When I saw the lineup, with Celtic going three at the back, I concluded that Wilfried Nancy’s concerns after watching Celtic struggle at home to Dundee on Wednesday were as acute as my own. In a well-operating side, changing formation is an unnecessary risk. In a team which for long periods recently against Dundee, Hibs and St Mirren looked as fragile as a bubble, change is what the new manager was brought in to do.
It started so well. Hearts were unable to take possession inside the Celtic half. Celtic’s extra man in midfield made them look like a pack, hunting and winning the ball within seconds of being dispossessed. The visitors only progress up-field relied on errors from the home side. Poor defending led to both goals, but while Celtic were in control of the game until the opening goal two minutes before the break, there were worrying signs for Nancy.
Daizen Maeda is not a centre forward. His purple patch in that position last season was a small sample size, the legacy effects of which linger. Twice he could have put Celtic ahead in the early stages of the game. Sebastian Tounekti can do little more to earn an assist than take a 50-yard pass on his chest and roll it in front of a striker who is clean through.
Daizen is our most valuable asset and is suited to play the position when Celtic are forced to defend against top sides in Europe, but is a poor fit there domestically. Play Daizen on the right and Johnny Kenny through the middle. Kelechi Iheanacho will soon be available for consideration to add options.
I am sure Celtic will persist with the back three, but there is an obvious modification required. As well as his normal left-back roll, Kieran Tierney has played wingback, left wing and right-back. He is significantly more suited to playing on the right of a back three than Auston Trusty. Trusty is not a player to forage down either wing, he should play in the middle. That would allow Liam Scales – who has played left-back – to play on the left.
Despite the lacklustre performance, had Kenny’s header or the resultant shot from Reo Hatate gone in, Celtic would not have lost the game. The manager has a week (and a lesser-important Europa League game) to fine-tune the system before Sunday’s vastly-important League Cup Final.
You and I have discussed new Celtic managers here when they started with defeats to Hearts (2021) and Lincoln Red Imps (2016). Thankfully we were not around to record our thoughts after defeats to Hibernian and Dunfermline in 1997. Results like these have been a consistent marker of growth.
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Good afternoon all.
Roma lost 1- 0, away to Cagliari yesterday and had one of their players sent off. His name was Celik. An omen if ever there was one😁.
Anyone still remember WGS debut week?
It’s too early fir any conclusions on coaching ability!
Ten points may well not be enough to reach the knockout round – it wasn’t for Braga last season.
That leaves us needing 4 points from our last games to be reasonably confident.
Writing off a home game, no matter who it is against is not wise.
Getting a point at home against Roma seems an easier task than getting a point in Bologna ( who are 2 points behind Roma in Serie A).
No idea what some are getting hot under the collar about.On Sunday,there was very little change.Only Donovan,who is not ready, to impetuous. Loses his man,was lucky not to get a Red against Hibs,because of it.Hooked.Again by MON.
3-4-3,is not exactly a new type of formation.For most of the first half,worked perfectly.Overrun Hearts.Should have been ahead.None of the 2 goals we lost were due to the formation.
The stats bear this out.75% possession..5 shots on target to Hears 2.Therein lies the problem.
Not scoring.Same since the season began.Not going back into the reasons for this,most know,a few still in denial.Maybe a switch,KT on the right,Trusty,middle,Scales left,until AJ gets back.
Let’s give the guy a chance.Be nice if some stayed a bit longer.
Was I hearing things yesterday, or was the audience enthusiastically singing naughty songs?
I must commend the more craven attendees who stood firm during the raucous singing of The Broad Black Brimmer. Your hand wringing was noted friends.
Their usual response would be to bolt for the exits and not emerge from under their beds for hours. Deeply damaged by this spontaneous hat tip to our heritage.
BSR
Keep on keeping on. 👍🍀
I’m off to learn how to think ‘soft’. 😉
After about twenty minutes Hearts settled in. Reminded me of Shaun Maloney’s (TV Pundit) pre/post SC Final analysis as to how Aberdeen could, and did, beat Celtic at Hampden back in May. Though Maeda’s miss came early doors yesterday to be fair. Still wouldn’t play him wide right though. No no no.
Still haven’t figured out the ‘2’ part of our formation , and yet, Paul has highlighted the one and I think only example when Tounetki like Alec Leamus before him came in from the cold, in the best move of the game. Towards the end of the match I was sounding more like Axel than Alec in screaming “Where do we go from Here?” More Paradise Lost than Paradise City.
Once again it is about getting the best out out of the players available (as an aside I’m on the record of “hoping” we would use 14-15 players yesterday) so I was surprised to read, RC et al, that we only used two subs) and formation or not we did not do that. Not sure shuffling the back ‘3’ will resolve that.
John Harris@johnharris1969.bsky.social
http://www.nytimes.com/athletic/687..
2026 World Cup to feature 3-minute hydration breaks in every half throughout tournament
Every game will pause for 3 minutes in the middle of each half, which will essentially split the match into quarters
FIFA letting the Americans americanese the World Cup, capitalism has got a free hand
I will be giving it a miss
Old enough to remember Mr Stein’s Celtic losing 6 to Falkirk….then a week and a bit later,Scottish cup winners v Dunfermline 3-2.
Omen CSC
Does anyone remember Henriks first game , I do. He was called a dumpling by many !!!!
kingLUBO
On the formation WN set out yesterday was it 5-4-1, 3-4-3, 3-4-2-1 I struggled to follow the tactical set up I was not alone
Even following H/T WN had to call the Captain over twice to explain via tactics board where players should be operating, not good optics to say the least
Rodgers clicked his ruby slippers together then spouted his usual Transfer Window contradictions and the empty head Collective answered the Fraudgers call to arms.
Then Fraudgers resigned and left the Collective all enraged and stuff.
No amount of sweetie wife, grassing, snitching, backstabbing, gaslighting, finger pointing, curtain twitching, Tangerine throwing, cliques, will resolve anything!
The PLC have amassed 4 years full of season ticket revenues lying inactive for such boycotts if fans had any Kojones then they would have emptied the board after the 49 Quid Old Firm Treason Ticket Scandal in 2016, which of course cutey wideo Rodgers1 would have had ZERO knowledge of as the new 75,000 per week ex-Liverpool nearly man, replaced the Ronny roar.
Four years fans would need to boycott season tickets for to lay a single glove on the PLC.
IF, you play by their rigged rules?!
Whereas JUNGLE era fans would have thrown the PLC oot the boardroom window head first, YEARS AGO, like in 2012 when the PLC washed their hands of the 20+ trophies that Celtic fans were cheated out of, saying it was none of our business that Celtic fans were cheated for 25 YEARS by David Murray’s TAX DODGING stuff.
And Celtic’s all seated era fans went along with this meek lame assed surrender!
All seating = Tory football.
Scrabble board tacticians in the dugout = NOT the Celtic way.
Throwing paper aeroplanes and Tangerines = Fans with ZERO answers.
The Collective March = Fans who don’t have the balls to kick in the boardroom doors.
The board have 4 years advantage on the dithering, finger pointing, fanbase.
Only a Hun trophy haul will generate the requisite levels of anger.
Imagine paying money to a bunch of creeps whole throw as many seasons down the chanty pan as they desire, like they threw the CBC abuse victims under every bus, then glibly denied it, KNOWING, that a fan base that sucked up the same club lie treason tickets in 2016, will have as much integrity as a stray dog s^^^^ing on a street.
Celtic is just some random scrabble board game to these yachting elites with thur jackboots on your weak Timmy necks.
What a time to be alive.
HH
oot.
More dirge from the racist non attender
An Tearmann on 8th December 2025 4:03 pm
More dirge from the racist non attender
…….
More non evidenced smears from a useless PLC Milking Cow x 60,000. lol
HH
oot.
mick1888 on 8th December 2025 3:08 pm
Anyone still remember WGS debut week?
——-
Unfortunately yes, Mick.
Artmedia away …
I was in a French campsite with rubbish Wi-Fi
.. so had to leave the caravan to go up to the campsite office for text updates … in between getting the children settled for the night.
I distinctly remember getting the news it was 3-0 and thinking
“Get one goal, go home with a 3-1 defeat, be glad of it and fix this at fortress CP”
… 4-0
… 5-0
Unbelievable
lionroars67 on 8th December 2025 3:17 pm
What’s next? Coaches calling timeouts?
Burnley78
I am sure the coked up anarchists might not be interested but perhaps the majority would be keen to know. It would help and would make sense for all.
Easy,thats Celtic fans B78.
Drugs affect all levels society,,itll be the same in the Celticsphere.Celtic for a shitload of quiet support work for folk affected,but shlap on another coat of othering.
How would you reconcile everyone?
most are still at the ‘theybasturts’
All v tiring
That got to be gotten beyond P.
Hail Hail
Vastly-important match? We should take the pressure off WN by reminding ourselves that the League Cup is and always will be the Diddy Cup. Brought in post World War 2 to snatch the cash of the working classes….again. Meanwhile a game on Thursday against the team from the Empire ie Rome, is a bounce game….Bring on the Romans !
GlenD
timeouts have been here for ages – feigned injuries, time wasting etc instructions get passed
re feigned injuries – there have a been a few belters at CP recently – yesterday a jambo lay on the ground, play wasnt stopped – he got up and ran with no feigned hobble or grimace either – the grimaces were on our coupons :(
Good news from Prestwick! And for once we re not talking about wee Jamesie’s hamstring. No.
Rather, without knowing all the details, it looks like a deal between Airbus and Boeing will secure around 1200 jobs down in Ayrshire. (which has got to be the only County which has a North, South & East Part but no West Ayrshire). But that is one for the geography students on here, (Prestonpans Bhoy?)
After loss of jobs at Grangemouth, Harbour Energy (a victim of UK tax policies) and Mossmorran (unclear future) this has got to be Christmas come early.
Spoken like a true Fine Gaeler
Kev your a racist.
-As 418/419,one of over 100 monikers you posted your racist hatred of folk with a different skin pigment.
-In contacting P67 his response in blocking and deleting your post was that your post “was quite easily the most racist post he ever read here”
-from walking along the London Rd swinging a chain to sookin the fleg,posting wee racist irish pishtriots upset that Ireland will be unified,with their wee symbol of the genocidal state.
-your mind is confused and crippled inside,but your default to racism and boat chasing is proof enough,your life has not been impacted by any immigrants,its an easy blame.but thats what you paranoia racists do,seek division and if none there,invent it.
You didnt get back re the buning down of the ‘church’ burnt in Pollokshaws
I never found out who? out of The nappychanginfront,TheCreche LiberationArmy or weansplayareaGang claimed responsibility for the attack on their OWN workspace! Ya banger.
Its not been a church since you were getting lifted over kevracist
GLENDALYSTONSILS on 8TH DECEMBER 2025 4:16 PM
lionroars67 on 8th December 2025 3:17 pm
What’s next? Coaches calling timeouts?
Squads double in size, different teams at H/T
An T
Very fair comment.
Perhaps I would add a but ……
An Dun
Yet again I say no one is giving up on Europa points. Just prioritising. Would you really rather we got a point v Roma and lost the League Cup Final and a potential treble chance ?
Ref your suggestion that 10 points won’t be enough. That was a total outlier last year.
I will donate £200 to a charity of your choice if Celtic don’t get through if we beat Utrecht this season.
I think this year it is looking like 9 points will do but it is too early to be sure.
Our team looked tired last Wednesday, which is not surprising after the schedule.
Yesterday, with an extra day of recovery, and a bhoyed up crowd, they simply looked lost.
Trying to introduce a 3 4 3 formation, which defensively became 523 ,with minimal training ground practice was very naive, and we paid the price.
Of equal concern is that our squad is buit around the last 4 managers who have all played variants of 433 / 4321.
If we have appointed a guy who is nailed on to 343, when our squad is based on 433 it is a mega mistake.
We simply dont have the players to execute 343 and both goals stemmed from being exposed in the full back position by either a lack of cover, or player’s being out of their natural positions.
At one point, we had Tounetke, playing left back across a 5.
Other managers have had poor starts, but their success has been learning and adapting.
Lets hope this guy does both very quickly.
Great news that Celtic Mac… more industry for Scotland ! I
When the jam tarts started singing
‘keep the board keep the board’ I honestly thought it was funny’
Could we please get someone for tounekti to cross to and say the following to tounekti ‘when you get 1/2 a yard on someone cross the effin thing or you will turn into mikey johnstone’
Hertz allowed Trusty to have the ball all game and to move forward; he was faced with 5 defenders and had no idea what to do- who can blame him?
The biggest learning curve is for Nancy – your defenders will face this game in game out.
Some of our passing was fabulous.
I was in 416 and didn’t miss the GB one bit, gotta be honest.
spikeysauldman on 8th December 2025 4:48 pm
True . Latest piss-take is goalies going down while his team mates all go to the touchline for managers instructions . As soon as the managers got his message across the keeper’s up again . Should be a yellow card.
Bruges manager bagged
CLASHCITYBHOY on 8TH DECEMBER 2025 5:11 PM
Trying to introduce a 3 4 3 formation, which defensively became 523 ,with minimal training ground practice was very naive, and we paid the price.
It was a confusing tactical set up for both knowledgable spectators and more importantly the players
If both Yang and Tounetki were the wingbacks who made up the back 5 when we were defending, what players made up the front three in your 5-2-3 ?
GLENDALYSTONSILS on 8TH DECEMBER 2025 4:16 PM
What’s next? Coaches calling timeouts?
—————————-
We’re good to go mate, start worrying if Wilfried takes the players to Loch Lomond 🤣
Club Brugge have sacked head coach Nicky Hayen and re-appointed Ivan Leko as their new boss in a dramatic twist at the Belgian club – just two days before their Champions League clash against Arsenal.
Hayen had been in the hotseat at Brugge since March 2024, having steered them to the Belgian Pro League title in his first season and helped them win the Belgian Cup and Belgian Super Cup.
However, following a run of FOUR defeats in six and back-to-back league losses, Brugge have now made the decision to axe Hayen ahead of Wednesday’s game against Arsenal.
They have instantly replaced Hayen with Gent head coach Ivan Leko, who was only appointed at their Belgian rivals in the summer and had won eight of his 19 matches in charge there.
Brugge had a plan B by instantly replacing Hayen
Sumdy needs to get a picture of the Scotland squad when they arrive at the World Cup and realize that big done and over the hill Peter SchMichael wont be there. lol
HH
oot.
Clashcitybhoy on 8th December 2025 5:11 pm
I dont agree with the players cant play the system mantras.
An individual player might have a preferred position, but I expect every one of the highly paid PROFESSIONAL players to be able to do all the basic football skills as a pre-requesit, with their limitations being physical (you dont put jinky in goal) , and fitness capacity, with speed of decision making.
You change positions multiple times in a match just by running either into space or to close down space, and the formation naturally changes pattern. The fabled overlaps/overloads.
Players do have stinkers, but what is often not accounted for is the physicality of the opposition who will do anything to upset the flow.
Imagine getting a joiner to do some work for you, and he says I can do everything with a saw, a chisel and a tape, but I cant hang doors.
BSR
Loch Lomond? It’s Gullane sands some of them need ! -))))))
Incredible that bruges have sacked their manager
If only we’d hung on a wee bit ….