Olivier Ntcham, 21, yesterday became the third most expensive signing in Celtic history, the initial payment was slightly north of the £4.5m quoted, and there are add-ons which are likely to take the total price above that which was paid for Chris Sutton and John Hartson.
The most striking element of the deal is that the player has played only 39 games in senior football. Compare this to van Dijk and Wanyama, who had played over 60 games before coming to Celtic, and you get an idea of how the transfer market has changed in a few years.
60 games is now too late. You need to be on the ground watching and ready to move inside 40 games. More than this and top talent will likely already be competitively priced out of reach.
A consequence of this trend will be an increase in one element of the transfer risk: any scout would prefer to see more than 39 senior games before making a recommendation. But this risk is mitigated by the fact that waiting on a player to increase in value, only introduces the risks associated with paying a higher price.
Then there is the risk of doing nothing at all………
What we do know is that everyone at Celtic, the management, scouts and board, are happy to have secured Olivier’s signature.
Welcome to Celtic, Olivier.
You know when the PSNI say, “The only way you can have the game in Belfast that week is if it’s on Friday and there are no away supporters”. Then Linfield insist on having the home game first due to TV money. Then someone else at the PSNI says they did not block Celtic fans from attending?
Well, that just happened.
Here is the new CQN Podcast…
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Need to go ..thanks for the replys/chat guys , means a lot to this aul duffer .
Although i would love a win ..a big win , tomorrow for me the result is secondary , i just hope the guys that make the effort to go and support our team return home safe and sound .
Hes coming home
Hes coming home
PADDYS coming home …tum te tum te tum …
Good nite and take care .
Assuming we are talking about the same Jackie McNaught I have dealt with her for many years in her roles in business development for laboratory companies. She is with The Doctor’s Lab now.
I did not know that she had associated with such bad company in her past.
I am pleased to say that she seems unharmed and is indeed a very lovely lady.
BRTH
All well thanks, the Archbishop’s bro does a good job in OHR and Saint Margaret’s Whitecrook, my granny Delaney’s parish.
Looking forward to dusting the season card and a return to some Celtic action on Saturday and Wednesday. Love that photo of Oldtim and us in CR7’s gin joint. :)
COWIEBHOY on 13TH JULY 2017 10:24 PM
Green Tie…check
White Shirt…check
The Hoops…check
See you tomorrow
MARSPAPA:
Me get us lost…not tomorrow, Cowiebhoy’s directions are spot on…:)
Keep the Faith!
Hail Hail!
Cowiebhoy
Best wishes tomorrow to you and yours
RIP your Dad
OWEN on 13TH JULY 2017 10:48 PM
I agree with MWD, Dena is a gem. Her Man. Utd. supporting better half, she did not tell me that, nor did he.
Keep the Faith!
Hail Hail!
God bless Cowiebhoy.
May your dad RIP.
Timreaper
My wife was in Manchester this morning, on training
Guess where she is now, and it’s not in Manchester :-)
A 3hr drive, following speed limits – I do it almost every week
Wee Paddy’s coming hame:-))
Hail Hail
Pog- a beer will happen soon i hope :)
COWIEBHOY…
Best wishes for you and your loved ones tomorrow.
May your father RIP.
YNWA
WITS
A 2-0 away win in 2nd leg will suffice for Rovers KTF !
ALTERED IMAGES CSC
Many happy returns Oldtim . Hope you’ve had a good one Dave .
Cowiebhoy . I’ll be thinking about you tomorrow . Love the Green ties instruction .
I’m worried about Celtic fans at the Linfield game tomorrow . Safety in numbers is good advice that can’t be followed due to lack of numbers . The worst elements of that mob thrive when the chance of retaliation is reduced . Be careful if going . HH
Hrvatski Jim on 13th July 2017 11:16 pm
HJ — hope you are well my friend.
Now, if it is the same Jacqui that would be a remarkable coincidence.
If you get the chance to speak to her tell her Ruth and I say hello and that she is very fondly remembered.
And yes there are photographs lol
Enjoy Peebles – lovely part of the world.
HH
Until we meet again…
Keep the Faith!
Hail Hail!
AG
Good advice mate.
You live among the Ayrshire loyalist ‘overspill’ fae across the water.
Had we been given an allocation I would have been in Belfast Andersontown with our Belfast bro’s before, during and after the match at Windsor. I know a few bhoys from both here and from Ireland who have tickets for tomorrow. I fear for them the way this is going.
Just where is this “New NI”Brendan keeps wittering on about?
Staying at my daughters’ in Dunblane. Nice change from the West coast.
Does anyone know if game being shown anywhere there tomorrow?
Is there a supporters bus available for return tie on Wed at CP. Where and departure times would be a great help and much appreciated
BRTH
You made a post Sat morning at around 11 am,
Can’t find it now, can you email to me Bhud ? Thanks
Bhoys, we walked my Dad to church and carried into his resting place at the altar in church wearing black ties tonight
He is getting carried out in celebration of his life in his beloved Green tomorrow
Incidentally in beside him is a bottle on anniversary Lisbon magners, his signed Celtic shirt, shareholders tie and certificate – he enjoyed his life
Hail Hail
Jimmci
KevinG of this blog helps run the Tommy Gemmell Celtic bus out of Dunblane, Winning Captian is also a member
Sure they will give you detail of where bus leaves from on Wed, and where to catch the game
Nytol
Brogan Rogan Trevino and Hogan on 13th July 2017 10:17 pm
A man after my own heart.
Having worked in the Scottish Drugs Forum for three years after retiring from Civil Service I gained an insight into the plight not only of those battling addiction but the families coping with the loss of a son or daughter as addicts or death as a result of their addiction.
An eye opening experience of peer ministry where those recovering became ministers to those trying to find the path.
If Celtic can be a path they are on the right road themselves.
Turkey
Just read Owen Smith’s comments about his day out in Belfast yesterday.
Thank God Jeremy Corbyn beat this clown in the Labour leader contest.
Cowiebhoy
Will be thinking of you and yours tomorrow. God bless.
Jimmci
You will be most welcome on the famous Tommy Gemmell CSC on Wednesday. I’m not there at the moment but two of my boys will be on the bus.
They should have the game tomorrow as well if you want to go round to watch it with them.
DELANEYS DUNKY on 14TH JULY 2017 12:00 AM
Turkey
Just read Owen Smith’s comments about his day out in Belfast yesterday.
Thank God Jeremy Corbyn beat this clown in the Labour leader contest.
Correct.I honstly have no idea where BR gets this guff from.Its not the 1st time he has mentioned it.
Thats Smith just keeping his hand in when the knives come out again for JC.
Cowiebhoy!!!
Do you honestly think I keep copies of the rubbish that I write?
More than happy to try and find it but I just batter away at the oul keyboard and talk mince. I don’t save the mince for posterity!
I am away to have a look and will report in later or in the morning when I see you.
God love yer da!
Turkey
Brendan was born and bred there. He is playing the Cyrus Vance/ Henry Kissinger role on his return home. He knows the score politically in his birthplace.
DD. 11.46 . Exactly mate .
Cowiebhoy 11.50 . That’s lovely and speaks volumes . May your dad rest in peace .
BRTH, a brilliant and heart warming read. While reading I was thinking, I hope that crocodilian booted fackwit didnae give him my special bottle No 67 (as once advertised on here), then I thought, na, that special shoed fella made a packet for two charities. Which I’m sure you did. You did, didn’t you?
Ya rocket……………………………:_)
Cowiebhoy, thoughts with you tomorrow as you say goodbye to your dad. It sounds more like a party than a funeral.
HH to you both.
Cowiebhoy
My thoughts are with you for tomorrow . I knew your dad from the bowling club. I am good friends of the Mullane’s . I also worked with Dalton over at Corntonvale.
ACGR
You coming down for the kickaboot wi oor second team v Lyon on Saturday?
angelgabriel, I check my acgr inbox regularly and I’ve still not seen an email from you. Is there somit wrong wi my golf course, or izzit coz I iz a dobber……………………………:_)
BTW, never drink to the wee hours wi Dena29, she’s hardcore, fast and difficult to keep up with. But, my favourite NI wummin in hoops, She’s a bad influence on me.
Only just recovered today!!!
As for the game today? Celtic need to annihilate this shower of bigoted pish. Their sub human support and their followers in Glasgow deserve nothing less.
Our manager should be relishing battering them more senseless than a hun wi a tenner.
I will not be happy with nothing less than a 4-0 humping of these low life peppill today
ACGR
Check out Glasvegas track Geraldine.
I always think of Dena. Written for her I think. :)
England’s difficulty is Ireland’s opportunity.
p.s. Linfield 0 Celtic 12.
DD, no, cant make the game on Saturday but I’ll be there on Wednesday to see us hammer the Belfast bigot hun basterds.
The more you see, the more you despise these sectarian scum racists.
We need a big score, a clean sheet, and a double hat trick from Scotty over the tie to send all the dirty huns into full frothing at the ears mode.
Brendan, can deliver this.
HH
ACGR
I still have bottle 67 of course and the other two bottles from the big booze raffle plus a note of all the entrants.
Alas, while we were in Lisbon some chancer managed to hack into my e-mail account and started firing out all sorts of messages in my name normally to people of oriental origin requesting that they enter into all sorts of commercial deals on Alibaba.
This involved everything from the potential purchase of yoga mats and salt cellars to straightforward requests for bank details.
Such a situation led to a prolonged and desperate call to Fasthosts who in turn recommended the complete closure of my email account and all addresses plus everything to do with the boxes, passwords and everything associated with the account.
It also required the backup of many thousands of past e-mails and documents.
In turn, this led to much and varied swearing!!
However, after a prolonged period and a lot of buggering about I now have all e-mail functions restored with the same address although tracing any particular item amidst the hastily backed up stuff takes a bit of patience.
So, with all of that behind one, I am now hoping that my long suffering techie wizard chum will soon add the appropriate e-commerce cart to a wee fundraising website I have commissioned so that we can recommence and draw said raffle and dispatch your prized “67” to its rightful owner and weigh in a couple of good causes.
Regrettably, I have been so busy with graduations, rescuing stray dugs and trying to source an artificial leg to ensure that this task is completed timeously.
However, this is about to be rectified while I am away on a small world tour of Europe during which I can actually get around to this sort of stuff.
In between times, I did the auction at the Celtic Charity Foundation Golf Day and achieved a remarkable result with your offer of a three ball at Carnoustie.
Someone from the Foundation should be sending you a mighty wee thank you and passing your name on to the very funny chaps who bought the prize.
My own wee charity push for Mary’s Meals runs out in a month so all the above has become a priority as I have to bring that to an end before going on to my next wee fundraising project.
It might involve a fancy dress competition and having seen your golf twosie my money is on your goodself!
Cowiebhoy, may your dad rest in peace and may your family enjoy the celebration of his life as much as they can at this difficult time. God bless.
On the addiction subject . A couple of years after meeting my wife to be , I attended her grants funeral . One of her cousins there , was in handcuffs with a prison officer on either side . He’d been jailed in his early 20’s and developed a herion addiction in prison .
His life then became a groundhogs existence of stealing to feed a habit that resulted in continual sentences and longer periods in jail .
Somehow , 3 years ago ,with support from counseling and a couple of pals who broke a similar chain , he slowly changed his life .
He managed to get a flat in Maryhill , trained to be a counselor for treating addiction , and caught up with lost years by attending concerts with friends who previously , like him were recovering alcoholics and drug addicts . Strength in numbers and support in numbers .
He passed away suddenly earlier this year , ( from massive heart attack ) shortly after returning from his first holiday abroad , three weeks in Geo . He loved it , and planned a return visit .
I’m glad he enjoyed coming down to visit us , he’d an appetite of 3 people and ate us out of house and home ! I’m even more glad I told him how much admiration I had for him overcoming his demons . F**k off he replied , I meant it .
In light of the supreme court judgment last week I thought of this wee vid that never fails to crack me up.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8x_59EjZOs
Hee hee