Learning to punch like Dutch and Portuguese sellers

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Josip Juranovic, who was recently mentioned as a target for Atletico Madrid and Chelsea, is reported by Sky Sports to be heading to Monza, currently 15th in Serie A, for around £7m.  It is neither the move nor the fee I was hoping for Josip.  His spectacular World Cup performances, especially in the quarter final win over Brazil, had me expecting he would move on for a more substantial fee and to a tier one club.

Celtic put the For Sale sign up for Josip since before he headed to Qatar, unusually announcing they were unable to agree a new contract for a player with 3.5 years left on his current deal.  He was given the responsibility of going to-to-toe with Neymar, a test he passed with merit.  Still, there are no big bidders.

Despite the balance on his contract, with his replacement already starting at right back (and looking like an upgrade), we are at peak value for Josip, so should move him on.  Potential buyers will be less keen to cough up a large fee if he has been playing backup or putting in mixed performances at left back.

The fee is less of a disappointment than the lack of interest from a top club.  Kieran Tierney remains the only player to have left Celtic to a genuinely wealthy side since Henrik (Lyon were close).  Kieran, a genuine talent, has had mixed success in London and his most often second choice left back at Arsenal.  This is not helpful to Celtic.

For Celtic’s business model to flourish, we need to punch the same weight as Dutch and Portuguese sellers.  If you are a pathway to Arsenal, Barcelona or once-removed to Liverpool (Virgil), you find it easier and cheaper to recruit players with potential.  To make any of this possible, Champions League results are necessary, performances SPFL just don’t count.  There is a lot of work ahead.

Should Premiership teams play Sweet Georgia Brown when Connor Goldson walks out of their tunnel?  If you know, you know.  Sunday’s ‘arms by his side’ nonsense at Tannadice was the worst yet.

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  1. ANGE Go go for Kevin Nesbit ,I think we have enough Japanese players,time for some Scottish Players to be looked at ,

  2. Cambhoy et al

     

     

    Lawwell back as non exec Chairman is interesting

     

     

    In most ‘big boy’ companies, the non execs seldom reject decisions of the execs but sometimes put comments and risks on the budget

     

     

    They also seldom have a split decision at board meetings

     

     

    If Celtic act like a big boy, then Lawwell had control of deals previously as CEO and he will now ratify Nicholson’s decisions

     

     

    If Celtic act as TIT then Desmond as a non exec decided everything, hence no change of chairman effects anything

     

     

    Desmond has been accused of being an absent landlord (pejorative term for a Cork man) and paradoxically as a decision maker at the club

     

     

    I think we are a big boy so Lawwell has little sway.

     

    If people think we are not, then he still had no sway as Desmond is the man

     

     

    Zero sum game

     

     

    When the Bunnet was here, he was Executive Chairman hence ruled the roost; all changed with the IPO; but can anyone name the first Chairman and CEO of Celtic plc?

     

     

    No googling!

  3. Benfica have just sold a 21 year old right back to Watford for £2m after he made 1 appearance for the first team.

     

     

    Make of that what you will. Not much probably

  4. bournesouprecipe on

    Can Sevco see out the season ?

     

     

    SPFL Premiership

     

     

    Penalties Conceded

     

    22/23 Season

     

    As at 09/01/23

     

     

    Aberdeen 8

     

    St.Mirren 8

     

    Hibs 7

     

    Livingston 6

     

    Celtic 5

     

    Hearts 5

     

    Dundee Utd 3

     

    Kilmarnock 3

     

    Motherwell 3

     

    St.Johnstone 2

     

    Ross County 1

     

    Rangers 0

  5. Ye’d think it might merit a wee story…aw these hun refs doin’ the sash, bangers’n’mash circuit?

     

     

    Naw?

  6. If the Korean is such a good player (WC etc) why the low fee,goal scorers are in very high demand.

  7. The dough floated for Jura seems light in the extreme…………………..

     

     

    Quality counts……………………….

  8. Mick Beale , “we’re not Real Madrid …”

     

     

    Mick yer no even real rangers …😜

  9. paulsthroughball88 on

    CONEYBHOY

     

     

    Wouldn’t say we ‘nicked’ BBJ from the Deidclub, but am very glad he ended up with us.

     

    Anyway, we’ve no history of nicking anyone from Sevco, or vice-versa, unless I’ve missed something, which is very possible.

  10. paulsthroughball88 on

    BSR

     

     

    You’ve got to hand it to them, very disciplined defending inside their 18-yard box.

  11. bournesouprecipe on

    “‘ We’re not interested in any of their one upmanship “

     

     

    Fergus McCann @ ages ago

  12. Corkcelt -Happy Birthday

     

    Maybe JJ can’t stand the weather or the utterly dreadful SPL. Who could blame him. But I always say – if you don’t want to wear the hoops , see you later.

  13. Back to Basics - Glass Half Full on

    GENE @ 2:10 PM

     

    BSR

     

     

    As long as other managers don’t point the finger at the dodgy decisions then it will be put down to our paranoia.

     

     

    ——–

     

     

    Don’t disagree Gene.

     

     

    Which is why our focus (club, fans) has to be on the statistical data arising from dodgy decisions.

     

     

    https://twitter.com/RhebelRhebel/status/1612084608002101248/photo/3

     

     

    So here are a couple of factual takeaways from the above link.

     

     

    In all of season 2021/22 the team with the best defensive record in the SPFL conceded ONE penalty.

     

     

     

    In the first 10 games of season 2022/23 the team with the best defensive record in the SPFL conceded ZERO penalties.

     

     

    Following the introduction of VAR, across the next ten league games the team with the best defensive record in the SPFL conceded FIVE penalties.

     

     

    I think they call that a statistical anomaly in the trade.

  14. JJ has been a good player for us over the course and if he goes then its a thank you from me. 7 million seems like a low price but it’s still more than we paid for him and more than we have spent on his replacement. Aj Looks like a good fit so hopefully everyone wins in the end.

     

     

    GG has also done us a turn but 6 million seems very reasonable to me. So long as we get an adequate replacement in I wont complain.

     

     

    Both players wanna leave so no point keeping them to point they are unhappy ànd not playing to their best.

     

     

    Think the age of the players drives down the price but both played like experienced pros throught their time here and help us win the ĺeague title. That was worth an additional 20 million to celtic this season.

  15. paulsthroughball88 on

    Praise from the master!

     

     

    It doesn’t get any better than this, Ted.

     

     

    So. . . . .

  16. a pure random time to create a list.

     

     

    name that rare thing a player who won scottish cup with another team, beofre or after they did the same with celtic,

     

     

    tommy boy, phil o d and frank mcgarvey, others please.

     

     

    i am away to check patsy and jimmy quinn in the early years.

     

     

     

     

    ——————

     

     

    St.Anthony

     

    @Stephen4_2

     

    ·

     

    Jan 7

     

    A very youthful Tom Boyd for Motherwell in 1984. Not many guys captain two different teams to win the Scottish Cup.

  17. bigrailroadblues on

    St Stivs

     

    Did you clock the huns without bus fare comments? Might as well have called him a tarrier barsteward.😂

  18. Cognitive dissonance:

     

     

    Regularly commenting on the anti-Celtic bias of the MSSM then just as regularly seeming to accept the Celtic related `information` provided by that same MSSM.

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