Marcelo Saracchi is 28-years-old, has 18 months left on his contract at Boca Juniors, but is out of the picture at the Buenos Aires club. This summer needs to either get a permanent move on a multi-year contract, or a loan to a club where he will make enough appearances to get a contract offer next year.
I’m sure you have watched Daizen Maeda’s goal against Hearts last month as often as I have. Without Marcelo’s directness, it does not happen. He made a crucial impact on the season and was material to the outcome.
On the flip side, he is at least six years older than we want to recruit. There is no development opportunity and we would know going into negotiations we would never get our money back. He will not be the only left back we are looking at and we really should be targeting a younger player, who can push for Kieran Tierney’s starting place and eventually supplant KT.
Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney had no roadway to work with in January, they were dependent on the recruitment infrastructure which was (and remains) in place. Shaun is still not back on the tools yet, so if anything, we are less-prepared to do recruitment business now than we were at the turn of the year. The question to you is, how confident are you that our targets around 22-years-old will do the job?
Celtic need to get back to the strategy which brought us two great recruitment periods this decade (more on this shortly). I’m not sure we are there yet. Marcelo does not have the profile of player Celtic should be looking at, but maybe he is right for now.
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The heat is on …
Rudderless, as expected !.
You need good experienced players, as well as projects
Happy Monday.
A mix is the way.
Agreed.
As with the MON appointment, better the devil you know until you put your house in order.
“Shaun is still not back on the tools yet”
———-
Hmm.
You know the old time vs people cliché ?
“It takes 1 woman 9 months to make a baby.
Putting 9 women on the task won’t get it done in a month !”
Respectfully, I think we need go a wee bit faster.
Some fag packet right to left planning might help.
Champions League Play Off, 1st leg in 57 days.
Working back from then … what will (can) be done to get us ready to rock.
– Recruit player identifiers
– Recruit player selectors
– Identify players
– Select players
– Acquire players
– Coach players
– Prepare players
“We would never get our money back”…….
The most important phrase in boardspeak…..
If Marcelo was to score or provide the assist to qualify for CL does that count as getting our money back?
Two great recruitment periods this decade. The best was the Engels trusty Idah and McGowan window in terms of contribution.
Saraachi is peak years and will make an instant contribution as he did last season,
Oh but i forgot.
Contribution that wins leagues and drives merchandise and sponsorship income and European money matters less than a potential resale of which our hit rate is very poor.
But hey let’s not recruit for the needs of the team. Let’s recruit our peeing in the wind resale policy, Abd hope for the best.
Paul67 et al
Oh so that is the plan to ‘target’ twenty two year olds for ‘development’ Mmmm
If that is the case how is it that we have just missed out on a player that age, a centre forward no less, who in the last eighteen months or so, has completed a degree at Heriot Watt University, got capped for Scotland @ U21, played and scored goals for both Neil Lennon and John McGlynn, no strangers @ Celtic Park, and won the SFWA Young Player Of The Year for 2025-26……one Barney Stewart. Just sold by Falkirk FC, for a ‘record fee’ of around £1.2 mill, possibly (LionsRoar67) @ the behest of Gavin Strachan, who may well join him down at WBA. If that is not insider trading I do not know what is.
£1.2 mill? Looks like a bargain to me.
ParadiseLostCSC
matters less than a potential resale of which our hit rate is very poor.
==================
there is an extensive list of solc players making more money than was paid for them/
“I’m sure you have watched Daizen Maeda’s goal against Hearts last month as often as I have. Without Marcelo’s directness, it does not happen.”
Correct!
And as a consequence we have an opportunity to gain well in excess of any transfer fee for Saracchi.
The profile should be pretty simple:
A) Are they good?
B) Do they fit the system?
Unless they satisfy both we shouldn’t be wasting our time looking at other criteria.
Get him signed, please. He is someone who has already contributed big time. We need what he brings to the team.
I don’t think Sarrachi is a backup for KT, as he is better in certain aspects. The good thing about him is that he is a known quantity and would settle in right away, plus he’s capable enough of playing in Europe. An up and coming left sided Donovan would be a bonus. I’m also hopeful that Mccardle becomes the young breakthrough midfielder this year.
Saracchi could play left MF
If the MSM succeed in getting rid of Maeda, Hatate, Engels, Nygren, CCV, Johnston and CalMac, with the likes of Kyogo, Khun and Idaho already having gone without being replaced, we will be left needing to recruit at least 5 instant first team starters.
We could probably also do with a Yang upgrade who can deliver goals and assists on a par with peak Khun and Abadan, and there is a likelihood that Jota will not return as the same player, if he is able to return at all, so a quality left winger with regular goal contributions would then also be needed.
Add in a few more reliable back-up players who don’t take the huff when they’re not playing and can step up and deliver when called upon, and we’re probably in excess of ten decent recruits needed.
With the prolonged World Cup taking place, the time available to hold discussions, conduct medicals, get contacts signed and mould be recruits into a slick unit is already very short, so we really do need to get the finger out soon or our chances of a successful season will be gone before we know it.
Come on Celtic, Just do it!
“ Martin O’Neill and Shaun Maloney had no roadway to work with in January, they were dependent on the recruitment infrastructure which was (and remains) in place. Shaun is still not back on the tools yet, so if anything, we are less-prepared to do recruitment business now than we were at the turn of the year.”
This is a damning indictment of the Board/Executive! 6 months down the line and they’ve done nothing to fix things. I’m sure this will somehow be Brendan’s fault though….
And two successful spells in the last decade – must be Ange Season 1 and Rodgers Season 2. In both windows we brought in first team ready players who plugged gaps in the team. Not sure that reverting to the “22 year old” project approach shows that lessons have been learned!
If we can’t secure Shaun and Fozz in the next few days we need to move on and get the ropes sorted.
ropes = roles
Recruitment infrastructure was (and remains) in place.
I wounder who these people are and how one could contact them.
After all, they gave us Tounetki, Baikwisha and all those other superstars.
Or, recruitment infrastructure is actually bollocks!
Araujo in front of Johnstone and Saracchi in front of Tierney unbeatable HH
Apparently a Norwegian side are looking for around £4.3m for a 22 year old defender. It is alleged that we offered £3.4m. Unfortunately, they noticed that we had switched the figures round.
He is not going to cost £squllions, we don’t need to get our money back. Can he do a job right now? Yes. Can he do a good job right now? Yes.
For God’s sake, we have players lining up to leave the building, MON doesn’t even have a support team in place yet and a question being asked is, ‘Will we get our money back on him?’
Pre-season training is about to start and we have a Champions League play off in 50 odd days time. Win that and there’s your money… not that we need it back, as I’ve already said.
*£squillions
Celtic first summer signing , 16 year old from Cliftonville , Shea McGarry.
“Shaun is still not back on the tools yet, so if anything, are less-prepared to do recruitment business now than we were at the turn of the year.”
And that is the crux of the issue!
We can’t even recruit the people who are going to recruit the players. Everyone wants value for money, but let’s cut to the chase here, our Board are as tight as a submarine door.
We’re still at the “monitoring”, “keeping tabs on”, and “asking to be kept in touch” phase.
If we can’t recruit the recruiters who exactly is doing the monitoring, who is keeping tabs on players, and who is asking to be kept in touch.
Birthday wishes to Auldheid
Lang may your lum reek
HOLA AULDHEID
– Tier One Manager
Hoopy Birthday 🇮🇪🇮🇪🇮🇪🇮🇪🇮🇪 👍
Happy birthday Auldheid
Don’t always agree with your posts but they are a vital ingredient which contributes positively to the blog.
https://i0.wp.com/sentinelcelts.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/60925-1782135396.0381.jpg?fit=%2C&ssl=1
innovative pricing.
Stivs for Middlesborough& AcMilan
So
2 games £35.
2 game concession £25
U13s £15
Is that right?
HH
Jeffrey Donaldson
Guilty of 18 sex offence charges
HH
AT- aye,always good at punting stuff to you
No football department yet or announced so who is signing players and who gave the new contracts to Scales McCowan etc and why?
Bada
Do you recall when we used to get a freeby instead of taken for granted?
HH
2 friendlies and a home cup tie,maybe a European Qualifier?