I cannot tell you the exhilaration when our Champions League endeavours all started under Martin O’Neill. Beating Ajax in Amsterdam in the play-off round, with their useful looking young striker, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, was a transformational result in our history.
The group stage was due to start at home to Rosenborg, who back then were a Champions League regular and not just an also ran, but the September 11 attacks a day earlier meant we had to wait until facing Juventus in Turin. There was a time during that game, when we came back from 2-0 to equalise, that anything seemed possible.
The campaign ended with three home wins and three away defeats, the latter became a regular feature in our early seasons in the competition. Nine points would have been enough in most groups, in most years, but we were edged out by Porto, who took 6 points from Rosenborg.
Two years later, brought thrilling home wins against Anderlecht and Lyon, before Bayern Munich became the first visiting team to leave Celtic Park on Champions League duty with a point. Oh, how they celebrated.
Form has changed since. Picking up points on the road, which once seemed beyond us, is achieved regularly, home wins are less assured, but there is still a clear difference in how potent Celtic are at home, compared to how we are on our travels. Celtic Park remains a force to be reckoned with.
Leipzig have a squad full of talented players. They will have period of possession tonight and will stretch Celtic in every department. But still, they are a long way from Saxony and face a Celtic team brimming with nuggets of talent.
We know the support tonight will be exceptional. We know how Celtic will play. We know we have the talent to hurt the very best in Europe. We know that Leipzig are vulnerable. Let’s make it happen this time.
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BRRB
Best you give Norway a miss only £8 a pint minimum
Hopefully Ange realises where we’re at in terms of European gravitas under his tutelage.
We shouldn’t have a `rigid` playing style that traps us psychologically.
We should have a “play whatever way we need to” approach, the element of surprise and all that, making teams dread playing us.
Like in the days of MON`s Fortress?
If an experienced player like Joe Hart can be irritated because the playing style caught him out in an unfavourable way last week, resulting in JH highlighting “that`s the way we play” instead of JH wearing a mask and owning the mistake as it were, or taking one for the team, but JH didn’t do that, he effectively threw Ange, and more specifically, `Ange ball` under a bus.
Hopefully it was a one off.
Celticforever 5.16.
Indeed young fella, I knew that. A holiday in Scandinavia would result in the loss of BRRB Mansions and Estate.
The fundraiser to match the UEFA fine in donations to charity has already surpassed its target after just 5 hours of being open.
FASSREIFEN on 11TH OCTOBER 2022 5:35 PM
The fundraiser to match the UEFA fine in donations to charity has already surpassed its target after just 5 hours of being open.
Everytime this happens I think to myself, the support for the Green Brigaders and the sympathies they get from broader cohort is way way better than what many a cqn torn facer thinks.
i am ok if they produce something anti facist, monarchy or uefa or sfa tongith,
i think it would be funny.
Well said big Ange…
As quoted by The Scotsman, he said: “It’s human nature, particularly with the group we have. They’re still experiencing something new. It’s by trying to show them that they have protection if things go wrong. I’ll take the responsibility for it. Don’t fear.
“It’s only human nature that, playing away from home in a Champions League game and you’ve equalised, you feel like you are really in the game. You’ll tighten up a little bit and think ‘Jeez, a point in Leipzig would be brilliant, we don’t want to give away this point. Instead of passing forward, maybe I’ll just hit the safe pass. Instead of making a run forward, maybe I’ll just sit here in case we lose the ball.’
“So, that’s all the process. It’s just human nature. It’s about trying to show the players and get them to understand that’s not the way we’ve set up to play, it’s not going to help us in our endeavour to be successful. And if it does go wrong in doing what I want them to do then I’ll take responsibility.
“If you want to improve, if you want to get better, you’ve got to get out of that sort of insecurity you have about anything and be bold in your approach. That’s my view, anyway. Others will have a different view. But that’s kind of my view why we play our kind of football. It’s why we take the approach we do. It’s why I sign the players I have and put the team together the way I have because it’s designed to play this kind of football.”
It’s the total brass next of UEFA that I detest ..
biggest crooks and corrupt bunch trying to find the ordinary fan for having a brain and an opinion
Never EVER thought I’d find kevj funny AND interesting at the same time but, his buffler alter image is hilarious
For all his ska’s, I wouldn’t cross the street to talk to them……but I’d sit and have a beer with the buffler
ska’s…….aka’s
Big Jimmy
Pack it in
SAINT STIVS on 11TH OCTOBER 2022 5:43 PM
**
They might wave a banner saying “We hate Tory`s but kilted austerity will do for us” or something about Ange ball. :)
Hot Smoked
I agree with you on the support. Hopefully they will be an asset and not a liability tonight.
I also agree re the slow blog on a huge game day.
All the shite on here circular debates people have with themselves does tire everyone out.
Hopefully it is buzzing in 5 hours time though.
The new bar looks quite nice to be honest
Fassreifen on 11th October 2022 5:35 pm
The fundraiser to match the UEFA fine in donations to charity has already surpassed its target after just 5 hours of being open.
The Donegal fund would be a good choice IMO
Rock tree boy
If I have to delete that again, you are gone for a week
Moderator
Care to explain what your rationale is now for deleting posts? We should be told.
BLANTYRETIM IS PRAYING FOR THE KNOX FAMILY on 11TH OCTOBER 2022 5:51 PM
It’s the total brass next of UEFA that I detest ..
biggest crooks and corrupt bunch trying to find the ordinary fan for having a brain and an opinion
**
Are the tickets for European games as high as for lets say, Tim tickets for Ibrokes, 50 odd quid or thereabouts?
My apologies if you weren`t talking about ticket prices. 👍🏻
MODERATOR1888 on 11TH OCTOBER 2022 6:05 PM
Rock tree boy
If I have to delete that again, you are gone for a week
__________________________________________________________
What are you on about mate? You seem to be deleting posts at random, explain what the criteria is please
RTB
Aye, am sick and fed up of the fighting and bickering that has surfaced on the blog again
If yer post is involved in that…….it’s gone
Is that clear??
Moderator888
so this is OK (page 2)
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BIG JIMMY on 11TH OCTOBER 2022 3:00 PM
Just for the record, I criticized ROCK TREE BHOY yesterday simply for being SILLY ENOUGH to pass comment on here about ME a while ago, and he was COMPLETELY WRONG…..as he did NOT KNOW the exact circumstances, so he Posted a lot of crap which was sheer guesswork on his part.
________________________________________________
but me asking for an explanation gets deleted!!!
MON`S FORTRESS on 11TH OCTOBER 2022 6:05 PM
Ticket prices on a par for iPox etc
It was the fines I was moaning about .
BT
He knew that
Paul67 et al
Difficult, nearby impossible to tarnish the name of a football club set up by a Marist Brother, with the support of many good men and women from a variety of backgrounds but the Green Brigade continue to find ways to do it. Let us hope they do not further do so this evening in a European competition. Meanwhile those who actually run Celtic FC in the present day, and at this particular time, make a contribution to the Social Fund set up help those affected by the Creeslough tragedy, and send a message of condolence highlighting the special connection Donegal had and has with the club, with particular reference to local Bhoy, Martin McGill, himself a family carer. I heard earlier that Celtic will hold a minutes silence tonight to commemorate all those lost in the disaster, we would expect no less. Well done Celtic FC.
Moderator
Yesterdays blog was an all out mud slinging match, you came on and did nothing, its all still there, yet today you are deleting posts you just don’t fancy, long term that wont work, you need to be consistent
THE QUIET MAN
I’ve been off here that long I don’t remember some of the newer blog names so take things at face value
BT
Mon’s is another from the kevj stable
Mod
Leave the comments up please
It’s been hilarious on here the past couple of days
I’m still laughing at the comments
He knows that’s mini VT name so he better not be
BT even
Moderator.
Just ban ra lot of them. I’m the only sensible fella left.
RTB
I gotta start somewhere
We are starting now
I have been posting on here since 2011 and am disgusted at the levels of nonsense on this blog
It’s time to take the blog back
Mod
Boooooo….
We are the mods
We are the mods
https://m.facebook.com/bluebeatandska/videos/quadrophenia-we-are-the-mods/727946844739924/
Mod
What about a “nice” blog AND an X rated blog
If you want to be nice hit the nice blog
If you want to let off steam….hit the X rated blog
Then we can jump between both and you can mod both of them…..it’s not as though you’re busy or anything
Moderator.
I agree. Ban that old git Philbhoy. He’s a wrong un.
He is, he got me out of retirement on here
BlantyreTim
Watching another rerun of Quadrophenia S?😂