Real and Atletico Madrid have met twice in the Champions League final (2014, 2016), once in the semi-final (2017) and once in the quarters (2015). Atletico’s only win over those games was effectively a dead rubber, as they went into the 2017 semi-final second leg 3-0 down.
The teams meet again tonight at the Bernabeu in the round of 16 first leg. Atletico sit a point behind Barcelona in second place in La Liga, two points ahead of Real and are unbeaten in the last 8 matches against their more illustrious rivals.
I find it difficult to praise their manager, Diego Simeone. There is nothing likeable about the man, but personality aside, he is remarkably effective. One point about Atletico’s season in particular is worth highlighting. Antoine Griezmann (33) has played more minutes than any other outfield Atletico player this season, and he has only played 80% of the time.
Simeone shares the load around, protects key players from burnout and utilises the resultant space in the team to develop fringe players. Many components go into any side who sit about Real Madrid in La Liga this deep into the season, but few can be more important than this one.
Celtic have rotated more this season than any I recall, although Callum McGregor’s historic low of playing 87% of our games is due to injury (and not being forced to play through an injury).
Atletico compete against the biggest two clubs in world football; Celtic are resourced well above anyone in Scotland. Scope for us to rest and rotate should be higher than anyone in Europe. It is a metric we should measure.
We might look at the Due Diligence concept later in the week. At first glance, it appears as poorly understood in Scottish football circles as insolvencey rules were in early 2012.
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Surprising lack of respect sharing the prolix offering of another blogger who is oft minded to denigrate the platform provided by our genial host.
Brass-neckery and arrogance.
CQN CSC
Every few months the expand the stadium brigade come out to express the need to expand and improve celtic park and the envious around it. I have been in that brigade for years and years now. You would expect Uefa’s new ffp regulations are going to make infustructure work more desirable as a way for clubs to increase revenue alongside smart trading.
Celtic have seriously upgraded the first team and academy training centres for the forseeable and our squad is as good as it has been in many a years. With kt due to arrive and incoming likely to be funded by transfers out we are in very good shape on the pitch.
It seems to me, this would be a great time to push the button on expanding celtic park’s capacity (70 to 75k sounds good), corporate hospitality, hotel, museum superstore all within the new structure etc and seriously upgrade the envious around celtic park. Would cost a hell of a lot but would grow revenue to unpresedented levels.
We have not had a share issue in decades and i would expect there would be a lot of apitite for it if sold as completing the stadium. Moreover there are many millions upon millions sitting in a bank account that could be used as well.
European football is slowly changing and we don’t wanna be left behind. Having a solid fan base, global audience, massive modern stadium with all the mod cons and world class infustructure would go a long way to securing our place at the top table longer term.
HH
BREAKING: Police chiefs ‘open to discussions’ on lifting Scottish football booze ban after more than 40 years
BREAKING: Police chiefs ‘open to discussions’ on lifting Scottish football booze ban after more than 40 years
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i love a beer as much as the next fan, and if im in the Sports Bar or boozer in town before the game then i leave it as late as possible to leave before going to the game to finish my jar!
but…
i would only back booze being sold during the game if it was in a cordoned off place and you couldnt bring it up to the seats.
too many wee fannys will just start launching pints about when we score.
cant be having that.
and we all know thats what would happen.
KINGlUbO celtic40me on 4th March 2025 7:43 pm
I kinda think we lucked out when ranger’s died because it allowed the club to develop the player trading model that is very much part of our financial success now. Wjen they died the club could sell our best players without the worry it would lose us the league and supporters begun to accept the player trading model as normal. Now celtic fans in the main totally accept we will lose our best players and another group of players will come in but 13 years of operating that model has helped refine it. It could be better no doubt but there is not a thing about the club that could not be better.
Sevco do not have the long standing knowlede to operate in this way or the years it takes to refine it. To often take the short term approach which damages them longer term I.e., keeping hold of playersand missing the sweet spot to sell. Problem is selling their best players does have a material impact on league titles for them, there is no grace period. Celtic are positioned to pounce on dropped points.
Uefa’s ffs is now at play making it more difficult than ever before to over invest in football operations.
Best way for them to catch celtic is to take a long term approach and spend on improving infustructure etc. Best way for celtic to stay ahead is to keep using the trading model and to also improve infustructure, capacity etc.
Now is the time to be seriously looking at getting the feck out of scotland into another league
Now is the time to be seriously looking at getting the feck out of scotland into another league
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not saying i disagree,
but the season ticket numbers and almost impossibility of getting away tickets might make you think that many are happy enough with what we are doing now.
Get out of Scotland
There is no future being a big fish in a small pond with hun scum polluting atmos
There is no future in that
6400 Hibs have sold for Sunday
Watching arsenal v psv on prime
Just turned 1-6 to arsenal
Prime have a really nice vieing exprerience
even with shearer commentating
KT about to come on
As regards the Cork Super Cup all I can say is that whether it’s €28,€35 or€45 I have to spend I will be there with my daughter.
Not 100% sure but this is a joint venture involving Cork City FC Cork GAA, who incidentally own the stadium, and Celtic so not sure it’s entirely fair to blame Celtic for prices
Over here they are not known as the Grab All Association for nothing.
I live in Cork and this is an opportunity to see Celtic near home but if the ticket price is too much then don’t buy it. It’s not compulsory.
1-7 arsenal now
“so not sure it’s entirely fair to blame Celtic for prices…”
—
no one is…
You sure about that lets all do the huddle
“absolutely incredible.
even more incredible is the fact that to try and justify it they have marketed it as the Cork Super Cup.
surely has to be one of the biggest piss-takes i have ever seen.”
where have i mentioned celtic in your ‘quote’?
you should have read on a bit to the later posts
You quoted the Celtic email.
Then in another post back tracked by saying “that’s why I used they” and finished with the statement that Celtic should only agree if there is “sensible pricing”
So I must have incorrectly interpreted all of the above which was actually a post about Cork County Board or Cork City FC?
Anyway enjoy your night time for me to retire for the night.
Good evening B78 , sorry was offline for a while, you asked me to name the 11 players we signed in summer 23,apologies I was wrong it was 10 players . Tilio,Lagerbielke,Nawrocki,Kwon,Yang,Holm,Palma,Bernardo and Philips on loan and Iwata permanently after a loan spells.Bernardo a definite success in my opinion and Yang hopefully on the way to being the same.Palma looked like a successful signing before fading away so all in all a pretty scattergun approach and quantity over quality with one possibly/hopefully 2 exceptions.
45 years ago supporters of celtic and the now defunct rangers had a big fight at hampden park, alcohol was blamed for the riot and alcohol was banned from football grounds for ordinary joe bloggs. However, they continued to sell it in pubsand clubs outside the football stadium (makes prefect sense).
I suspect most of those involved in the riot that day are no longer with use and / or are in their 60s and 70s. Think their rioting days may be past them. I was 3 years old when the riots happened so it makes prefect sense that I can’t have alcohol at the football just in case I bump into one of those pensioners and they start a riot.
Football supporters are no more or less likely to get drunk and fight than those going to rugby, boxing, the darts and concerts etc but are treated very differently cuase most are still working class boys and girls and middle scotland don’t like our dialect. The government has continued with this antiquated law for way to long. It would make clubs a little more money. folk that are gonna get hammered are no gonna be doing it with 3 pints.
Attending football today is far removed from going to the football in the 80s ffs. The clubs could easily set up a 3 drinjs per person policy in designated areas throughout the stadium (no whilst watching the game as I don’t wanna get wet when folk celebrate whilst forgetting they are holding cups of alcohol).
The youth of today are being punished cause their grandparents (fathers) were balms.
😂
Sorry Bampot 😁
Balm pot is an very west end bam pot lol
Just watched Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart on their respective shows. A little disappointed that they both used Winston Churchill to show a fine upstanding man fighting evil.
‘mericans always tell me I am loon with my hatred for Churchill. Call me deluded when I tell then he wasn’t fighting because he was anti-fascist but that he wanted to save the empire and that the fact that calling him a multi war criminal is one of the nicer things you could say about him.
Disappointed with Colbert and Jon Stewart.
That said, enjoyed both episodes. So there!
Much like Lord Baden-Powell
Maggie Thatcher
And the most recent nomination, Tony Blair
And the 1000’s of peadophile rapists and monsters that inhabit our governments
Aye.
Funny old world we are about to destroy.
Aipple – Churchill only had to be better than Hitler. Low bar.
He was clearly an entitled knob but I can see how others admired his war years – didn’t get him re-elected then, so the passing of time will have healed some imperfect wounds.
I watched both shows also but didn’t really note the Churchill focus so much. Raeganites (also non perfect) must be rolling in their graves at the sychophantic shit show on display today.
Hey TEXASTIM
I hear you. He made a flashing appearance on both as a bastion of what standing up to the bad guys looks like. I may be being overly bitter after 2.5 hours in dentist chair today and a recent argument at work.
Had to turn it off tonight after the DOGE lies and love in.
For others looking in and wondering perhaps what good old Winston did, grab a dram, it’s a long read.
https://medium.com/@write_12958/the-crimes-of-winston-churchill-c5e3ecb229b3
Full blown authoritarianism on ma telly.
bankiebhoy1 on 4th March 2025 8:50 pm
Surprising lack of respect sharing the prolix offering of another blogger who is oft minded to denigrate the platform provided by our genial host.
Brass-neckery and arrogance.
CQN CSC
…………
Could you say that in English?
Blessed be the Peacemakers.
Aipple at around 3am – I caught the last 45 seconds.
Watched the CL highlights to avoid it.
I’m sure the low points will go viral in the next few days.
Good Morning Fholks – Grand Day To Be A Tim,
CELTIC40ME @ 3:18 PM,
Thanks for the name check, I certainly liked Abada and thought the lad had great potential.
He also contributed with goals and assists, some very important goals and assists while a youngster at Celtic.
However, getting embroiled in global affairs was very unfortunate for him, especially the timing – he was teaching the point where he had to really kick-.on
POV: What sort of Celtic player he would have made, when and where he moved on and how much for – is now all conjecture – his move was political.
On the wider subject of player development by BR&CO, it seems obvious to me that if you have real potential and commitment and are prepared to work hard as a “team” player you will be given the opportunity to advance under a great development set up.
Whether you have came through the youths, are in the B team, or were brought in as a prospect – the bar is now very high at Celtic for those on the “pathway” to be a first team regular.
Be A Kuhn, Engels, O’Riley, I.e. contribute to the first team while showing signs of tangible improvement, or find a club more appropriate to your ambitions and skill-set.
The highly durable, non-shrink Celtic jersey is now very much back in vogue…
We are blessed, to have phenomenal personel and set up at Celtic.
Someone was asking about Chris McCart… the academy set up is certainly interesting.
The restructuring of the coaching set up and pathway and Barrowfield upgrade should help enormously to see some players coming through.
Have a great one
Aff oot
Hail Hail
“Reaching the point”
https://www.celticfc.com/academy/boys-academy/academy-coaches/
Hail Hail
Good morning all from Govanhill.