And from nowhere, our return to Celtic Park is to play the league leaders: Kilmarnock. Steve Clarke has a quiet demeanour but however he projects his ideas on the training field, he is vastly more effective than (arguably) any other manager in the country. Our record against Kilmarnock under Clarke is two draws and two defeats. For a club that spent half a century getting roundly spanked at Celtic Park, that is a remarkable stat.
Four wins in four games, all with clean sheets, means Killie will be confident of limiting Celtic to few genuine chances, especially when they review video from Wednesday’s game at Fir Park. It is, therefore, more important that we move the ball quickly and our passing game as as crisp as possible. This means a midfield with Christie, McGregor and Rogic.
Odsonne Eduard will lead the line on Thursday against Salzburg, but I am split on whether he or Leigh Griffiths will be best up front tomorrow. I would be tempted to play Leigh but suspect the manager will go with Odsonne.
We held a halftime lead at Rugby Park earlier in the season before losing in the final seconds of the game. Dropping three points from a winning position is always a sore one, the players will hopefully revisit that feeling tomorrow.
Celtic FC Foundation Christmas Appeal Bucket Collection
The Foundation undertakes work from Haiti to North Glasgow, but the Christmas Appeal concentrates on those in the UK and Ireland who need help at this time in particular. The many homeless who need cover and will benefit from a warm meal. The families with children without enough money to put food on the table and heat their home.
Those of us who live ‘normal’ economic lives will find extreme poverty is impossible to fully comprehend. Because of the Foundation, some homeless will be warmer, some children will receive gifts and feel like a normal child for once.
As you enter Celtic Park tomorrow you will see people shaking a bucket to collect for the Foundation. Bring some money along. The magnificent work of the Foundation is yours, done in your name, fulfilling the cause of your club.
Be a part of it and tell your pals to do the same. Thank you.
326 Comments- Pages:
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GDT
Dundee might, but why should they, it’s not sport when one team is afforded leniency and bias.
Make the referees accountable, take away their easy money if the ef up, when they start losing a few grand every month i’m sure they will start to get the decisions correct.
Celtic should offer to pay for assessors from outwith scotland, what would it cost, a few hundred grand a year, it would guarantee us the league, maybes if the suits were to forgo their bonuses for a couple of years for doing eff all it would pay for them.
PETEC on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 5:51 PM
I look at the balancing act we have to perform every season – starting with the ECL qualifiers in June/July, when our players should really be resting.
Success in the Cups means we have high-pressure games from September till May, and hopefully Europe on top of that.
Outside of Europe, every must-win game we’ve had, we’ve won. (Trebles)
Brendan’s got us winning the games we have to win domestically, and we’re on the right road in Europe.
Dropping points in the League as we do is collateral damage but the League is a marathon; the Cups are a sprint.
I’d rather have the League Cup in the cabinet in December than be 8 points ahead in the League.
I think the achievements Brendan has delivered have been amazing, and I’ve been following the Bhoys since 1966.
HH
Thomthethim,
I used to do spread betting on SportingIndex. the booking count on Every Spanish game was Incredible.
First tackle – law enforced.
They went on to unprecedented Success for Spain.
Protect the players.
Make the REFSA accountable!
Sorted.
JIMTHETIM53 glad your okay, you seemed a bit down in the dumps the last time you were on, you and weefrathethetim are what the blog is all about, celtic supporters talking to each other over the internet, wish weefra would let us know he is okay, if your lurkin weefra come on in hh??
JIMMYNOTPAUL on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 6:19 PM
Thanks, Craig Thomson is a past master of the art.
Putting themselves above the law is a common trait within Scottish football.
It seems to be the way of the world that if you tell yourself that you believe in what you are doing and convince yourself it is for the good of those affected, then anything goes.
Once we become arbiters of our own actions, then rules of society and the moral code are obsolete.
The SFA’s (in)actions since 2012 have all been for ” The Good of the Game”, haven’t they?
It was one of Jock Stein’s most frequently disproved theories.
They can’t chalk them all off, but sometimes they do and when its only 1-0
it counts.
Thom
I heard that, but as you say the rules have to be sacrosanct, else what’s the point in having any.
Slippy called them out after their first game of the season when he said that decisions have been going against them for years, he should have been up in from of them for telling lies let alone bringing the game into disrepute, the only problem I see with them applying the rules is how they interpret them, if unbias assessors were brought in from outwith scotland and the refs were demoted, it would change soon enough, after all money talks.
As I said, it’s 2018 and we are still harking back to what Mr Stein said all them years ago as it should be relevant today, it shouldn’t, if the will to change it was there it could be sorted at the stroke of a pen.
UncleFelixCSC
THOMTHETHIM FOR OSCAR OK on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 6:13 PM
When Craig Levein complained to the SFA’s head of referees about the incompetence of match officials, and was told – by the SFA’s Head of Referees – that he should tell his defenders to line up on the 18-yard line ‘because it will help the officials’…. where do you begin?
JNP
You keep at your bhoy and keep telling him he is so so wrong :-)
GreeninbingleyinOslo,
That is the Reason Brendan should have been backed in the Summer – The First Team needed Replenished.
Again – Who knows anything?
I certainly dinnae ken.
Ryan is coming in and making himself a 1st Team Player.
MAGICAL.
Callum has dropped back into a controlling midfield Role and making most people say – you gotta play Callum there.
MAGICAL.
Tom Rogic
INCREDIBLE.
Back the Man CELTIC.
laugh all you like
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fgA_yNCeq4
mon the sub griff the morra
Levein suggesting we could donate our European money towards the installation of VAR,better still we could donate a lawnmower to the Tynecastle groundstaff.
Seeing George W Bush during the week reminded me of this Christmas song.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5hmTE02vjXc&list=RD5hmTE02vjXc&start_radio=1
THE EXILED TIM on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 6:21 PM
Absolutely agree. What’s fair and sporting about having to play against 12 or even 14 men? The SFA and their referees are a closed shop , unaccountable and ,for the moment, untouchable. As one poster on here has said , sort the referees…..sort the problem . You could also say sort the SFA…..sort the problem.
Get them to declare their allegiances to avoid partiality. That would rule out at least two or three of them from reffing our games right away . Even the English FA can see the obvious.
The referees are the front of house for the SFA.
As such, they are the public face of that body and by their actions, they reflect the ethos of the organisation.
One Malloy
Condolences on the passing of your Uncle Davie.
So why after Dr John said ” We have a dossier ” and then ” Those days are gone ” was there deathly silence, we had them by the short and curlies, I wish someone could explain that to me.
thomthethim for Oscar OK on 7th December 2018 6:55 pm
The referees are the front of house for the SFA.
As such, they are the public face of that body and by their actions, they reflect the ethos of the organisation.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
At Best totally incompetent.
Not fit for purpose.
Noone is accountable!!!!!
hmmmm.
The SMSM must be amongst the very worst Media in the World.
OneMalloy
Sad news about your Uncle Davie, may he RIP.
Reading back re the 800 tickets.
Providing Celtic do this correctly,I.E. stating clearly that on the basis of proven attacks and safety breaches already this year,the location of the designated area,and the fact that Police Scotland have already botched the visit to Celtic Park by Sevco we refuse totally to allow our fans to enter.
Nice and clear,its a Sevco and Police Scotland problem.Let them explain to Sky et al.
Additionally in my view we have nutters who despite requests, continue to both sing, to annoy our Board, and the opposition, and let off pyro’s with pungent smoke,with no regard for anyone else.
So refuse the tickets,and ensure the blame is not ours, rather than take them and risk some daftie causing disruption with a flare into the opposition.
Were that to happen then Police Scotland would have a great opportunity to properly blame us,as opposed to their ” celebration ” screw up.
THE EXILED TIM on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 7:02 PM
I can only assume that John Reid was departing from the Board ‘script’ and now that he is gone , so has the defiance.
GDT
Possibly, bugs me big time tho
Have the referees called a strike yet ?
!!Bada Bing!! on 7th December 2018 7:10 pm
Have the referees called a strike yet ?
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The SFA would never allow that to happen again.
Celtic had a Brilliant Ref at home for once Domestically – he called everything as he saw it. He got applauded for his performance. Swiss or something cannae remember.
THE EXILED TIM on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 7:02 PM
So why after Dr John said ” We have a dossier ” and then ” Those days are gone ” was there deathly silence, we had them by the short and curlies, I wish someone could explain that to me.
=================================================================================
Maybe you should direct your ire to the clowns in the G.B. with their upside down banners describing him as a war criminal.
What sane person would wish to hang around and put up with that kind of offensive bull ?
MacJay
The GB have nothing to do with it, absolutely nothing, you think a war criminal would be scared of the GB :-)
friday afternoon music ….
this is a young kid out of Nairobi, who moved to America … plays great folk/blues/roots stuff …I think some of the guys on here might really like him. I hope so.
J. S. Ondara – Revolution Blues
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HRjj0wWDwAY
TET
You might not know and I apologise if you do but Dr Reid is now in the House of Lords, I doubt he will be rocking any boats too fiercely, bad career move if he did IMO.
MIKE IN TORONTO on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 5:34 PM
Excellent clear explanation.
When you hang up your gown , perhaps the lecture theatre might benefit from your clarity.
THE EXILED TIM on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 7:23 PM
MacJay
The GB have nothing to do with it, absolutely nothing, you think a war criminal would be scared of the GB :-)
==============================================================================
:-0
He was well behind the front line.
Haig style.
A sop to the Blackadderists.
The Miami Showband Massacre
https://www.rt.com/shows/sputnik/439921-miami-showband-ulster-violence/
Dessybhoy
He said these things many moons ago.
I would have thought that anyone who defends the tax payer against those who cheat the treasury and those who facilitate them to do so would not be jeopardising their career to call them out, but that’s just me :-)
I did know.
PETEC on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 7:14 PM
!!Bada Bing!! on 7th December 2018 7:10 pm
Have the referees called a strike yet ?
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The SFA would never allow that to happen again.
Celtic had a Brilliant Ref at home for once Domestically – he called everything as he saw it. He got applauded for his performance. Swiss or something cannae remember.
——————————–
PeteC
Luxemburger…If I remember we drew game but….what a breath of fresh air (instead of masonic stink)
from non biased professionals .
VP
I recall that Daryl Murphy had a good goal chopped of for being offside in that game, but it didny seem to matter as it was an honest mistake, the ref that day was superb
Petec- as my good friend VP posted , he was from Luxembourg, and what was so noticeable, was his positional sense,compared to the goat humpers
If we can get big Jozo back on it – we will have a very good CH.
No Word of a CH breaking through. :((
My Wishlist for January.
Right Back, Centre Back and Number 9 that are First Team candidates straight away.
Assuming noone leaves.
Edouard isnae a Dembele type. He is doing his best but we need a new Dembele. Let Odsonne and Jamesie really Run at the defences. Need mega legs in Midfield. Brownie isnae the answer now against deep packed defences.
The Sevco will attack us. Broonie/Brownie – will be first name on the Team Sheet at the Hate Factory.
HRVATSKI JIM on 7TH DECEMBER 2018 7:25 AM
Saturday 7th December
TET- correct
Oops..
Grand post and brings back great memories, as has been said HH