Our two loan signings on the final day of the transfer window, Jota and Cameron Carter-Vickers, have been crucial to the (presumptive) outcome of the league title, the latter more so than the former; Cameron could easily have won Player of the Year. Despite this, it is Jota who is the more important to secure on a permanent deal.
Having watched Newco suffocate our midfield twice in a month and Bodo/Glimt do the same earlier in the year, to the extent that we struggled to build periods of possession, never mind attacks, we need to answer the question, why was this?
When our central defenders have the ball, they face options of either trying to find a full back or Callum McGregor, or hope that someone further up field is in space. Those options were snuffed out by Newco, causing a nervousness as players took possession with an opponent breathing down his neck.
What would Kristoffer do?
Kristoffer Ajer would step forward with the ball, drawing opponents off their markers and immediately creating space. He could then play a short pass or, if he was not challenged, continue a run through the middle.
It is reasonable to claim Celtic have the best two central defenders in the league, even the previously maligned Carl Starfelt is a model of solidity. The problem is, neither can carry the ball forward as effectively as Kris Ajer. We need at least one central defender with this attribute, preferably two.
Ange Postecoglou is not going to change the way we play. Next season you will see our central defenders in possession looking at man-marked team-mates. We either address an identifiable problem, or we are in for more of the same.
The first job of a defender is to defend, and we all remember the shambles of last season, even with Kris, but despite my fondness for Cameron and Carl in this respect, we need a rethink.
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Geebee1978
Correct and they have also had the advantage in three of the last 4 ties – the hard 3 – of playing away first and home second.
GEEBEE1978 on 5TH MAY 2022 10:06 PM
If it’s any consolation, Eintracht look a far better team in Europe than they do domestically.
The game in Germany was finished after the red card but they were much better than a big strong West Ham. Pretty comfortable over both legs
Rangers win a big game.
Cue a lot of anti-Celtic and anti-board comments from the usual suspects.
Well done ERNIE LYNCH – you win the HUN prize.
I’d have put money on it.
Evening all.
Don’t care, they mean nothing to me.
My telly doesn’t play them, watched the WHU v Frankfurt game, now I understand WHU went down to 10 men early, however. if you recall when the Hammers battered us pre season, by enlarge, it was agreed that hopefully it was best that we avoided them in Europe.
Frankfurt are a real good side, over both legs they deserved to go through.
Dallas Snr, is still involved in their positive outcomes, IMHO.. a major European final will, I hope bring a laser focus on the final ref performance.
Any who’s. roll on Saturday, going to get the ‘champers and get it on ice for Saturday night.
Brian
Hot dogs and strong German lager getting ordered
On a positive note it will draw attention to Rangers FC having being liquidated in 2012.
Qualifying matches are knock out matches.
Qualifying matches are for qualifying, the clue is in the name. and if negotiated, lead to the competition proper.
Knock-out matches are the ties post group-stages – to pretend otherwise is “deluded” hair-splitting…..some are known excel at this!!!
CELTIC40ME on 5TH MAY 2022 10:15 PM
Hot dogs and strong German lager getting ordered.
———
Leipzig played tonight like they’d been on those pre kick off…
INIQUITOUSIV 10.01pm
You like your world football, If it was that easy why has Man City (and many other European teams) made no euro finals ???
The Huns like it or lump it have deserved to get to Seville … their results home and away in Europe have been excellent this season
On that note
Cmon to fluck Frankfurt …. the law of averages one Bundesliga team must beat them
They’ll have 80% of the stadium in Seville. Will be like a home match.
Frankfurt will pump them 2-0!
Sevco did not achieve a Eufa final by Board ambition.
The only big spending they did was on wages for Defoe and Ramsay who were bit parts in their achievements. Of the players who achieved, only Kent cost big money. If we were buying RBs from Wigan for 200k and a free transfer back up to Shane Duffy who had just undergone heart surgery, a 50k midfielder from Dundee, I don’t think our Board ambition would be being lauded.
And Sevco fans have not been lauding hate board at all.
PETERLATCHFORDSBELLY on 5TH MAY 2022 10:20 PM
Evening Peter, not trying to be an eejit, where are you getting that information from?
Brian
PETERLATCHFORDSBELLY on 5TH MAY 2022 10:20 PM
Eintracht took 30,000 out to Barcelona. There’ll be plenty of them in Sevilla.
That wisnae very good, was it?
GEEBEE1978 – they’ll be the ones fighting with the Chelsea fans.
Seville could be a shit show.
https://fanbanter.co.uk/west-ham-fan-hospitalised-with-supporters-attacked-by-frankfurt-hooligans-in-pub/
Makes this years league win, and the turnaround from last years omnishambles……
…..much more impressive
Won’t help the peoples of Seville tho
Brian – https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/40033494
Geebee – had a bad feeling about tonight. Based on RB being insipid at home and having a soft underbelly when we beat them a couple of years back. Thought they would fold and they did.
Have a different feeling about Frankfurt. Think they’re hungrier for this cup, which unlike RB they need to get into the ECL, which would be transformative for them. They were brilliant against West Ham in London. They also pumped the old huns in 1960… they’ll pump them in the final.
It’s a final so stats go out the window but their record away from ibrox in Europe this season reads
Win – 1
Drew – 4
Lost – 5
Desperately clutching at straws here
JHB
“Qualifying matches are for qualifying, the clue is in the name. and if negotiated, lead to the competition proper. Knock-out matches are the ties post group-stages – to pretend otherwise is “deluded” hair-splitting”
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You have a one-legged dictionary at hand. Not only does it describe perception as reality, it does not give you a definition of knock out.
If you lose a CL qualifying tie you get knocked out of CL
If you lose a Europa qualifying tie you get knocked out of EuL
If you are in Conference qualifiers and lose a tie you will lose out on a chance to play in the Conference League.
The last 16 ties and last 32 ties are also knock-out ties but are not the only ones.
And why would a Celtic fan want to punt erroneous info that we have never won a knock out tie, or even more erroneously, in your case, never won a knock out match?
Were you being tongue in cheek again?
If your self-esteem depended on Rangers getting beat tonight, as it obviously does for many on here….
You’re in a bad way
4.5 million euros for reaching final.
8.5 for winners and CL entry therefore guaranteed another 25-30 million.
Not to be sniffed at.
They are on the verge of survival.
Belmont Brian 10.25pm
Apologies from the other week meant to respond but was off the blog … you might now be in Dunbeth but am sure the heart is still in Belmont street :-)
Columba club on your doorstep is probably a step up fae the Bammy :-)
My only desire this season was for celtic to win the league and we are 4 points away from that goal. If we go on and win the league we will officially be the best team in scotland. Given what’s at stake I would not swap the league for a euròpa league final, perhaps a europa league win.
If sevco win the europa league and we win the league they will still be the second best team in Scotland.
Their run does show that we as a scottish team should be doing better and more often.
HH
Old Firm FC are in two finals, remember they can lose both, Karma. 🎇🎆🎉
Deniabhoy, That’s if they do win it.
Remember hearing plenty of them saying they’d win nothing in Europe without Morelos who carried them in earlier games.
My friends in Celtic,
For yonks now I have been stating that we do ourselves a disservice by continually saying the huns are crap.
We hammered them 3- 0 at Paradise, gubbed them at Grayskull and played out a controlled draw in the recent encounter.
When we play to our full potential, we are a very good side and we deserve due credit.
Equally CQN looks really stupid when we keep saying every team the huns beat is pish, but the next team they face will destroy them.
Yes the huns have carried luck, but common sense tells us that you cannot be lucky on each individual occasion.
Reluctantly I can acknowledge that the huns are a decent team, but when we win the big prize lets focus on how good we have been to overcome a European finalist.
HH, our journey is just beginning.
Got to hand it to them on reaching 2 Finals and supposedly to a bad lot ,makes you wonder who the bad lot have been especially in Europe,I’m sure once we get rid of Dermot Desmond and a few others we Celtic can progress in Europe .
GREENPINATA on 5TH MAY 2022 10:38 PM
Exactly. By constantly saying the huns are pish, doesn’t that kind of diminish our own achievements?
Maybe it’s possible we’re both not bad sides and we’re slightly better – as we’ll prove when we wrap up the title :)
GREENPINATA on 5TH MAY 2022 10:38 PM
They have rode their luck in this tournament but not the semi-final😕
That is one way of looking at it Timbhoy, another way is we are about to beat a magnificent Hun team for the League Title, so Desmond &a few others have done very well.
They are so good that they are going to finish second in our most important tournament.
Must be some team that beat them in the league
can’t quite believe what I watched tonight.
They must be the most average team that ever contested a European final!
They have been technically inferior to every team they’ve played in the last four rounds. Not to mention the fact that they got 7 points in an average group and we got 9 in a tough group and didn’t progress!
They’ve just beaten the 5th team in Germany and now play the 11th in the final 🙄
I’m hanging on to the fact that we beat Barcelona (2nd) and then lost to Villarreal (8th) in the next round.
🤞🤞🤞
Hopefully the junta of seville protect their places of historical significance particularly the ancient cathedral with the tower ,otherwise they will be destroyed, if their local politicians think all football fans who come from Scotland are the same their city will be wrecked.
Cancel all guardia de civila leave and get tooled up,plan for the worst hope for the best, the stadium hosting the final was very close to the hotel I stayed in,it’s a busy city area with shops restaurants etc ,I hope they prepare well.
The mere mention of the name Seville has for many years conjured up images and memories of a wonderful moment in Celtic lives…one month from now it may evoke something more perverse…
May the waters of the Guadalquivir wash over the huns and cleanse the dirty tangerine barstewards…
Good to read on here different takes and perspectives on the hun match tonight. For me it makes our performances against them this season sweeter.
So we have a chance for all you guys who can go to enjoy 3 big parties between now and thems going to Seville.
It’s only 12 days away which is good and Celtic fans can hopefully have 3 big days of owning Glasgow.
Saturday when we can win vs the diets and effectively secure the league. = party in Glasgow.
Wednesday when we secure it mathematically by winning at Tannadice. = party in Dundee and party with fireworks all over Glasgow.
Then Saturday 14th when we are presented with the trophy v Motherwell. = party and fireworks all over Glasgow.
Starting this Saturday and assuming thems won on Sunday then we can enjoy a week of celebrating and positive coverage for Celtic leaving only a few days to them pre Seville.
Then a defeat in Seville for thems and then again to hearts 3 days later and it will all be fine.