I’ve seen nothing of Stefan Johansen but I’m delighted we have signed a central midfield player. Deficiencies up front are glaring, especially in the Premiership, but in Europe, the critical area is central mid, where we need to control more than we did this season.
Central midfield protects your defence and provides the foundations strikers stand on, it has been an important area for Celtic to strengthen since losing our top man last summer.
Conversely, Scott Brown is playing his best football since joining Celtic in 2007 but, as his European adventures were nullified by disciplinary action, the gap was unbridgeable. Honourable mentions should go to Charlie Mulgrew, Beram Kayal and Joe Ledley, but in the case of Charlie and Joe, they were asked to play secondary, or tertiary roles, while Beram was promoted from well down the pecking order to a Champions League starter.
Please observe the usual caveats when a new player arrives. New club, new city, new tactics, team mates, match officials and game atmosphere, Stefan has a lot to assimilate in the coming weeks. It took six months for Victor to settle and at least as long before Mikael, Scott and Joe looked their best.
For Stefan and Holmbert Fridjonsson the primary objective of the next six months is to prepare for Champions League qualifiers, closely followed by a Scottish Cup tie against Aberdeen in three weeks.
Welcome to Celtic, Stefan. You have a fantastic opportunity ahead.
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Funny thing is Ally says “we don’t do walking away” and Wallace is saying “well Ally someone or ones had better walk away or it will be me who will be doing the walking” looks like a sevconion stand off to me ;))
Jungle Jim
I think the lack of competition in the forward areas is a problem. Chances are being created and not scored. That means to me that strikers are not working hard enough on their finishing in training. Balde deserves a start I don;t think we have signed the right type of forward and have a lack of a proper goal scoring striker at the club. It’s not rocket science. Look at goal scorers even in our league. They are just goal hangers. We don’t appear to have one poacher at all in our first team squad.
We appear to sign a player based on what he can do outside the box. Pukki is not a goal scorer. We must have more players than any other club who like to play behind the strikers. It leads me to question why Balde is not getting a chance. He seems to be fit. he appears to score goals. Why not give him a run. I could understand it if we had a striker on 20 goals ahead of him but we don’t. We would all like a Hooper style striker but until we have him lets see what the Bhoy Balde can do.
LB
Livibhoy,
I disagree with your “packed defences for decades comment”.
The game has completely changed in the last few years. Even wee teams played 2 strikers away from home 10+ years ago.
Interesting that we bought Stefan Johansen, never seen the boy play…but I hope he is going in to the centre mid position….we badly need a creative player there.
Scott Brown seems to think that he deserves to be centre mid forever, I hope not.
After his antics, I hope we are trying something different.
I would play Biton and Johansen, and Liam Henderson, ive seen too many Celtic defensive midfielders recently…playing 3 at the same time doesn’t work.
I think there is more value in being able to play creative football, the Scott Brown model has had its day…I hope.
Anyway, when is this sevco mob going bust, must be soon now, surely:)
HH
Livibhoy @ 1053
Again, I don’t think we are creating enough chances.
Apart from that I agree entirely :)
To be fair, Tom English has called out Walter Smith’s part in the Sevconia mess before, memorably on Radio Shortbread in October.
He and Chick Young had a major on air squabble, Chick was of course defending the Blessed Cardigan right to the hilt, a more loyal foot soldier you wouldn’t find anywhere.
Geordie Munro
They may have played 2 strikers but one of them was always a player who went box to box. I don’t see it as an excuse as to why we don’t have a striker on more than 6 goals.
If you look at the stats on chances created and shots on goals and goals scored it doesn’t make pleasant reading.
http://espnfc.com/team/squad/_/id/256/celtic?cc=5901
Stokes has had 41 shots for instance and 11 on target and 6 goals in 20 games. Hardly inspiring.
Balde has 2 goals from 10 shots. he has started 2 games
Maybe the supply has been poor but we should be scoring more goals in the forward areas.
LB
Was out of the loop yesterday so don’t know anything about Regan’s statements. Anyone got a link or a summary?
Our goal diff. Is + 33 with two games in hand, so someone is scoring, or is it that all I see is good when I look at the league table? Lurking Huns GIRUY.
Top of the morning to you all from a Kingdom of Fife where the sun is shining brightly down.
Saw a chevron flight of geese heading north this morning and the sunshine has the birds singing as if it were Spring.
Adding to these unseasonal and unusual events is the article by Tom English where he almost tells the whole truth about Rangers and their downfall.
The English article coming hard on the heels of similar outbreaks of honesty from Regan and Spiers, rather than hearten me, makes me suspicious!
What nasties lie in wait for us if this trio of talentless tossers are telling truths?
Somethin’s cookin!
EmeraldBee\o/ proud to be an internet bampot
11:10 on
16 January, 2014
Summary: “Scottish Football needs a strong Rangers”
Subtext: They’re about to go belly up again and we will bend the rules to help them.
tonydonnelly67
Tony point taken on that but our lack of goals in the CL is aligned to our lack of a goal scorer up front in my opinion. Not sure what it has to do with lurking Huns they are not even in our league.
The original point I made is to why Balde is not starting games? The players in front of him are not exactly prolific. The lad was signed for a lot of cash. We are miles ahead in the league. Why not give him a run of games?
LB
Balde needs a run of starts… Giving him one and plonking him back in the bench because he doesn’t score will be a waste of time. A proper assessment can only come from a good number of opportunities against a range of opposition.
Benteke the villa striker scored his first goal in 12 games, what’s his value£10 mil. £15 mil. Is he a dud? Just asking.
ABZMike
Correct. I think the lad deserves at least 3 starts to see what he can do.
LB
tonydonnelly67
Villa must play to packed defences!
LB
Livibhoy,
We all want a New striker who scores for fun, or one of the present lot to ‘smarten up’, but as td says, the table tells you someone is scoring.
But regarding balde, yer preaching to the choir. My phone was red hot with texts sent a week ago.
The gist of them was ‘see what happens when ye start them two!!? See!!?? SEE!!!??’
:)
Livibhoy
I get that, but some players take time to settle, I mean Sammy and Broonie got 4 years, so give the new Bhoys a chance, ;))
tonydonnelly67
Benteke has started 14 games. He has had 41 shots on goal. 18 shots on target and has scored 5 times. He plays in a poor Aston Villa side. He has also come back from injury this season. The English market is inflated anyway but I would suggest the quality of opposition and certainly the goal keepers are much higher than what we face up here.
LB
tonydonnelly67
My whole point is that the new Bhoys or Bhoy is this case isn’t really getting a chance.
I really can’t see why. Don’t think Balde will be a world beater or even prolific straight away but he is decent on the deck and is a strong lad. If nothing else he may actually take some heat off Stokes and allow him to score more goals. I think he deserves a few starts at the very least.
LB
tonydonnelly67
10:21 on
16 January, 2014
The above letter is from the Scotsman, not mine, it’s a belter.
——————————————————–
I knew it wasn’t yours. No wee message to any lurking huns at the end gave it away :-)
Warm welcome to Stefan. Hope you enjoy your time in Paradise.
That was a cracking post in TSFM by Slimshady. Hit the nail right on the head.
Tom English’s article in Hootsmon was long overdue. Why now? mmnnn.
I agree that we should have a “recognised” striker but, as TD points out, we are top of the league, undefeated in mid January, with a goal diff of +33. It’s healthy to want to improve whatever your circumstances, but its not healthy to beat yourself up when you’re really doing quite well.
COYBIG
Good strikers are hard to find and develop… Case in point Shane Long, gone today for £7 to Hull… 3 goals in 17 for WBA. Sure, probably not a lot of chances against superior opposition…. My point is that every club has the same problems. Only those at the very top can buy their way out of it.
If Sammi goes then it is certainly time to try a combo of Balde and Pukki.
Pukki’s movement is excellent and he works hard to close defenders down. A couple of his goals have been great poachers goals. There is an excellent footballer in there.
Balde will trouble most defenders through his height and strength and his touch is improving. Again there is a footballer in there.
If I had a choice of strikers to go for though I think Adam le Fondre would be the one. However, think Lee Tomlin might still be the one Neil wants.
ABZMike
It’s not about spending big money. It’s about buying a player for a specific role. We just need a goal scorer. We have had a great record over the years of buying goal scorers. Not many have cost the earth. We could buy one tomorrow for less than £1m and I believe they would score in our league.
LB
Livibhoy
I am not disagreeing with you all your points are good, but patients is needed, I saw what you did with those stats on Benteke there a Jack Irvine spin if ever I saw one ;)), I agree with you on Baldie he does hold the ball up well, but as I keep saying, someone has to tell Stoksie to stay on side and stop being crabit when the ball doesent land at his feet, he reminds me of a we Aussie that played for us when that happened to him ;))
first set to Murray 6-2 ………….looks hot there doon under ,and that is night time …
Neustadt-Braw
10:48 on 16 January, 2014
‘Bernie Ecclestone to be charged in Munich on bribery charges,,,,,,,,,,braw….’
###
http://www.espn.co.uk/onthisday/motorsport/story/2346.html
Tim Tanium
11:33 on 16 January, 2014
Hope not re. Tomlin nor Le Fondre. They may well be good at SPFL level but we don’t need either of them. We need someone who will score goals in Europe.
I’m sure there are players who’s names that haven’t even been mentioned under consideration and there’s Plan B’s if they don’t come off. I think one of the Plan B’s will be Leigh Griffiths, not sure if he’s the answer but wouldn’t be surprised if he’s in the hoops by the end of the month.
tonydonnelly67
Stats are there to help your argument mate. Hahahaha
They are easilly turned in the favour of your own argument.
It’s frustrating for me to watch Celtic dominate domestically and not have a striker on more than 10 goals at this stage of the season. It’s almost alien. We have always been a club with great goal scorers. Most of them came from smaller clubs in Scotland and became legends.
Stokes infuriates me with offside at times. For a player of his experience he should be able to stay onside more often. I think we have missed Forrest. Him coming back to full fitness should help the strikers. I often think we don’t shoot enough. It’s great the goals are being shared around the side and Commons doesn’t often see a shot saved. When he is on target it’s a goal. His stats are excellent.
I think you look at the play and then the stats and then you make a judgement. That was my take on it anyway. If you play for Celtic in a forward area you should be on at least a goal every 2 matches. That is just my opinion. Any decent striker should be getting 20 goals a season in the Hoops.
LB
Someone put on my Facebook there about a game with thems I remember watching it over in the colonies, Celtic scored and thems took the KO while our Bhoys where celebrating scoring a goal, anyone got footage of that?
Livibhoy
I agree, if you are a regular up front for Celtic you should be banging in 20 a season.
Kayal33
Rumours in Edinburgh is that Griffiths is very homesick and wants to come to Scotland.
I’m not sure he is the right for for Celtic. The boy is Hibs daft and I wouldn;t be surprised to see him going back there on loan. Wolves should have cut their losses with him and sold him to Hibs. He will never settle down there he has about 4 kids up here all toddlers.
He trains with Hibs regularly when he is home. He is out of the wolves side and would sign for Celtic but his offield antics are a concern. He appears to be very immature and hot headed. Playing for celtic is a big pressure. I can picture a Riordan situation with that boy. On the pitch he is a superb goal scorer though. Can score from anywhere and he can hit a free kick too.
Is Griffiths worth the risk??? If he can behave and avoid trouble off the pitch he is a good signing. No doubt about his ability.
LB
The Munich courts are probably evening up the score in as much as they are also going after Uli Hoeneß…..funny how sport is rife with Tax scandals and Bribery ……..in fact it is hilarious………braw
Yes someone is scoring. It’s the fact that the players we’ve signed who are meant to be scoring, but aren’t, that is the issue.
Over on Twitter they have currently trending
TonyDonnelly67quicknews
You must be doing something right my friend.
the green man
10:55 on 16 January, 2014
Spot on mate, there is no need to play three defensive mids against spfl teams.
Let us watch free flowing, forward passing football, with atleast one striker and the stands may fill again.
tonydonnelly67
Don’t think the footage shows it mate. The Celtic view had pictures of the Bhoys at the Jungle celebrating while Hately and co raced up the pitch from KO.
I think we won 2-0 that day.
LB