I know we had nothing up front, but Odsonne Edouard has looked more of a passenger in some games this season than Patryk Klimala and Moi Elyounoussi this afternoon. The game was lost elsewhere.
Newco’s shape allowed them to dominate space whenever we had possession. They were able to swiftly double up on Jeremie Frimpong and Diego Laxalt when the ball went wide, while they were compact enough in the middle of the field to keep Celtic from penetrating their final third.
Games are won and lost on mistakes and yet again we are talking about the defensive line at set pieces. Connor Goldson’s ploy of standing offsite in the hope that a defender would break the line and play him on, was not subtle, but it was effective. It was an excellent cross from the free kick (which wasn’t a free kick, but no excuses), Duffy was an enabler and Valarie Barkas could have done better. Questions remain for both.
Culpability was less clear at the second goal, which was well worked. With so many Celtic players in the box, you would expect one to get in the way of the drilled cross, but it fell to Goldson; teams who create chances get these breaks. It was a deserved goal (again, no excuses, but the handball!).
The last time we dominated Newco was two years ago in a 1-0 win at Celtic Park when Olivier Ntcham controlled the game and scored the winner. Stephen Gerrard learned from that day as Olivier has not had a sniff against them since.
Being ineffective up front and shaky at the back are worries enough, but the biggest concern is that we were unable to do anything to change the flow of the game. An inability to control the any part of the game is more worrying than poor defending or not attacking. It is more worrying than the result.
897 Comments- Pages:
- «
- 1
- ...
- 17
- 18
- 19
- 20
- 21
- 22
- 23
- 24
- »
Day 2
Still feeling a little numb and after looking at the next 6/10 fixtures I am more than a little anxious about the majority of them given the poverty of our performances since the start of the season.
Mentioned on Saturday and will do so again – attitude, desire and application is the minimum we should expect and it is 100% clear that the whole squad is sadly lacking in that department. That cannot be a coincidence and is fundamentally bad management. If it’s a few bad apples they should be gone – sold or reserves but they cannot be allowed to spoil the group. If as many suspect it is a lack of confidence in the management and direction then the source of that must be changed – it doesn’t matter how good the squad is or is not if they are not minded to put on their work clothes. Either way and for whatever reason we have found ourselves in a bit of a mess and it’s time for our extremely highly paid CEO to earn that salary by recognising the issue and dealing with it. I won’t be holding my breath…..
I’m very conflicted on Lennon’s future. I think he’s team selections have been strange – Christie upfront etc just indefensible, then he repeats it against Motherwell.
His subs come far too late. Always reacting to a set back rather than being proactive.
There’s the issue of coaching. Team selection aside, we don’t look coached. I’ve no idea what our style is, we don’t defend as a team and we don’t attack as a team. We’re very reliant on individual talent and the last few weeks we’ve been very dependent on a 20yo. We’ve been stale for many weeks now.
There’s rumours of unrest and in the case of Jullien it looks like something has happened.
His record now against Gerrard is bad – he had ten months to nullify a rival that never changes their approach and he couldn’t find the answer.
He’s been heavily backed this year and he’s not delivering, if he was to lose his job, he could have no complaints.
The argument for keeping him is that he hoovers up points. His record in the league speaks for itself, he wins, regardless of performances, we get the points. He knows Pittodrie, Fir Park and Easter Road and gets the points.
Sacking Lennon now is a risk, a clear out of coaching staff at this point with so many games on the horizon is a risk.
I think he’s largely lost the support now but the board will give him more time.
If we don’t see a reaction on Thursday and Sunday then a big decision will have to be made.
First post after finding some courage. I’m a reader of these page’s almost every day, and try to get a look at the Celtic stuff on the net, whenever I can sneak a few minute’s of the wife’s laptop. I had a season book for 139 lower Jock Stein but, I then became disabled through work, and other illness’s have now compounded that, so I haven’t been able to work for a good few year’s now, still keep up with the Celt’s through TV and information online. I find it hard to concentrate for long period’s, so no more attendance at Celtic Park for me just now. Been going to games since early 70’s. I’m not a ***. I know there’s a question but, certainly not. Bit sick after Saturday, I still think we’ll win league this year if its allowed with covid, that’s always a worry. I’ve never trusted any of, Kelly, White, McCann, Lawwell, or Desmond. After off field events since Martin O’Neill left, things have seemed hollow, no leadership. Winning all the trophies that we have since 2012, but there’s that lingering feeling that something, or someone isn’t being straight. I don’t know what’s happened to Neil Lennon, in his last period as manager I thought he was what we needed considering all the battle’s he’s put up with for us, I think the messing of the confirmation of his second spell by Lawwell, in the shower rather cheapened Neil, and made him look like a bit sneaky, which he certainly isn’t. Brendan might have left a shadow as well, and when will we have a non sour departure of one of our managerial servants? Brendan gave us great device, superb trophy haul, successive amounts of Champion’s League dividend’s, playing squad vastly improved under him, I for one will be forever grateful for the magical memories, hopefully Neil keeps adding to the countless great day’s and night’s of service that he’s given us. My name was picked by my wife, who’s helped me with this typing, it’s what I hear most when she peer’s over my shoulder and gets a look at me trying to type “Kevin, oh dear” and then the grinning face, bless her. And may God bless the true leader who created this website, Paul 67, what a man, you’ll be revered forever by all who know you. Thanks to all supporter’s for the news that you put up on your site. God bless, and Hail Hail. 👏🍀💚
An Dun,
I too am very conflicted on Neil Lennon’s future.
He has given so much and endured so much for us.
We cannot sack him. But we cannot ignore our very obvious shortcomings.
Any change must be with mutual consent. Neil being Celtic through and through will know what is best for our club. ( And for him )
Nothing stays the same. Change and evolution is natural and must be embraced.
HH to all.
Good morning friends from a very dreich, wet and gloomy East Kilbride.
Kevin O-Dear – welcome to the madhouse!
KEVIN O_DEAR 😶🍀 on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 8:42 AM
Nice words Kevin. Welcome!
KOD – welcome and keep posting 😁
KOD
Fantastic first post, and kudos to your good lady.
Think you’ve hit the nail on the head with a couple of points.
Anyhow it’s traditional, so ur ye really ?
8-))
h.h. mICK
JOBO BALDIE on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 8:51 AM
Good morning friends from a very dreich, wet and gloomy East Kilbride.
Kevin O-Dear – welcome to the madhouse!
ONENIGHTINLISBON on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 8:55 AM
KEVIN O_DEAR 😶🍀 on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 8:42 AM
Nice words Kevin. Welcome!
SLABHOY – ON THE ROAD TO 10 on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 9:09 AM
KOD – welcome and keep posting 😁
_____________________________________________________________________
Thank you guy’s for the welcoming word’s, that was so nice.
I didn’t notice emojis on my name, so sorry, what a start.
My wife repaired it hopefully, I’m so lost without her.
Hopefully better now. Thank you.
Try to come on another time, God bless.
If we are not going to remove Neil then for goodness sake let’s get in a professional back room squad
You watch their coaching staff on touch lines
I pads, discussing game together during game
Neil sitting there. Arms folded and cone man Kennedy sitting behind him
Clueless , rudderless
As I mentioned on Saturday, I do not expect to beat AC Milan, thus the narrative going in to the weekend will be ‘Celtic looking to avoid 3 consecutive defeats’.
The Sheep will smell blood and want to lay down a marker for the semi-final. It will be. high pressure game for an underperforming team and manager.
Win and it puts a bit of pressure on the Huns who kick off later and sets us up psychologically for the semi.
Lose or drop more points………..
Good morning from sunny Spain. After the game, I took my 8 -year-old son and his friend down to the coast to climb rocks, throw stones in the water, run on the sand . . . and for me to get some fresh air and perspective.It kind of worked. Why get upset about something that I cannot do anything about?
On reflection, The result did not shock me. Nor the mngmt ineptitude. It has been this way since pre-season. What shocked me was that the players were not up for it despite knowing millions would be watching. Knowing that their chance of being part of history was on the line. So have they collectively thrown the towel in or they are on some kind of Mutiny? Did any of them make a single meaty challenge to lay down a marker? I doubt if Kent needed a shower afterwards. I’ve seen more drive and aggression in my son’s primary school games. More shouting, cajoling, encouraging.
We are toothless and rudderless. There will need to be the mother of all Clear the air meetings today to get back on track.
KEVIN O_DEAR 😶🍀 on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 8:42 AM
A warm welcome to you. Ok you’re not a hun, but what clique do you affiliate with. ? 😃
Cheers and HH.
KEVIN O_DEAR 😶🍀 on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 8:42 AM
An excellent first post. Calm and considered ( but don`t get too carried away….that is your helpful wife to whom I am referring :-)) ).
I expect to lose against Milan too but I want to see an organised Celtic side that are up for the game and sweating blood for the cause.
At the moment we look very unprofessional and all over the place. I thought Lennon was gone at 3-0 down at HT to Killie and we went on a near 20 game unbeaten run to win the league.
Not counting Lennon out just yet but it’s looking ominous.
Welcome KOD to this fine place. Look out for the amateur psychologists that operate here and you’ll be fine.
Woke up this morning a Tim. Everything else a bonus.
Deniabhoy. I felt no surprise or anger at saturday. It was just another inept performance, this time against a team who can exploit it and not paper over the cracks. I expect Milan to do similar but Aberdeen are rank so hoping for 3 points up there.
I have seen no course correction to the obvious since the start of the season. Will this be the moment it starts? Maybe but not seeing that from Neil’s words or his allies wagon circling.
HH
Kevin O Dear…a warm welcome to you (and your wife)…
O Dear is something I say quite often after reading some of the posts on here…
As soon as anyone posts anything criticising our manager on this site they are immediately castigated by various posters who will say that after all NFL has been through in Scotland that he is somehow exempt from criticism. Obviously the guy that referred to him as a clown made himself appear as one, however most Celtic supporters have probably suffered abuse I for one have been attacked by Huns with knives ,bottles,feet and fists for the audacity of wearing a green and white scarf whilst offering no provocation (as I’m sure many others have). I have also been chased out of my local park as a youngster by thugs shouting UDA at my cousins who were over from Belfast.One of my cousins was murdered by the UVF with collusion from the British army.The point I am making is that as the Celtic manager NFL is going to come in for criticism especially after such an inept performance as Saturday’s now as long as this criticism doesn’t include personal insults I dont see why posters should be guilt tripped after making their point.Everyone knows Neil has had a tough time from these imbeciles but if he is the manager of our club his every decision is going to be scrutinised, analysed and criticised it comes with the job.
Kevin O Dear, welcome my friend, lang may yer lum reek! por cierto.
THE HAND OF GOD on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 10:00 AM
Agree 100%. Criticised for referring to him as Lennon as well…. he gets a free ride by a number of people on here. I appreciate what he has done for us but he has failed on too many important matches, not only this season. And the truth is who would want him as manager when he leaves Celtic park?
Big Wavy – Like you, I am not seeing or hearing anything that provides hope that Saturday will be a line in the sand moment, a result that will lead to positive change. Lenny will rely on the same players and tactics for the upcoming games. He will do so in the belief that his team selection and tactics are right and that we are just the victims of bad luck, that it is going to click.
That is basically what his agent was tweeting over the weekend. One thing is for sure, Lenny knows a large section of our support have no confidence in his ability to get the team firing on all cylinders any time soon.
ONENIGHTINLISBON on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 10:08 AM
THE HAND OF GOD on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 10:00 AM
I wouldn’t be to sure about Neil not finding work, should he leave, don’t think he’ll be sacked, not usually Celtic’s way. Apart from TV things, he will be sounded out for some managerial roles especially with the experience he now has of working at such a large club and the new things in sport science that he has learned since his return. Some club somewhere, probably not at a high level would welcome all that onboard. However that’s all conjecture as he is still our manager at this time and probably needs a helping hand to get us out of this rut we seem to be in. What that helping hand is, I don’t know, but, I sincerely hope someone at the club does! por cierto.
Lenny IMO is a motivator only ,not a coach.
And we all know that this will only work on a short term basis 2yearsat the most , our biggest problem is the obvious lack of quality coaching staff.
The other thing that keeps bugging me is what happened with Lenny at Hibernian ,is history repeating itself?
One Night in Lisbon…criticise Neil by all means. It’s part of the job. What I don’t understand is why Celtic fans have to throw in an insult for good measure. You will probably think you haven’t done so, but…”And the truth is who would want him as manager when he leaves Celtic park?”
That for me is insulting and unnecessary as well as undeserving of a Celtic legend…
POR CIERTO on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 10:20 AM
Agree with what you say, Celtic will be his biggest job but I don’t see many clubs rushing to employ him. Failure at Bolton, Hibs scenario etc.
WEEBOBBYCOLLINS on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 10:2
Totally understand where you are coming from. Possibly I should have used my words better. As far as a legend goes. Not for me pal….
WEEBOBBYCOLLINS on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 10:26 AM
”And the truth is who would want him as manager when he leaves Celtic park?”
That’s a fair question though, even if some fans find the answer an uncomfortable truth.
All speculation of course, but Neil would be lucky to get a championship job in England, otherwise his next job is likely Dundee United or St Johnstone.
We’ve swapped £9m BR for a great Celtic man, but mediocre manager.
People are also glossing over the fact that Neil has spent around £35m. A paltry return on quality of football for that sum of money. Neil must be the biggest spending manager in our history for the period he has been at the club- 3 transfer windows.
We are in this situation because our CEO thought he was the most important person at the club, when in fact it was the manager.
Neil was brought in as he would not challenge PL; how could he with no leverage or bargaining power? The EPL had BR on their radar. Neil may be straight to long term unemployment if things get worse.
Sevco have a manager who has yet to win won trophy but has outthought our vastly more experienced manager in the last two meetings at Celtic Park. Hardly surprising as our manager appears to learn nothing from huge errors in the past. Arrogance? Not sure but nothing should be more important than our quest for the ten. Players looking half arsed and a manager slouched in his seat with as much passion as a lump of rock does nothing to convince me that sticking with him will bring us the holy grail.
Anyone watch much of Duffy before he signed for us? Were the 40-yard passes straight out of the park a feature of his game at Brighton?
Not just an off-game either. He has done it in each game he has played so far.
OneNightinLisbon @ 10.54
You’ve hit the nail on the head. I don’t think it’s arrogance. I don’t think he’s capable and, as you say, doesn’t even seem too committed. On top of that, there’s a worry that he may have alienated some of the players. There has always been a question mark over his exit from Hibs.
DENIABHOY on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 11:03 AM
I work with a Brighton season ticket holder. We discussed the weekend’s games. He watched some of the Celtic game and was amazed at how much of the ball Duffy was getting.
He said that Duffy was loaned out as Brighton were changing style and wanted to play out from the back and he couldn’t do that.
Go figure we bring him in and he is the player with the most touches of the ball.
Deniabhoy,
Yes and it’s not his game. Never has been. He’s an old style CH who will attack the ball and put his body in the way. He has never been a ball-playing centre half. Absolutely mad he’s being asked to play that role when Brighton made him surplus to requirements for not fitting their play from the back system this year.
Just another symptom of a baffling thought process which seems also to have pissed off our best CH & £7m investment Julien at the same time.
HH
79CAPS on 19TH OCTOBER 2020 11:05 AM
He looked frankly bored. We are trying to make history…..his demeanor from the first whistle was that of a defeated man. This surely transmits to the players…
Most managers get sacked /leave clubs , most managers eventually get another club , cycle begins again . It’s a bit merry-go -roundish ( is that a word ) .
OneNightinLisbon
Yes, it’s bad enough that he hasn’t learnt a thing from previous defeats but if he can’t motivate either, then our chances of winning the league look very remote.
If we dont win 10 in a row, given our monstrous advantage over others in this very poor League………will it be the biggest case of self sabotage in the history of British Sport ?
Rolling_Stone and Big Wavy – feared as much. Haven’t seen any Ireland games either so I have no idea of how he normally plays.
Does Julien rumour have any substance? I thought he was injured?
Por Cierto…Good morning.In my post at 10.00 I never said anything about NFL being sacked.Cheers.