Football is an easy business to succeed in, just ask anyone who has never worked in it. Fans like you and me understand plenty about the game, but we come up with over-simplistic solutions to complex problems we have no idea exist.
This is almost impossible to see in yourself. Football affects our mood. No fans in world football get to celebrate more trophy wins than you and me, but despite all those riches, I was genuinely angry on Tuesday night.
Anger does not permit introspection. That quality is far easier to achieve when laughing at the misfortunes of others. So I achieved a bit more perspective last night.
When I talk to people who do work in the game, after a bad defeat, the resilient ones have a common mantra. “We go again”. Fans can wallow in misery, some undeniably have a need to do so, but for Martin O’Neill, Falkirk come calling tomorrow and he knows he has to get a tune out of a broken banjo. He will go again.
Martin also has enough in the bank with fans and board alike to carry Tuesday’s defeat. Unlike Wilfried Nancy, who changed tactics in a winning team and brought about an instant downfall, Martin has repeatedly fixed our problems. He will do so this time too.
With nothing in the bank, and being directly responsible for the downturn in results, Wilfried needed to go, sooner than the eight games he was allowed. Speak to any business person and they will tell you, some appointments just don’t work and there can be huge red flags early on.
I have appointed the wrong people, mostly when I did not do my job thoroughly enough, but sometimes interviews and vetting are unable to find the killer flaw. I could easily argue that the recruitment process we used to appoint Wilfried extended liability for the mid-season disaster beyond just the manager.
When you consistently make poor appointments, however, the problem might be the organisation itself. When different regimes in a company consistently make poor appointments, the issue lies deep.
Despite the substantial and growing body of evidence, Derek McInnes is not a bad manager. He knows more about the game than you or I ever will, and will not be schooled by the masses now calling for his head. But the chances of him failing at Newco could reach certainty very soon.
After the sacking so of many mangers, fans there have a taste for blood. Failure means they sack the manager, not that they should accept that, again, they are Simply the Losers.
That anger you (may have) and I felt on Tuesday will hopefully resolve soon. We go again. Look across the city and you can see how destructive anger and a lack of perspective can be. It’s almost an impossible lesson to learn, though, especially for the hopelessly entitled.
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HH
Day 3, still ragin at those players and the management.
Who gives a flying feck about McInnes?
I’m only interested in how our management and players managed to throw away a 4-0 (YES FOUR -NIL) lead in a money spinning CL tie.
Feck McInnes and his hellish huns!
All good now then. They say you don’t become a bad team overnight, but it seems that you can become a good one!
Absolutely stunning result last night – well done to all involved. I wonder if some of our Europa League opponents will be too scared to even turn up to play us after that.
Roll out Nancy every time Celtic feck up!
The same, terrible performance and tactics which did not change at all.
Not even a mention of the EL draw?
The problem with gaining perspective through the huns is that there’s a real danger you start benchmarking against the huns.
A bit like me having 8 pints before work but the alcoholic next me had 15…
Benfica away
Benfica away
Benfica away. Lisbon pilgrimage.
There is some irony with the goings on across the city
I think there is a sense that our Board do not support the Manager and are overly cautious in the transfer market
Yet McInnes has had a lot more commitment from his Board
The 49ers are writing cheques not necessarily for the right players but at least they invest in their Manager
The worry is if our neighbours eventually get the right Manager and support him financially it could be a problem
Meanwhile what is the interest on £70m ? (should be £30/40m more)
67ECW
Aye the huns are sh1te, but if the truth be told so are we, our performances have been brutal for some time now and we now have the added pressure of playing after them till the end of January, badger just might start to get a tune out of his broken banjo, then where will we be, not doom mongering, just being realistic.
Broadsword calling Danny boy
Broadsword calling Danny boy
BREAKING: Rangers and Celtic have been ordered to play their next home Scottish Cup match behind closed doors following the ugly scenes after their quarter-final last season.
Marseille Home
bigchipsuk
Happening now on UEFA TV
Marseille home
Not the toughest opponents from pot 1.
Union h
Alleged Party in Breach: Celtic FC
Match: Rangers FC v Celtic FC on Sunday, 8 March 2026
Competition: The Scottish Cup
Offence: Disciplinary Rule 37 – A club playing a match at its own ground, or allowing its ground to be used for a match in which it is not participating, or a club using a third party’s ground for the playing of a match in which it is participating must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, (i) good order and security; (ii) that policies and procedures have been adopted and are implemented to prevent instances of Unacceptable Conduct; and (iii) that any instance of Unacceptable Conduct is effectively dealt with on the occasion of a match. Each club participating in a match must also ensure, as far as is reasonably practicable, that its players, officials, supporters and any person exercising a function for or in connection with the club do not engage in Unacceptable Conduct at any ground on the occasion of a match. Each club must ensure, so far as is reasonably
practicable, that it identifi es any of its supporters who engage in Unacceptable Conduct at a match take proportionate disciplinary measures in respect of such supporters.
Hearing Date: Thursday, 13 August 2026
Outcome: Admitted.
By unanimous decision, the Tribunal imposes the following
sanctions under Rule 37:
– In terms of Sanction (g), Orders that the Club’s next home
Scottish Cup match be played behind closed doors;
– In terms of Sanction (j), Orders that the Club make a
compensatory payment of £100,000 to the away side
drawn in respect of said next home Scottish Cup match,
payment to be made within 30 days of completion of the
match;
– In terms of Sanction (g), Orders on a suspended basis
(active until the period ending at the conclusion of season
2027/28) that a further home Scottish Cup match for the
Club be played behind closed doors, applicable only in the
event of a further failure by the Club to ensure that its
supporters do not engage in unacceptable conduct in
respect of any Scottish Cup fixture during said period; and
In terms of Sanction (j), Orders on the same suspended
basis (active until the period ending at the conclusion of
season 2027/28) that the Club make a compensatory
payment of £100,000 to the away side drawn in respect
of said further home Scottish Cup match, payment to be
made within 30 days of completion of the match,
applicable only in the event of a further failure by the Club
to ensure that its supporters do not engage in
unacceptable conduct in respect of any Scottish Cup
fixture during said period.
fUnion SG, Celta, (Mónica, Besikitad, toreeense. Ferrncvaris. Marseille and Benfica
Union away Ferencvaros home
Omonia, not Monica
omonia Vigo
Come oan ya in Omonia….
No?
Alleged Party in Breach: Rangers FC
Match: Rangers FC v Celtic FC on Sunday, 8 March 2026
Competition: The Scottish Cup
Offence: Disciplinary Rule 37 – A club playing a match at its own ground, or allowing its ground to be used for a match in which it is not participating, or a club using a third party’s ground for the playing of a match in which it is participating must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, (i) good order and security; (ii) that policies and procedures have been adopted and are implemented to prevent instances of Unacceptable Conduct; and (iii) that any instance of Unacceptable Conduct is effectively dealt with on the occasion of a match. Each club participating in a match must also ensure, as far as is reasonably practicable, that its players, officials, supporters and any person exercising a function for or in connection with the club do not engage in Unacceptable Conduct at any ground on the occasion of a match. Each club must ensure, so far as is reasonably
practicable, that it identifies any of its supporters who engage in Unacceptable Conduct at a match take proportionate disciplinary measures in respect of such supporters.
Hearing Date: Monday, 24 August 2026
Outcome: Admitted.
By unanimous decision, the Tribunal imposes the following
sanctions under Rule 37:
– In terms of Sanction (g), Orders that the Club’s next home Scottish Cup match be played behind closed doors;
– In terms of Sanction (j), Orders that the Club make a
compensatory payment of £100,000 to the away side
drawn in respect of said next home Scottish Cup match,
payment to be made within 30 days of completion of the
match;
– In terms of Sanction (g), Orders on a suspended basis
(active until the period ending at the conclusion of season
2027/28) that a further home Scottish Cup match for the
Club be played behind closed doors, applicable only in the
event of a further failure by the Club to ensure that its
supporters do not engage in unacceptable conduct in
respect of any Scottish Cup fixture during said period; and
– In terms of Sanction (j), Orders on the same suspended
basis (active until the period ending at the conclusion of
season 2027/28) that the Club make a compensatory
payment of £100,000 to the away side drawn in respect
of said further home Scottish Cup match, payment to be
made within 30 days of completion of the match,
applicable only in the event of a further failure by the Club
to ensure that its supporters do not engage in
unacceptable conduct in respect of any Scottish Cup
fixture during said period.
How many times does a club have to fail to qualify for the CL before we analyse why?
In that instance it is simple to analyse why we keep failing. Our operations department isn’t proactive enough, they are overly cautious and refuse to invest but always end up with a positive spend.
If you keep doing the same thing over and over which fails to work at that level of football we will get the same outcome.
That said the manager, his staff and the players all failed on Tuesday.
I didn’t take it as bad as I have done before because I think I may becoming hardened to failure at that level. An acceptance we are not even also rans anymore at the CL due to how the board approach that tournament (the sales of Kyogo and Engels as examples).
It is all very sad but we reap what we sow.
Scottish football as a whole continues to fall behind other ones but we as a club can only look at ourselves. Time for our club to be run better and to stop focusing on domestic success as the only consideration we should measure the club.
Apart from Benfica it looks like quite a favourable draw.
Celtic’s full draw:
Marseille (H)
Benfica (A)
Ferencvaros (H)
Union Saint Gilloise (A)
Celta Vigo (H)
Omonia (A)
Besiktas (H)
Torreense (A)
Besiktas and Torrenese
Matchday 1: 16/17 September 2026
Matchday 2: 15 October 2026
Matchday 3: 22 October 2026
Matchday 4: 5 November 2026
Matchday 5: 26 November 2026
Matchday 6: 10 December 2026
Matchday 7: 21 January 2027
Matchday 8: 28 January 2027
Home:
Marseille
Ferencvaros
Celta Vigo
Besiktas
Away:
Benfica
Union SG
Omonia Nicosia
Torreense
That’s a fairly decent draw with a decent chance of taking something from even the pot 1 teams. And as I’ll be in Cyprus in early October, I’m really hoping that the Omonia game is on match day 2. 🤞
This Europa draw is a real chance to reset the dial.
No excuses. We must take this golden opportunity.
European football is our barometer.
HH.
Was the trouble at Celtic Park or Poundland? Tell them to fk off with that nonsense
I think we’ll be OK with that draw, as long as they all agree not to shoot.
Good to have our first game @ Celtic Park. Rather that than away to Benfica.
Good draw all round, some old faces and some new places….
And Europa League football into 2027…
Lets get that Euro squad in situ
Next SC tie for Celtic and Sevco is behind closed doors, we dont get home draws anyway.