January strategy and short-term cover

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I know what you’re thinking, let’s hope we get more exciting January signings like Pawel Brozek, Rabiu Ibrahim and Freddie Ljungberg.

It’s slightly unfair to mock our January transfer business. Kris Commons arrived two years ago and constituted a one man title challenge for a few months (and still delights).  Georgios Samaras and Barry Robson arrived in 2008 and went a long way to ensuring the title came to Celtic.  We went signing crazy in January (and 1st Feb) 2010 when Robbie Keane, Diomansy Kamara and soon-to-be World Cup final legend…. Edson Braafheid arrived.  Robbie proved his class but it was all in vain, alas.

Most of our worries seem to be focussed on protecting those already in the squad.  I’m not too concerned one way or another for the Juventus tie, which will take care of itself, but decisions made today will need to consider the Champions League qualifier challenges we will face in August.  If we sell Gary Hooper today there is no guarantee we will be able to recruit his replacement until the final gasp of the August window.

So far this month we have addressed long-term strategy and short-term cover, if we do any more business I’d be happy with more of the same.

Contrary to career expectations 29-year-old Edson Braafheid is not now a delivery driver for Argos but he’s not playing a lot of football these days either.

If the server overheats later I’m on Twitter, @CQN, and I’ll do my best to figure out Facebook, CQN Magazine, too.
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  1. Gene's a Bhoys name on

    Fanandpatriot

     

    Tom Pope will not be joining Celtic this window

     

     

    HandsoffthevaleCSC

  2. Gordon J.

     

     

    If i might criticise a little. There is much emphasis in your latets on the question opf “payments” to players. The FTTT ruled, by majority, that the EBT arrangements in cumulo did not amount to payments and were therefroe not taxable earnings. RFC would, I imagine, stand on the same arguments before the SPL in relation to those rules relating to declarations of payments to players.

     

     

    However, the case on numerous breaches of Rule D1.13 is the stronger case for the SPL. This Rule requires disclosure of “all contracts of service”. The side letter contain undertakings on behalf of Oldco to, variously, create and fund trusts and sub-trusts, and to make reccomendations to the trustees of the MGRT in respect of loans being made to players on certain terms and conditions. This obligation is triggered in different circumstances in each side letter, but always in relation to a player’s footballing activity. The player could enforce these obligations on RFC, and they are therefore contractual. If any “contract of service” terms were missed out on a player’s documents as lodged with the SPL, Rule D1.13 would be breached.

     

     

    In my opinion, while LNS is not bound to reach the same conclusion as the FTTT that the EBT arrangements in cumulo were not “payments”, he will at least find their reasoning persuasive. In other words, it will be a rebuttable presumption that the EBT arrangements were, in principle, not taxable earnings in terms of the tax Regs, and therefore not “payments” in terms of the SPL rules. This is all about the side letters, and whether they are properly considered as forming part of a player’s “contract of service” in terms of Rule D1.13.

     

     

    If you read D1.1.3, I would say the more sensible conclusion to reach would be that an obligation to fund a sub-trust with many hundreds of thousands of pounds (Mr Evesham example in FTTT) should properly be considered as forming a part of a player’s enforceable rights as against a member club, and therefore part of his “contract of service”, whether or not that obligation related to “payments” as properly understood.

     

     

    Clear as mud, innit?

  3. Neil Lennon: “I can’t guarantee anything, but what I can say is that all our top players will still be here on Friday.”

     

     

    I take that to confirm that Hooper is going nowhere.

  4. If there are to be two new clubs invited into league set up you can be rest assured it will be Spartans & Edinburgh for their co-operation in assisting the deadclubs devil child to get a licence,

  5. Steinreignedsupreme on

    I have a feeling a few posters on here are going to be beelin’ when Gary Hooper signs a contract extension with Celtic next month.

  6. Gene's a Bhoys name on

    Fanandpatriot

     

    Yesterday he tweeted that according to local media he had 5 medicals yesterday which wasvstrange cause he was on the golf course

     

    Good div 2 player but a long way off Celtic class

  7. 2 Dundee united players favoured by some on here to sign for Celtic. Neither showed anything in the game against us to warrant a game ahead of players we already have. And Neither is in the Scotland squad, though that is not necessarily an indicator…

  8. SoD

     

     

    I was trying to work out what could be our transfer budget in the summer if we offload Hooper & Wanyama and figure in profit from the CL run.

     

     

    Short answer no, I don’t think we will have debt but came across that article trying to figure things out so wanted to ask someone with a better knowledge of the financials of the club.

  9. Steinreignedsupreme

     

    I think he will sign it tomorrow after he has ended contract with present agent at midnight( I think)

     

    Sign a new deal with a set buy out clause, champions league and a title medal and party first.

     

    Win win for Gary

  10. T4

     

     

    I agree with what you are saying .

     

    Infact we have known for months that he would be asset managed before the end of his contract.

     

    I would have thought that in the normal course of business that we have our eyes open for replacements anyway.

     

     

    If Jonny Russell is his replacement I will be disappointed.

     

     

    He is not as good a player as Hoops .

     

    We would have money in the bank and be weaker on the pitch.

     

     

    I don’t think that we need to do that with our CL income this year.

     

     

    Hoops fair well to the GB last night ,indicates that he thinks that he might be off in this window.

     

     

    TT

  11. googybhoy ♥ Celtic

     

    13:30 on

     

    31 January, 2013

     

     

    I used wonder why Glasgow doesn’t have the biggest, most colourful,

     

     

    inclusive, City council backed, St Patrick Day’s Parade outside of Dublin

     

     

    But after my first visit, I understood.

     

     

    So sad and unnecessary.

  12. Steinreignedsupreme

     

    13:44 on 31 January, 2013

     

     

    If Hooper is still a Celtic player tomorrow he will sign a new contract. Makes sense all round. He gets wage increase immediately, and bonuses will also be renegotiated, and his value will remain at the current level Celtic think he’s worth. If/when he leaves in the summer we get £8m+, not the £5-6m we’d get with 12 months on his contract, and he will get enhanced pay offs as well as his increased wages for 5-6 months.

  13. Steinreignedsupreme

     

     

    13:44 on 31 January, 2013

     

     

    I feel you may be correct on that one.

     

     

    And he will be punted in the summer .

  14. Shortie doing its level best to sell Celtic players…………….

     

     

    and bum up the defhunct klub…………

  15. celticlegends

     

    – Don’t totally agree. i always thought Samba would be a perfect signing for celtic, if we could afford him. he really stuck out (along with 1 or 2 others) in an otherwise poor blackburn team, and there is no doubt Anzhi knew what they were doing when they signed him – they had the cash to ensure they had a lot of players to choose from. the surprise to me is that he has gone to QPR, who are likely to be relegation-fodder. Personally at 28 or 29, i felt he could have had a far better club to choose from. His wages are likely to be very high though (he was on huge money in russia) so the epl would seem a natural home., and a desperate (and billionaire-owned) QPR are likely to pay very highly at this stage. Good player IMO. height, strength, and a no-nonsense attitude. Unlikely to be rag dolled by the likes of kenny miller. . . .

  16. Big G

     

    12:56 on

     

    31 January, 2013

     

    Put your name into the pop up box to see what happens!

     

     

    Sky Sports ‏@SkySports

     

     

    Who has signed for Real Madrid from Barcelona? Find out here http://bit.ly/woACUP #SkyDeadlineDay

     

     

    ———————————————

     

     

    big g,

     

     

    childish i know but that wee app allows sweary words and everything, hours and hours of fun , watching jim white as the banner reads

     

     

    “real madrid sign adeidzombiefaerangers.

     

     

    and that lass is lovely an awe.

     

     

    hehehehehehhe

  17. Glendalystonsils likes a mr whippy with his lime green jelly on

    SSN breaking news

     

     

    Celtic have signed John Daly.

     

     

    Unfortunately in a repeat of the Mo Bangura “mistaken identity” scenario

     

    they have signed an overweight golfer with a mullet and loud trousers.

  18. Are Russell and Mackay-Steven any better than what we already have?

     

     

    I’m not so sure.

     

     

    When the transfer window slams shut and we have not added anybody to the squad it wont be the end of the world imo.

     

     

    Tin hat on, and fastened tight!

     

     

    HH!!

  19. Tallybhoy

     

    13:58 on 31 January, 2013

     

     

    Mackay Steven is different from what we have. An old fashioned winger who could give us the width we desperately need, and the trickery to open up tight defences.

     

    Russell certainly isn’t any worse than Stokes or Watt, and is probably more versatile as he can also play wide (similar to Sammi).

     

    In the ideal world they are still DU players by 11pm tonight and we can make our move, should we want to, in the summer.

  20. Tamlaghtduff Bhoy on

    I think Russell is a cracking player and would love to see him in the hoops. But I dont think any of our strikers will leave so I cant see us buying him.

     

    Could be a quiet night for us in the transfer market!

  21. Steinreignedsupreme on

    leftclicktic 13:48 on 31 January, 2013

     

     

    I heard the agent story. That may be part of it.

     

     

    Kayal33 13:50 on 31 January, 2013

     

     

    None of our top players are leaving today.

     

     

    DontPatmadug 13:51 on 31 January, 2013

     

     

    Maybe. But more chance of Wanyama and Forster leaving in the summer with Celtic doing very well out of those deals.

  22. If Stokes doesn’t stay in the summer we need to sign Russell to ensure we still have a tattooed front man.

     

    Get the priorities right!

     

     

    LB

  23. The Battered Bunnet on

    GerryG

     

     

    LNS necessarily must largely ignore the decision of the FTT. He cannot rely upon a decision that is subject of appeal, the risk being that his own decision, in so relying on the FTT, would be invalidated if the appeal by HMRC was subseqeuntly upheld.

     

     

    LNS will need to look at the facts, set them in the context of the applicable football rule books, and come to a view that is detached from the FTT such that an Upper Tier decision later will not impact upon his own judgement now.

     

     

    The only alternative, if the issue of the tax status of the EBT payments is the essence of the matter, is for LNS to defer his decision until the matter is settled at Law.

     

     

    That would be unnecessarily cautious, and indeed cautiously unnecessary. LNS does not have to consider the tax status of the loans. Remember: The loans from the Trust were made subsequent to the payments being made by Rangers into players’ trust fund.

     

     

    LNS can restrict himself to the nature of the agreement between club and player to fund a trust for the benefit of the player, consider the subsequent pattern of agreements and contributions, and come to a view as to whether this comes within the definition of:

     

     

    “any payment of any description from or on behalf of a Club in respect of that Player’s participation in Association Football”.

     

     

    A payment made into a player’s pension fund based upon his appearances for example would be considered in a similar light.

     

     

    That said, my view remains that there is absolutely no certainty of outcome, and indeed, I think we will all get a few surprises when finally the decision is published.

     

     

    TBB

  24. Im more concerned about Fraser Forster leaving than Gary Hooper.

     

    He ticks all the boxes for any top club.

     

    wishitwas11pmcsc

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