With the sides level a minute before the break, Benjamin Nygren setup Gus Lagerbielke to give Sweden the lead over Poland in last night’s World Cup playoff match. Both sides scored once in the second half, with Sweden securing a 3-2 winner on 88 minutes. Lagerbielke is having the season of his life after ending an unproductive spell at Celtic, where he appeared in only seven Premiership games, two of which were as sub.
Recruiting talent is only the first part of teambuilding. Letting it wither on the vine not only destroys that talent, it tarnishes your reputation with other prospects, making subsequent recruitment more difficult. Gus partnered Carl Starfelt in central defence for Sweden last night. Carl, who was deployed successfully, left Glasgow just days before Gus arrived and a new chapter started at Celtic.
Reaching the tournament in June is a deserved reward for Benji’s work this season. His game intelligence is clear and at 24, he has space to continue his development.
Oh Italy! Failure to qualify for three successive World Cups is humiliation for one of the world’s premier football powers. They have recorded one win (England) and two draws (Paraguay, New Zealand) at the tournament since winning 20 years ago. The tournament will be poorer without them.
The Azzurri’s boss Rino Gattuso is in his 12th managerial position. The longest he has continuously held a job was 19 months, at Milan. 11 years ago he applied for, but failed to land, the Hamilton Accies manager’s role. That was a time when the Accies knew more than most about the game.
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Happy Wednesday all!
What happened to the Osmands?
HH!
Bring back Palma.
TURKEYBHOY
Has he done anything since The Untouchables?
Huns taking no chances this weekend, Beaton MIB, Aitken VAR
Palma,half a season,10 goals,10 assists,2 CL goals.Then, unbelievably dropped to let the fit again Daizen back into the team.Used as a Sub,or the odd game,and we wondered why he never showed the same brilliance as when he came.Adored by his fans at home,doing great in Poland,while we
rake about bringing shit players in on loan.Great dead ball,free kicks,corners.
Get him back now.
Mjallby did not think Lagerbielke had it to play CH for Celtic, I think he should know what it takes to do so, good luck to the lad , CS was vilified but to me had grit decent pace and played on the left side of a 4 which was not his strongest side, he got on with it didn’t moan and was valued by me, Nygren scores goals but is very slow played as a midfielder means he cannot cover the ground, all 3 will go to the WC in Trump’s America as long as he deems it in America’s interest to host it, European teams all of them should pull out, this guy is a crackpot, he will pull the US out of NATO the UN and is becoming more threatening to anyone who does not go along with him and his henchmen, Israel Russia N Korea have no worries though.
So bit’s because we didn’t turn Lagerbielke into Baresi that no decent strikers will sign for us? I get it.
That explains Mvuka.
I recall pre-Lager when all our signings were top quality successes.
KwondaCivicCSC
Paul ,
I was always a fan of Lagerbielke,but you still like a wee dig at BR.!!!!!!!
I wrote on here,before he joined,I watched him in a top of the table clash,and he was immense,won every header,and his passing that day was fantastic.Pinging balls 30-40 yards out wide.I also mentioned that.Two weeks later he managed to step off a plane,and get a clean sheet at Ibrox.Never witnessed anything in his game dodgy.
Palma adored……
Hello hello, hee hee
Lawwell has a new job with a European talking shop.
The transformation in Luis Palma’s performance since he moved on loan to Lech Poznan has been astonishing.
At Celtic, he scored 10 goals in 48 appearances.
At Lech Poznan he has scored 7 goals in 39 appearances.
That astonishing transformation has taken place in the mind of observers from distant planets.
Is Kwon going to the World Cup.
Since it’s quiet… I’ll add that Lagerbielke has undergone the Peta transformation; now he’s better. Fair play to him. The grass always appears greener on the other side, and in this case it might very well be.
The transformation in Luis Palma’s performance since he moved on loan to Lech Poznan has been astonishing.
At Celtic, he scored 10 goals in 48 appearances.
At Lech Poznan he has scored 7 goals in 39 appearances.
That astonishing transformation has taken place in the mind of observers from distant planets.
…………………………
🤣
Kwon played last night for South Korea who qualified for the World Cup and are ranked 25th to Scotland’s 43rd.
Talking of team building Graham Potter has done a brilliant job with Sweden. Hes still held in high regard there but elsewhere his reputation was in the grubber after his failures at Chelsea and West Ham. Hes managed to turn a dissatisfied group who finished bottom of a poor qualifying group into a team that beat two decent opposition twice in normal time to qualify. Getting quick results when it mattered which isnt what he’s known for.
Also great at Brighton where the players were found and while not exactly given to him, he played little part in identifying – they they were and still are part of a system that works and the manager knows he will need to be part of.
No two jobs are the same in football some managers suit positions and situations better than others. Get that wrong and we all know where it can lead.
Kwon has obviously caught the eye of his national coach playing in Bundesliga 2, which is higher ranked than the SPL. It’s clearly not the worst place to try and rehabilitate your career
Kwon rated 8.8 / 10 last night as he powered South Korea to a comprehensive win over the Aleutian Island select.
Another one slipped through the net it would seem.
Thankfully the option to buy on Mvuka is still an available, so the chances of an EPL side or similar swooping in to sucker punch us is low, and we all know Balikwisha is about to catch fire any moment now.
Reasons to be cheerful. . .
Good for Benji.
Had a quick look at that now infamous list of summer 2023 signings.
In order of arrival they were
June: Holm then Tilio
July: Iwata, Kwon & Yang, Nawrocki
August: Lagerbielke, Palma, then – both on deadline day – Phillips and Bernardo.
10 signings.
Setting aside the quality argument for a second
Integrating new players amounting to, c. 30% of the overall squad in a wanna?
Too much.
Yang and Bernardo are still around but have been mostly on the fringes the last 2½ years.
Brendan chased the rest.
Of the rest, the one that got away the most, IMHO, was Gustaf.
To be clear – the lad wasn’t Beckenbauer nor will he ever be …
… but in the “decent/worth keeping” category.
Be nice to find a job where a 30% return rate doesn’t get you a P45.
to our american contributors , how is Italy, Poland and the Irish not qualifying being reported state side ?
2024 demographics say a combined diaspora of over 60 million.
how are ticket sales going ?
I hope Mexico go deep into the tournament – 40 million usa citizens of mexican descent with 11 million actually born there.
has he handed the peace prize back yet ?
I was waiting for I he supposed smart asses to come on about Palma.No matter,for us,10 goals,10 assists,2 CL goals in half a season,confirms my opinion.The rest,sub,one game,no player can keep up his form with that.The boy has skill,flair,and can score.
An opinion shared in Poland an Honduras,yes,where he is their superstar player.
Hundreds coming to see him when we toured America.
Anyway,WTF do I know,😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂.
On here some rate Donovan as a player,?????????
St Stivs – Most people, including the news agencies, don’t yet know the World Cup is coming here.
ST STIVS
I’m not paying much attention to the reporting of WC in the US, cos I’m not giving them a thin dime!
No doubt they will make a killing through TV alone, while doing their best to destroy the heart and soul of the “sport of the people” with their relentless ads and horrendous “color commentary”.
The FIFA peace prize will be in his cold dead hands on the day that he slips into hell – just hope that he takes Infantino with him!
You could always check out his goals and assists,and come back and tell me,that’s not what we are missing this season.No,too hard,I will just TRY to be smart.
That’s the way.
TB- so a different opinion to yours makes you an ‘ asshole’…..Palma is yet another bang average winger, who thinks he’s Ronaldo…..take any money you can get for him
Turkeybhoy re Palma.
I agree.
Luis started well and looked like a player.
Brendan wanted more dynamic, explosive wingers – which was absolutely his right – and which Luis was not.
And, to be fair to Brendan, he wasn’t.
Plenty of skill, but slowed the play down.
Exit Stage Left, Luis.
A year later, Exit Stage Left, Brendan.
Perhaps Luis’ skill could have been an asset to us.
Perhaps Luis might have had an appetite to return if the guy that chased him had left.
One question springs to mind.
Anyone know if Celtic had a January recall clause in Palma’s loan agreement?
THE BADA BING
From the moment Luis missed the same penalty twice, his days like the famous Parkhead shorts were numbered ☝️
North men South Korean 🇰🇷 men comrades all.
OnTheKwonRd CSC
We have had a procession of mediocre wingers in recent seasons which generally reflects where we found them, what we paid for them and what happens to them when they move on.
Jota the only one I can think of who regularly looked a class above the rest. He should have gone on to greater things.
If you have issues on this bloggers take, he can be contacted on social media platforms
Andy Muirhead | Scottish Football Blogger & Celtic FC Blog
ANDY MUIRHEAD
MAR 31, 2026
Celtic’s Cowardice in the Face of Their Own Fans
By welcoming The Anfield Wrap while freezing out their own fan media, Celtic have shown once again that they can’t handle honest scrutinyThere’s a difference between being open and being opportunistic. Celtic’s decision to allow Liverpool fan media outlet The Anfield Wrap access to interview Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is not, in itself, a scandal. The issue isn’t the player who’s conducted himself well since joining Celtic, nor is it The Anfield Wrap – one of the most professional and successful fan media outlets in Britain. The issue is Celtic’s hierarchy and their shameful, self-serving hypocrisy when it comes to media access, fan engagement, and their treatment of their own supporters.
For years, Celtic have wrapped themselves in the rhetoric of being “more than a club” and utilising Jock Stein’s immortal words of “football is nothing without fans.” But scratch beneath the surface and you’ll find an organisation utterly allergic to scrutiny – especially when it comes from their own. Fan media that dares to hold them accountable, highlight failures, or ask uncomfortable questions is frozen out, dismissed, or threatened with bans. Yet, when a prestigious English outlet arrives, cameras in hand and brand polished, the doors at Lennoxtown are flung wide open. It’s as predictable as it is pathetic.This isn’t about envy as I have no skin in the game – it’s about principle. The same Celtic board that can’t stomach a word of internal criticism is happy to cosy up to outsiders, offering access they refuse to those who’ve chronicled the club with love, honesty, and credibility for years. They don’t want fan media – they want fan compliance. Everything, from ticketing to merchandising to message control, must now fit into their monetised ecosystem. And if you think that “access for sale” model is beneath them, just wait – remember when Rangers charged £25,000 a year for fan media privileges? Don’t bet against Celtic finding their own version soon enough.
I’ve seen this culture of hypocrisy up close. Since launching my own fan media outlet in 2006, I’ve covered Scottish football at every level – league, cup, international – all out of my own pocket bar a number of advertising deals. I’ve been banned by the Scottish FA, lied about by veteran journalists and club officials, and even had the SFWA demand my access to games be revoked for daring to publish quotes Sky Sports had already aired – St.Mirren and the Scottish FA can testify to that fact. Yet, through all that, I kept going and during this time helped raise funds for Yorkhill Hospital (now the Glasgow Children’s Hospital), who helped save my childrens’ lives.
During those fundraisers, I reached out to a number of clubs across Scotland. Some didn’t reply which is fair enough. Some went above and beyond. Rangers, of all clubs – whose supporters and press officers alike viewed me with disdain and hatred in equal measure – donated stadium tour tickets to help the cause. Celtic, refused or ignored every request. Not even a signed football or a pair of stadium tour tickets to raffle off. Glasgow Warriors were hardly better, offering to sign a rugby ball if I bought it from them first. But Celtic’s silence stung most – not because I expected special treatment, but because it reflected the institution’s core indifference to its own community when there’s no PR value in it.That attitude persists today. It’s one thing to value professionalism and control, it’s another to wield it like a weapon against your own supporters. Open access to The Anfield Wrap doesn’t prove Celtic’s media-savviness; it exposes their cowardice. They want applause, not accountability.
Celtic’s greatest strength has always been its fanbase: passionate, intelligent, and fiercely loyal. But that same fanbase is treated like a customer database and a PR nuisance. Until the board grows comfortable with honest, critical scrutiny from their own, acts like this will continue to reek of hypocrisy.
And for all their branding about history, values, and community, maybe the truth is simpler: Celtic’s hierarchy doesn’t want fan media – they want fan marketing. As long as that remains the case, they’ll deserve every word of criticism coming their way.
Andy Muirhead is a Scottish football blogger and former Scotzine editor who dives deep into the Scottish game with in‑depth analysis, opinion, and a proudly Celtic‑leaning perspective on Substack.
Trusty injured?
Not April fools.
Sad are the homes….
https://thecelticblog.com/2026/04/articles-and-features/articles/more-injury-celtic-warning-squad-depth/
Battling midfielder David Watson or more continental claptrap from “THE SLOW LANE” after 60,000 financially thank the PLC for they’re wonderful stewardship of Celtic??/
Hmmm.
https://celtsarehere.com/celtic-fc-david-watson-transfer/
The Tommy Sheridan Rising!
“Love him or loathe him… If you know right from wrong and can recognise an injustice when you see one, you canny argue with what @citizentommy is saying here.
The common denominator with the two causes referenced here are the ‘British’… The original evil suppressors.”
https://xcancel.com/McJagger_X/status/2039156216148971908#m
Heroes live Forever CSC
Trusty was subbed on 91minutes for the US this morning our time, I’m assuming he is injured and now needs to travel thousands of miles by plane which will not help at all.
When hard work matches talent
Wee Hugo appears to have it all
LALIGA@LaLiga
Translated from Spanish
✍️ Note down his name: 𝐻𝑢𝑔𝑜 𝐺𝑎𝑙𝑑𝑒𝑎𝑛𝑜
@FCBmasia
| LALIGAFCFUTURES
https://x.com/LaLiga/status/2039342024302682278?s=20
Messi been playing away from home ??