I always support a manager who wants to freshen the team up and keep his squad motivated, as Neil Lennon did last night. Some of you will remember how Martin O’Neill steadfastly refused to utilise his squad, sticking to the tried and tested 13-or-so players. Patryk Klimala needed to start a game and last night was as good a time as any. We saw good things from Hatem Elhamed last season, enough to suggest this term’s performances can be improved upon.
Better to try things when you have options on the bench against St Mirren, than when you are out of alternatives and need a performance, so I have no complaints about the line-up.
The St Mirren goal was another dark moment defensively. Shaughnessy lost his fellow Irish central defender, Shane Duffy. Shaughnessy’s near-post header fell at the feet of Erwin, whose attempt to trap the ball ended in the net. Including the keeper, Celtic had a 7 v 4 player overload, but still lost the first and second balls.
This is an ominous sign. Three of the four non-penalty goals we have conceded this season have been from set-pieces into the box, on each occasion we lost the first and second balls. We are out of the Champions League as a consequence and will continue to pay a price until this is sorted.
You can expect every team in the Premiership to play for free kicks and corners until this is resolved.
Attacking set-pieces, we look as imperious as we look weak defending. You could be forgiven for concluding that we attack the ball more effectively than we block opponents, so should therefore consider a zonal strategy….. Just a thought.
Shane Duffy saw off the challenge from St Mirren’s other Irish central defender, McCarthy, before heading his second goal in consecutive matches. This could be the season of set-pieces. If so, we had better improve penalty kick taking. Odsonne Edouard’s effort was underpowered and nowhere near the post. It is another area for the practice fields.
While James Forrest rightly gets credit for his excellent headed goal, the game was won on the back of two Ryan Christie crosses that fell between defenders and the goalkeeper. Neither Duffy nor Forrest needed to jump to make connection with an inch-perfect ball. If delivery from our wide players was as good, we would be significantly more effective. But it’s not….
Happy, though I was, to see the starting line-up shuffled, I was crying out for Jeremie Frimpong to come on well before his 80th minute appearance. Frimpong is alone in his ability in this squad to run at people. This tribute is not crucial to every game, but when he came on, he turned the St Mirren defenders, often resulting in a free kick high up the field.
Lots to ponder in the three weeks ahead.
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Huns 2 up. Goldson header right on HT.
Off home now to watch the US Open. Sandy Scott doing ok so far on day one, sitting off the lead. Rory McIlroy, 1 off the lead.
Gene- VG,some finish at the cricket last night
Neustadt braw
Are you, or anyone else, in touch with TC45 in Texas?
Bada
England really should have won, missed a few chances and the captaincy was not the best as far as bowling selection was concerned.
TEUCHTER ÁR LÁ on 17TH SEPTEMBER 2020 4:59 PM
Neustadt braw
Are you, or anyone else, in touch with TC45 in Texas?
……… aye thats a worry …CRC mentioned to me that he was going to try and get in touch….if anyone hears anything from Andy T (Thecelt45) please pass it on …
Braw
Mind you the updates on here from Paisley had most of my attention.
Hey Gene,
Don’t want to get all Crickety but England must have done well to get to over 300
having lost 2 wickets for the first 2 balls
MARKIEBHOY
Thanks mainly to bairstow who had another great innings.
Gene.
He seems a bit hit and miss either very few or a barrel load, unlike Root and Roy who are struggling.
Think the Aussies have Roots number at the moment
the problem in our defense at set pieces is very very simple to solve – buy players who attack the ball and have the ability to jump. Very rarely do we see Ajer dominating the box or scoring at the other end, despite his height , he can’t jump. Julien and Duffy playing together will help but I think we need another.
The Omar Colley links disturb me – if we are genuinely interested in players, we need to do our business quickly and quietly, particularly for crucial/urgent positions. In the case of center backs and left backs, we have lost out due to procrastination (biscuit tin). Liverpool linked with Colley and Leicester getting our first choice left back. I understand a lot of this is speculation, but we do spend weeks/months negotiating and risk the teams progress (champs league underprepared).
Am slowly becoming more accepting of zonal marking at corners.
Saw a RB Leipzig game earlier this season when they deployed zonally.
Goalie plus a guy on each post.
One guy 10 yards from corner kick.
The remaining 7 took up a 3 / 4 formation around the six yard box with what looked like perfect geometric precision.
It was like a wall.
You could just tell there was no way they were going to concede.
And they didn’t.
On flip side from formations though is the individual and collective attitude.
Defensive “Red Zone” set piece should mean 11 coiled springs like Olympic sprinters waiting for the gun.
All with the same snarling thought …
“No f***ing way they score here”
“Not on our watch!”
Hail hail
Keep The Faith
It’s the nature of the game – Josh butler failed with the bat and dropped a catch at an important moment.
Don’t want to get all Crickety but England must have done well to get to over 300
having lost 2 wickets for the first 2 balls
—
so did the aussies. both team innings were very alike.
great game.
watched it on the lap top with the celtic game on the telly
the drinks break at the cricket was more exciting than anything that happened in the celtic game apart from forrests goal
Huddle
20/20 and one day games are as exciting as most sports. Test matches are an aquired taste but I still
love them. Didn’t get anywhere last night, member of the family was sick everywhere.
Celtic game was probably better than that cleaning job……..just?
Huns 3 up.
C’mon Charlie on The Chase. Spirit of 67 says Bradley Walsh as he is on for 3K if he beats Frodty Knickers 😂😂
frodty frosty ffs
it’s frothy man!
5-0 Huns. They are obviously better than many Tims like to admit. Then again, so are we.
We shouldn’t undermine the huns ,especially the way Neil Lennon chops and changes the players.
Hot Smoked
Huns have yet to play anyone who wants to / are capable of beating them.
The Imps probably had more attempts on target than most of the Diet Hun teams in the SPL.
Not a criticism of you mate, just think it is poor at the moment. We need a competitve league.
I think if it goes totally us V them we will find it difficult to get the 10.
5-0 Huns. They are obviously better than many Tims like to admit
—-
they dont strive to fill their team full of scottish players and expect to do well in europe
we do
ridiculous strategy considering how shite the scottish international team has been for 2 decades
BBC RS Salivating
Ft
I feel we have a better team and squad than gers.
However, I wonder about our relative strengths in the dugout.
Do we have the best coaching team in the league? I suspect not
Does the result in Gibralter mean that Slippy G is 5 times the coach that Brendan was?
Uncle Jimmy.
I think that you hit the nail on the head there.
We have a squad of internationals, they have a team of decent standard journeyman pros.
We should be streets ahead but thats impossible in a 2 team league.
Last night was a worry.
Building on the concerns from Ross County, who made too many chances with ease.
We looked pretty devoid of shape, cohesion and a cutting edge.
NFL’s tactics seem to make us less than the sum of our expensively-sourced parts.
HH jg
Neustadt, Teuchter,
Marc and I have both been trying to contact Andy, with no success. Even messaged him via Facebook, but no response. We’ve heard nothing since last year, and we fear the worst, as he was keeping in regular touch during his various procedures.
20 / 20 Lancashire v Yorkshire
on a different topic, the pubs and bars on tyneside need to close 10 pm till 5 am, dont these assholes in government realise pubs open at 11 am, with people drinking and socialising
The Huns have yet to concede a goal.
We gift chances to the most mediocre of opponents.
If we are not concerned,we should be.
Why we don’t have a better left back than Taylor bewilders me.
Lenny doesn’t seem to know his best line up.
TT
Neustadt
Thanks for the reply. ACGR is trying to contact him – even an old Email address?
*CQN POTY THING*
Loads of votes rolling in but a few well kent faces still to register their opinions. Don’t be shy, now. The leader is currently on 30 but the next 3 best have 25, 24 and 23 so everything to play for 😉 CQNPOTY@GMAIL.COM before 10pm tonight although final results might be nearer 10.30pm….
MARKIEBHOY on 17TH SEPTEMBER 2020 6:04 PM
Hot Smoked
I think if it goes totally us V them we will find it difficult to get the 10.
we underestimate thems at our peril ,don’t get fooled by MSM calling the league our way, they want us to relax and take the eye of the prize , we have to earn the right to get the 10 it will not fall into our lap.
Mon the Hoops (Tallaght version)
Surprising times here in freeview tv land. Pick tv, home of Jennifer Love Hewitt and friends, has changed channel number from 11 to 34, the surprise being it still remains available to watch on my box.
The upgrade in June which switched freesports tv to 64 from wherever it was before took it to a channel with no signal for me, just as the Danish league season was reaching its conclusion.
Sky Arts is 11 now. Do many live Celtic games appear there yet?
The Riga game has been abandoned, not sure how that might affect us for next week,