Celtic’s January transfer window saw seven new players sign deals, although only four will be at the club for the remainder of this season, and only one of those, Vakoun Issouf Bayo, is on a permanent deal.
Bayo is a classic centre forward-target man, unlike Leigh Griffiths or Odsonne Edouard, who like to play in the channels. He has not played for two months, so it is likely to be a couple of weeks before we see him. He is here because of our Ivorian Connection through Kolo Toure, who is a coach at both Celtic and Ivory Coast. That being the case, the club should know more about him than most new signings, which should mitigate the risk inherent in any signing.
Since the resumption of action after the winter break, we have seen Oliver Burke and Timothy Weah fulfil the striker role, each on loan, from West Brom and Paris Saint-Germain respectively. Neither player is here to play the striker role long-term; expect them to supplement the wide positions after we return to a more normal compliment up front.
With minutes to spare, Jeremy Toljan signed on loan from Borussia Dortmund. This is a player who great things were expected from when he left Hoffenhiem 18 months ago, but Dortmund is a different beast and he did not find the move easy.
That’s not dissuaded many of his talent, which means Celtic’s chances of securing his services on a permanent basis are slim. I also believe the player is on pretty decent (cough) contract. He will not be here beyond May.
Maryann Shved, 21, arrived this week from Karpaty Lviv in Ukraine, where he has returned to stay until the summer. We moved early for Maryann, interest in the player was generated in only 38 competitive games. Players grow up on the football field and Maryann needs as many opportunities as he can get right now. With the manager having so many wide options for the remainder of the season, loaning him back to Karpaty was an easy decision.
Two American full backs were signed yesterday, Andrew Gutman (22) and Manny Perez (19), both loaned back to US clubs.
So all these loans arrivals, signings-only-to-be-loaned out, what’s the plan?
The top-level plan is to win the league, do our best to win the two cups and to give us the best chance of qualifying for the Champions League. Everything else is a consequence of this. Two decades ago, when Martin O’Neill set his mind to the same task, he signed talent who were at the peak of their physical capabilities. Many of those who arrived not only had experience in the English Premiership, they were top performers there.
By the time Gordon Strachan took over, signing strikers who were recently top scorers in England was no longer possible. Gordon took to Poland (as well as Easter Road), as we searched for talent in value markets.
Neil Lennon’s term saw the transitioning to where we are now. Neil found African talent, and successfully raided the lower leagues in England, but under his tenure we embarked on what would become one of the mainstays of our recruitment planning – loaning young players (Fraser Forster) who were not getting a sniff at wealthier clubs.
Many doors have closed to us in the last 20 years. There will be no more Chris Suttons, while competition for players across Eastern Europe is vastly greater than it was when we signed Artur Boruc.
The news is not all bad, in fact, significant things are much better than they were 20 years ago, most specifically, the development of young talent. Callum McGregor, Kieran Tierney and James Forrest are more successful than any player Paul McStay and Aiden McGeady – and both of them were notable as exceptions for their eras.
The ‘Fraser Forster strategy’ – scout teams too distracted elsewhere to give opportunities to players, has been very productive. Olivier Ntcham, Odsonne Edouard and Dedryck Boyata all fall into this category (we’ll reserve comment on Daniel Arzani). We managed to get Odsonne on a try-before-you-buy loan first. During his loan he did enough to convince Brendan Rodgers to beak our transfer record on him. Celtic think this will continue to be a productive furrow for them.
Not all signings are Development Projects
Not all loans fall into this category. Some, like Jeremy Toljan, are here to do a job for a specific period. Development Projects are not the only game in town, sometimes you just have to plug a hole to strengthen the team.
There were choices for the right back role. Lech Poznan’s Robert Gumny was looked at and liked, but the player failed a medical a year ago and has not played enough football since a subsequent operation to convince anyone he would be fitter than Jozo Simunovic. Or we could have tried to find a nugget elsewhere, but Jeremy got the nod.
We sign a lot of players
Two American full backs on the same day we sign a German full back, “millions of wingers”. This has been going on for a while. You, me, Celtic and the players know, not all of them are going to make it. Football, for a century, has harvested talent, picked the cherries and cast the darnel aside.
I remember Martin O’Neill, flush with the success of his early signings and before his Ulrik Laursen and David Fernandez period, told us that every signing a football club makes needs to be a success. Yes, if you have the wisdom and insight, the luck and the money, maybe you can be so bold. But there is a real world out there full of scouts and managers who each carry the weight of experience of players who just didn’t work out.
There are formulas, some better than others, but we should know that just putting a Celtic jersey onto a player will not, and has never, made him a certain success. Martin would have been more accurate by saying ;You have to kiss a lot of frogs in this business’, just do your best to get some handsome frogs in the first place.
We have exceptional domestic talent: Scott Brown, Kieran Tierney, James Forrest, Callum McGregor and Ryan Christie – better than any Scottish team in 30 years, and we have done very well to retain them.
There is room for others to follow. The opportunity is there for Scott Bain and Tony Ralston.
As well as developing our own talent, we have cooperated with two of the world’s richest, Manchester City and PSG, to foster young players who are not getting a chance at their parent club. This is affordable, enhances the squad, and has helped achieve our football objectives.
We have five young players out on loan: Lewis Morgan, Calvin Miller, Andrew Gutman and Manny Perez, and Maryann Shved. The hope is some develop into first-team regulars, like Callum McGregor and Ryan Christie did.
That’s the strategy. Is it better than signing the best permanent players we can? Like you, I prefer the good ones to be tied down to long-term contracts at Celtic, but despite this, the answer is a clear yes. We need to work angles with PSG, Borussia Dortmund and Man City. We need to take risks on players with only a few dozen games under their belt. When an opportunity to sign a Ntcham or Boyata arises, take it. And we need to continue to do what we are doing with youth development.
Will it deliver 8-in-a-row? You bet your bum it will.
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“Worse Dallas performance since Bobby’s dream!”
The Internet CSC
LEFTCLICKTIC on 2ND FEBRUARY 2019 4:47 PM
couldnt agree more
HH
Huns getting 4 penalties is Celtics fault,
Geese peace ffs
Thought the cup was next week?
Just heard that Sevco won on penalties……..
St. Johnstone v Celtic
Ladbrokes Premiership
03/02/2019 12:30pm McDiarmid Park
Referee:William Collum
AR1
Douglas Ross
AR2
Graeme Leslie
Fourth Official
Kevin Clancy
Celtic v Hibernian
Ladbrokes Premiership
06/02/2019 7:45pm Celtic Park
Referee:Craig Thomson
AR1
Drew Kirkland
AR2
Gary Hilland
” Dallas got two right ”
Alex EBT Rae
Where are the anoraks when you need them?.
When and who were the last side to be awarded four
penalty’s in one game?.
Statement of potential loan of Andrew Gutman.
This past week Nashville Soccer Club had announced its intent to take defender Andrew Gutman on loan from Celtic F.C. However, as an expansion member of MLS and in light of the fact that MLS does not support the transaction, Nashville will not be proceeding with the loan.
We wish Andrew all the best this season, and we will have no further comment on the matter.
Definitely the first time I’ve ever heard a football fan (sev on ssb) refer to having received “a few” dodgy penalties in one game
New Celtic signing Andrew Gutman will not be heading out on loan to Nashville SC as previously announced.
https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/scottish-premiership/elfmeterstatistiken/wettbewerb/SC1/saison_id/2017
https://twitter.com/AlisonGConroy/status/1091742561943851008?s=08
Four penalties?…………….Even the Nazis in Escape to Victory only gave themselves one.
These things even themselves out over the course of a season…….
Aberdeen v Rangers
Ladbrokes Premiership
06/02/2019 7:45pm Pittodrie Stadium
Referee:Bobby Madden
AR1 Frank Connor
AR2 David Roome
Fourth Official John McKendrick
see booby working with his pal again , the same david roome who flagged cmg offside at their midden for our equaliser.
We got 4 penalties at East Fife in the early seventies.
If I remember correctly Dalgish, Deans and Hood all missed or Ernie McGarr saved.
I think that we won 4 3.
according to BBC radio hunland the hns were like to batter someone as they have been playing so well!!!!!!!!!!!
thye weren’t Nazis in ETV they were Germans! The wr wasn’t between the Nazi party and Tory party!
https://twitter.com/dab24156/status/1091724462473601026?s=08
Absolute joke….
BSR @ 4.46
From Twitter:
“Dallas ties the world record for penalties awarded to one team in a single match, held by Kelvin Morton who awarded 4 penalties to Crystal Palace in match v Brighton in 1989.
Poor Andrew must be gutted that he didn’t get the 5th and the record outright.”
Is Oran Kearny still in shock ?
Jimmy Nicol will put him right
!!BADA BING!! on 2ND FEBRUARY 2019 5:31 PM
Shocking
HH
I watched young Dallas award sevco 2 penalties in last the 5 minutes against Hamilton a few month ago, when it was 1-1 at the time.
6 penalties in 2 games young Dallas has now awarded to the sevco.
Must be another world record.
His father will be well chuffed .
Celtic is their target . St. Mirren today was just collateral damage.
MARADOMINIC on 2ND FEBRUARY 2019 5:25 PM
thye weren’t Nazis in ETV they were Germans! The wr wasn’t between the Nazi party and Tory party!
Whit are you on about?
Ah well more honest mistakes…
Let’s just beat these hammer throwers tomorrow.
D. :)
Tam Cowan on Short bread playing the “one is as bad as another ” card when it comes to getting penalties !
Cosgrove is the one who has a wee bit objectivity about him . Cowan is a p***k.
4 penalties
4
As we all know Tam Cowan is. Pr!ck.
C’mon Ireland wipe that smile of that tube Clive Woodwar’s face.
Presently drinking 7.5% Guinness from Nigeria – anyone reading please leave your bank account details and I’ll get you shares in the brewery ?
Cowan is a guy who is desperate for hun approval, a guy who has been
telling the same joke for nearly 30 year’s.
H.J.
Is this the game you are thinking off?
If so, it was only 2 penalties that were awarded to Celtic.
4 penalties were taken during the game. East Fire scored theirs.
Celtic missed both, one was retaken and we missed again, so technically we missed 3 pens but only 2 awards.
East a1973-02-17: East Fife 2-2 Celtic, League Division 1 – The Celtic Wiki
Match Pictures | Matches: 1972 – 1973 | 1972-73 Pictures
Trivia
Temperatures fell sharply in Scotland at the beginning of the week with heavy snow fall in places. The U23 international at Rugby Park beat the weather and Danny McGrain and Pat McCluskey played in a 2-1 loss to England. After a big snow clear up, the senior international side with Kenny Dalglish playing lost 5-0 to England at Hampden.
The Bayview ground at Methil was little affected by the cold conditions which saw the majority of games called off throughout the first division. Jock Stein delayed naming the side till he saw the ground, then named Harry Hood to start instead of Bobby Lennox.
Celtic have now dropped 6 points in 7 games.
With Celtic a game in hand and Rangers one point ahead in the league, John Banks bookmakers make Celtic evens for title, Rangers 6/4.
Report
With Rangers’ game at Ibrox postponed Celtic missed the chance to go top at Bayview.
The old ground at Methil had seldom seen a game with this excitement. The Fifers came from one down at half time to a Dixie Deans goal, to lead 2-1 throughout most of the second half. They got their first from the spot after Callaghan floored Hegarty in the box and McPhee put the penalty away. Then two minutes later, they went ahead with a well-taken goal. Celtic were to miss three penalties. The first, Murdoch hammered the ball against the bar and over after 77 minutes. However Duncan was in the area when the kick was taken so a retake was ordered. Stein signalled for Hood to take it and keeper McGarr saved athletically with his foot. The third penalty came when on 87 minutes the Celts were awarded another penalty and Dalglish misses again as McGarr saved cleanly.
However in 88 minutes Deans saved Celt’s blushes with a fine glancing header from a Callaghan corner and he celebrated like he had done at Hampden in the 1972 Scottish Cup Final such was his delight.
Celtic badly missed Hay’s determination in midfield and the 11,000 squeezed into the ground had been entertained royally in a cup tie atmosphere.
The Guttman situation looks like a right mess. I’m going to take a very short leap and say it’s likely one or both players did not receive a work permit. That the plan was to sign them anyway in the hope that they broke through into the national side meaning they’d be granted a permit in future.
Now Guttman’s new club, clearly under pressure from the MLS who like to operate a closed house, have shut the door. So one (maybe both?) players have been sent back to rummage around the little leagues hoping to develop and build a reputation before being brought over.
Are there any other fans in the world who would gloat at being awarded 4 (four) penalties against the bottom team in the league?
Won’t stop the 8 (eight) though.
GLENDALYSTONSILS on 2ND FEBRUARY 2019 5:42 PM
Sad and true
HH