Derek McInnes’ sleight of hand was at work yesterday as he tried to put pressure on Neil Lennon ahead of Sunday’s Scottish Cup semi-final, telling The Scotsman, “If [Neil] loses the Cup, it’s Neil’s team and I think the only pressure on Neil will be from himself”.
The words were wrapped in a generous sentiment, but the Aberdeen boss knows his chances are improved if he can transfer pressure onto Neil Lennon. Some self-contemplation would be more appropriate. McInnes has been at Aberdeen for six years, a period which has seen the club comfortably settle into the role of second force, but after winning the first trophy available to him, the 2014 League Cup, he has watched others pick up the spare trophies Celtic dropped.
Since winning a major honour in his first season and four consecutive second place finishes in the league, progress has stalled. They perennially failed to reach the Europa League group stage and now sit fourth in the Premiership.
Derek McInnes needs a trophy more than Neil Lennon. Beating Newco in Glasgow are his only ‘trophies’ this season, and while Aberdeen fans enjoyed those days in the big city, they will count for little if they are out of the Cup on Sunday night and behind Kilmarnock in the league.
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Underwhelming performance from Barca, still plenty good enough to see off MU at Old Trafford. McTominay played very well.
Now over to the UK Comedy Channel for ITV News…!
Just watched a sausage of Norwich v Reading. Norwich, who happen to be ma pick in LMS12, were trailing 1-0, only to score twice in a few minutes near the end to lead 2-1. Phew, thinks I, only for Reading to equalise in the 96th minute… 96th bliddy minute. Grrrrr.
Didnywantalastminutegoalthistime CSC
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Friesdorfer…you’ve got to remember that the english commentary team are for a specific audience…wouldn’t be surprised if the Spanish commentary team are spouting the same biased p@sh ;-))
SkyCLpolicy
I don’t see Barca choking at Camp Nou the way PSG did in Paris.
Good to see the Mancs loose – horrible fans!
McManaman – disgrace as a commentator.
Over and out!
TK
Worth watching the post match chat – just to see the KoK.
TK
That awkward moment when the commentator says to Steve McManamin “how do you pronounce…….”
He can barely speak English!!
See that playing to a pattern stevie , mibbbe a wee bit of off the cuff play might have got a draw ?
Mibbe to many b’s
TLT, aye, but, disnae make it any the less annoying, especially with that whiny, grating voice! Hope you are well. HH
BT coverage is good but,McManaman,Owen,Savage,Hargreaves…..dearie me….
Bada Bing
Exactly so??
HH
Sorry bt sport but can’t go that Liverpudlian accent , twice as bad when they’re talking shite , mcmanaman telling us messi isn’t playing well because he’s deep?
Shows I wasn’t watching ;-))…assumed it was Sky…but my point remains…I’m doing grand A ty, hope you are also
H.H.
A few things have been on my mind recently. There has been a lot of talk about potential managers but I would hope the club are brave enough to adopt the director of football and head coach model. Ideally you want a director of football to oversee the footballing style and ethos at all levels, the training and development of coaches at all levels who can implement the playing identity of the club and you want someone with vast experience, who commands respect and who has respect and who has contacts across Europe and beyond.
With all this in mind why hasn’t Arsene Wenger ever been mentioned? He would be perfect for the role and another bonus would be the continuation of positive links with the best up and coming french talent.
It may be far fetched but if the club want to be taken seriously beyond the SPFL and adopt a proper European model then surely it’s worth exploring. If Arsene was employed as DoF then he would have biggest say in the appointment of head coach and we’d work from there.
Having said all that, I’ve resigned myself to the fact that the board will take the easy/cheap option and employ Lennon. As much as I love the man I think going down this route represents our biggest danger to 9 and 10IAR.
If it’s just a manager with full autonomy we’re looking to appoint and we just want to ensure that we get over the line during the next two seasons then I’d go for either Rafa Benitez or Steve Clarke. I know the style of football might be not as entertaining as we would want but I think either man would skoosh the league.
Just my thoughts.
Huntlybhoy- the most thought provoking post,i have seen on here for a long time.HH
Huntlybhoy – Arsene Wenger as DOF…interestesting…69 y.o. with a wealth of knowledge & experience….would he come to us in what’s seen as a lesser profile capacity…pretty sure PL wouldn’t sanction it even if he was willing to come
Arsene wenger held arsenal back for years because of his stubbornness
Greetings from St Kilda, in Abbey Road having a fantastic breakfast. A bit warmer today and looking forward to my ‘meeting’ tomorrow. ?
POG…it must be a basturt dealing with autumn temps of 17°C…to be fair it was t-shirt weather in Glasgow yesterday…at least 11…MM is looking forward to yer craic…jist don’t show him yer CQN profile pic ;-))
H.H.
Quick skim back
!!BADA BING!! on 10TH APRIL 2019 11:56 PM
Totally agree. As Big G says, held Arsenal back, I’d agree too. The CQN conundrum.
Players and managers have to ‘fit’… Henke with us or Feyenoord? Wenger was a manager in the right place at the right time…. Did he just… ‘inherit a player, or spot one, in Henry, like Wim did with the KoK?
I truly believe Lenny is that man right now – the stars are aligned and only pressure upon ourselves for history of the fabled 10, or treble (rebel) treble can threaten that.
We are already history makers….
Empire Exhibition Trophy
Coronation Cup
Big Cup…. you get that… I know
Take the presssure off ourselves. Relax. Play football…
The Glasgow Celtic way
Hail Hail ????
Lenny……
spotted James Forrest
told us we should cash in on Aiden
brought Mulgrew back
Gave us
Wanyama
Forster
van dijk (touted as current world footballer of the year)
Stokes
Hooper
Ledley
Goodness… need I go on
If so…. catch yerself on ????
Larssonse7en
Aye…but every time a bought player is getting to potential…sold for business reasons….we can build a team based on Academy Players…and we are getting closer…but we still need experience (not loans) to supplement this
AjaxmodelCSC
H.H.
THELURKINTIM on 11TH APRIL 2019 2:30 AM
Good post. Too many buts ?
Selling for potential is our business model… it’s a fine one.
And a business reason ala ajaxcfc. Who are absolute scumbags. Love the city, the fans and especially the police are of the extreme right wing. In fact, the epitomise it and should be used as a case study.
Well we are doing that, I think.
Build a team based on academy players… – again totally agree – unless your name is James Forrest! ?
I agree we are getting closer.
Who are these experienced players you crave?
PC Lustig – Sweden internationalist…. x number of caps
Broony \o/
oor Cal
Let the rest of the Bhoys learn under Lenny’s guidance
I trust him more than br…. even before he left us.
Hail Hail ????☘️
Before I head to my scratcher….
Kudos to Huntlybhoy @ 11:24pm
You kick started this debate with a brilliant question.
incontrarti nei tuoi sogni
Larrsonse7en
…there is no craving of any particular experienced player…only the observatation that they’ll always be needed to complement a young squad…
necsomnususqueBrooklyn ;-))
H.H.
I like the Scouse accent on females, but not on males.
It’s just the way it is.
If I’m not allowed to say that, rest assured i will feel suitably chastised.
Greenpinata…agreed…only because of Jennifer Ellison…;-)) Jeeze…we’ve both become old
Oops…not you and me…you were born old ;-))
Film by Jim Jarmusch coming out in June…about Sevco…sponsored by the SFA…The Dead Don’t Die…;-))
Good Morning – its a cold, fresh, spring mornibg in the Chilterns – the beginning of a Champion day…
HUNTLYBHOY86 @ 11:24 PM,
Good post, and interesting following comments.
On the basic premise, who could argue? We now MUST adopt the DofF model. In the last ten years Celtic have greatly over-achieved as a PLC and profoundly under-achieved as a football club.
We need the first team, development squad and Academy performing at a much higher level. A restructuring of the Club in the basis you suggest is long overdue.
On the specifics; Arsensè Wenger, could be an excellent call, a profoundly knowledgeable football man who was always able to keep Arenal’s businessmen happy, indeed he comes from a business orientated family.
Did he keep Arsenal back? Well there was a perceived certain lack of ambition at Arsenal and a failure to build on success that transformed into a failure to compete meaningfully as a top four English club.
Yet Arsenal’s pragmatic approach could be seen as far more sensible and measured than the club’s that were prepared to throw any amount of money to buy success. It would be a necessary approach at Celtic.
Was he a one signing wonder? Far from it, he actually put Vieira & Petit into Arsenal before he took the reigns – a rock of a midfield that would be the basis of a golden Arsenal team, made many great signings. Arsenal are a selling club of course, something that didn’t sit right with some fans and the punditry but is key at Celtic.
Also, unlike Scotland, whose SFA don’t even have an Academy and none of the clubs have the first idea about running a first rate academy. The French excel at this, they are arguably the top footballing nation in the world and that success was built on their Academies.
So yes, Le Professeur maybe a good call. As you allude to, the cremè we France may be a bit rich for the Celtic Execs palate.
Hail Hail
Good morning, friends, from a clear skied, sunny and frosty (eh?) calm (before the weekend storm) East Kilbride, home of the Lowland League Champions ;-)
Now that the Campions League sideshow is out of the way its all attention on arguably our most important game of 2019. Well, since the last one.
3 more sleeps.
morning bhoys from a very sunny Cheshire, reminds me of my first cup final in 1967, when we beat Aberdeen,2-1. that was another sunny day.COYBIG HH.
“I don’t think Hearts are under any pressure.” Hearts Manager.
” He`s on a hiding to nothing.” Aberdeen Manager.
” McInnes needs a trophy more than Lennon.” CQN `manager`
Off out on the bike to Glenclova/Glen Doll.
Cheerio for now.
JJ
Just catching up on the debate from last night, some good points made both for and against (Larssonse7en and Chairbhoy, enjoyed your responses).
I think Lawwell, as some have hinted, would really struggle to hand over the power that’s needed in order to make the DoF role truly work.
On the other hand, hopefully Lawwell realises that his legacy is at stake and if he wants his overall career with Celtic to be looked upon as a success he needs to make bold decisions this summer, decisions and plans that look beyond the short term (unlike other Klubs) and prepare us for the next 5-10 years. Our Academy must be the main focus going forward so the appointment of someone who can oversee it and all footballing operations is pivotal. Whether or not Wenger is the right man for us is debatable but the discussion is definitely worth having (do I trust they are having these discussions in the boardroom? Sadly not).
HUNTLYBHOY86 on 10TH APRIL 2019 11:24 PM
Good shout regarding the DOF, someone with a wealth of experience and contacts would be ideal.
On paper I think Wenger looks good but in practice I’m not sure his ego would allow him to keep his focus away from first team matters.
In the latter years of his time at Arsenal all of my Gooner mates couldn’t wait to get rid of him. There was the big bust up a few years back when Arsenal finally got their defense in order, due to the work of the defensive coach. According to my mates Wenger marginalized the coach. Apparently he didn’t like credit being given to anyone but himself and the defense regressed.
Maybe rather than going for a big name coach who has hung up his boots we look at clubs who play our style of football and are successful at identifying developing players and poach their DOF.
Either way I agree the DOF is the way forward.
Hail Hail
Jamabhoy,
You’re right in saying that Wenger could possibly be “too big” a name in relation to his profile, ego and stubbornness. Whether he would be happy to be in the shadows and not demand control over first team matters is up for debate. I think what is needed is for someone to coach the coaches if that makes sense, developing a way of playing through all age groups. As well as recruiting for the first team squad there needs to be a development plan in place for the likes of Karamoko, Okoflex, McInroy etc. Would they or any other young player who may be weighing up their options, be excited by Lennon? I’m not so sure. I certainly don’t want this to come across as an attack on Neil or his abilities as a coach but one thing that I don’t think anyone can deny is that he would be a significant downgrade on our previous boss. What’s more, I think that if Rodgers hadn’t walked away when he did and stayed until June, there would be next to no-one calling for Neil to be the next Celtic manager. Circumstances have allowed Neil the chance to deliver a successful end to the season (would love it for him to the man who secures the treble treble) but whether or not he does should have little bearing on his position going forward. If the club think he’s the right man for the job, regardless of what happens on sunday, then give him everything he needs to do it right and back him adequately.
My hope is that the board are looking at several options and want to implement a model or appoint a manager with the same credentials as Rodgers.
Big Packy1
2-0, mate, the Lisbon XI played with Wispy scoring a goal in each half.
That was our only victory over Aberdeen that magical, unsurpassed season, having drawn twice in the league campaign.
You’re right about the weather for the 126,000 in attendance though that day, witnessing the second part of our quadruple ( not including the Glasgow Cup) with all the glory of a league-clincher at Ibrox, and the Big Cup triumph still to come.
HOT SMOKED
JJ, saw your reference to your cycle route up Glen Clova and Glen Doll. I am only aware of this area because of a map that (along with other maps) was used to paper the… eh cloakroom… in my house. It was there before we got the house, liked it, left it.
Looking at that map, I liked the look of the walk up to either Loch Brandy (mmmmmm ?) or Loch Wharral, or both, from the B956.
If I may make use of your local knowledge, what sort of walk would that be? And how long would you estimate it would take? From the map (OS Landranger 1:50,000) it looks pretty steep.
Thanks if you can offer any advice. Hope you enjoyed your bike ride.
HH
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