runnersworld.com/newswire/how-far-do-top-male-tennis-players-run-in-a-match
In three rounds your top players cover half the ground than most footballers do in a single match.
I remember Nakamura, who some classed as ‘lazy’ doing over 8km a game and it seems Ki who also got tagged the same is currently 1 of the 15 hardest working players in the EPL covering over 11km/game.
“I pointed out we had scored 20 goals in January – aye, but the footballs rubbish he says.”
Guernica,
We invented the sideways pass dontchaknow!?
Every other side passes straight forward every time ;)
HH
kitalba on 18th February 2016 1:05 pm
So you think we’d be a better team if we went back to the old ways, is that what you’re saying?
Kitalba
How many of the Lions team would have stayed at CP during the early 60s if current employment laws had been in force then?
1967 is about as relevant as 1066 as to our current place in World football.