Player trading improvement needed by Rodgers

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Setting aside Brendan Rodgers’ achievements at Celtic, where he won all seven domestic trophies on offer at his time here, his best season in football south of the border was 2020-21, at Leicester City.  That season he won the FA Cup, the first time Leicester lifted that trophy, and finished fifth in the league.  Dropping five points in their final two games of that season saw them slip from third.  A late collapse against Tottenham on the final 14 minutes of the season saw them lose out on a Champions League spot.

As he watched Casper Schmeichel lift the FA Cup a week later, Brendan was at the peak of his powers.  Two years after taking control at the midlands club, silverware was back in the trophy room, and they had qualified for the Europa League.  Until the closing weeks of the season, only the two Manchester clubs were above them, neither of whom were in contention when Leicester’s miracle league win happened in 2016.  Without Claudio Ranieri’s achievement, Brendan’s would have received even greater praise.

There was no shame in the fact that Leicester did not kick on in the following season.  They slipped to an eighth place finish that year later, as Arsenal, Tottenham and West Ham all moved above them.  European competition seemed to tax his side, where they ended third in their Europa group, before a run to the semi-finals of the new Conference League.

The wheels came off spectacularly last season.  A home draw against Brentford and win over Nottingham Forest was all they had to show after nine league games, a run which saw Arsenal hit four, Brighton five and Tottenham six against them.

New signings were made last season, the joint-most expensive of whom was the £17m capture of Aberdeen-born Australia international, Harry Souttar (24).  Harry was part of the Australia side that won admirers during December’s World Cup.  Brendan moved for the player a month later.

Dundee United and Ross County fans pondered what happened to their former player to cause such a dramatic improvement in form, while some of us wondered if Brendan had made a classic tournament-scouting mistake.  In other news, Jack Hendry made seven league starts at Brugge last season, he was surely available for a lot less than £17.

Brendan can motivate and man manage with the very best of them.  Alongside Chris Davies, who yesterday joined Ange Postecoglou at Tottenham, he was able to coach and organise.  For me, his Achilles Heel is player trading.  Fix that, and you have a more complete package.

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575 Comments

  1. Back to Basics - Glass Half Full on

    I don’t know, for sure, who our next manager will be.

     

     

    Neither does some rag with dwindling dumb readership.

     

     

    PS – Big Jimmy last night – Lol.

     

     

    Funnily enough, when I read all the excitement earlier this week about some club signing Jude Bellingham’s brother four words popped into my head.

     

     

    “Paul and Willie McStay”

     

     

    🤔🤔🤔🤔

  2. Jimtim,

     

     

    No offence mate,but every time I read your posts.a voice reads them out in my head.The Reverend I.Am Jolly.

     

    Be a bit more optimistic.We are living in great times.

  3. In all the delusional gibberish coming out from our media about the team across the City,the narrative that annoys me the most,is the one concerning Cantwell and Raskin.Superstars according to them,when in fact they are nothing more than average.This is being done to ramp up their price tags,give the scum some hope,not difficult.In the grand scheme of things,it means little,but like the Kent bullshit,

     

    IT JUST FEKIN IRRITATES ME !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

     

    Oops,sorry about that.

  4. SCULLYBHOY on 17TH JUNE 2023 8:03 AM

     

    Fullname: Patrick Gallacher

     

     

    aka: Patsy Gallacher, Patsy Gallagher, Patrick Gallagher

     

    ______

     

    His great granddaughter, Amy, plays for us. Good attacking player.

  5. What is the Starz on

    Patsy

     

    Didn’t his grandson (Kevin) almost ruin the centenary year by scoring against us in the cup final

  6. What is the Starz on 17th June 2023 12:01 pm

     

     

    Patsy

     

     

     

     

    Didn’t his grandson (Kevin) almost ruin the centenary year by scoring against us in the cup final.

     

     

    >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

     

     

    It’s written in the Wonder Bras.

  7. The second half was long and painful with news coming through the public address system than Rangers were beating Clyde, but eventually with 10 minutes to go Adam McLean, now playing at centre forward because McColl was injured, took up a pass from McAtee and scored.

     

     

    The delight of the fans was tangible and obvious with Ayr Station that night seeing great scenes with “The Wearing O’ The Green” mingling incongruously with “Pack Up Your Troubles” and “It’s a Long Way To Tipperary”.

     

     

    There had been no trouble that day, but the Ayr police were not sorry to see the trains depart, for Ireland was a tense place in 1919, and Celtic fans were aware of it all.

     

     

    They did now however have something to cheer about, as more and more soldiers came home to renew their acquaintance with Patsy Gallacher, Jimmy McMenemy, Eck McNair and Andy McAtee.

     

     

    David Potter

     

     

    https://thecelticstar.com/celtic-icon-series-patsy-gallacher/

  8. John Kennedy may well be the Best Coach out there.If Celtic have blocked the move, I hope he gets a Massive pay rise and others too that are loyal.

  9. It used to be that you watched the cricket with the volume down and the radio commentary on.

     

     

    Now you simply must have the volume down to avoid listening to the Barmy Army …… Engerlands version of the green brigade without the rebs and much more annoying chants.

  10. lets all do the huddle on

    Now you simply must have the volume down to avoid listening to the Barmy Army …… Engerlands version of the green brigade without the rebs and much more annoying chants.

     

     

     

    aye but they dont have a constant pain in the arse of a drum

  11. lets all do the huddle on

    so here’s the 2 major issues that no one seems to be talking about for next season.

     

     

    much more important than a new manager or improving the squad

     

     

    1- the green brigades drum – next season the drummer should stop after the song that he has helped start is in full swing. keeping on banging the drum while the song is in full flow is pointless and is just noise for noise sake.

     

    there should be a rule like the whip rule in horse racing where the drummer is only allowed a certain number of bangs per song.

     

     

    2- the fans doing the huddle. despite my moniker i actually hate doing it in stadiums. in all rhe years we have been doing it home and away i have never been sat or stood next to anyone i want to put my arms round so i dread it happening and cant wait for it to end.

     

     

    so the green brigades drum and the fans stadium huddle are going into Room 101

  12. My opinion only, but if Brenda has the job, why do CELTIC not say so. After all the meetings and interviews etc surely the club should have made a decision and an announcement by now, surely. Unless, as he is contracted with Leicester until 1st July, CELTIC would require to pay some compensation of sorts possibly.

     

     

    I still don’t think it is a done deal yet.

     

    KINGLuBO

  13. When I was a young bhoy, in the late 50s, going up on the oul Vale of Leven CSC bus with my da they were still singing “oh Patsy Gallacher Patsy Patsy Gallacher oh Patsy Gallacher and Andy McAtee”, as we were sitting on a McAteer Coach I always thought it was the driver they were serenading.

  14. Tom McLaughlin on

    BURNLEY78

     

     

    On the Saturday after Celtic qualified for the CL last 16 by beating Man U, I attended the first Ashes Test at the Gabba. I was wearing the hoops.

     

     

    From our seats, to go to take a leak or buy a pint or snack, I had to walk through a concourse which separated the top tier from the bottom tier. This was thronged with England fans drinking and watching the action. As I pushed my way through, I was cheered with shouts of “come on the Celtic” and “well done Celtic”. I shook many a hand while others patted me on the shoulders and back.

     

     

    They were noisy and boisterous but very well behaved and good natured. Not at all like their football counterparts.

     

     

    It was then that I realised just how unpopular United were all over England.

     

     

    PS The England fans in Australia used to sing Waltzing Matilda, but with the words “I shagged Matilda”.

  15. Hats off to whoever actually knows anything for not leaking details.

     

    The media have had nothing new to say on the appt since Monday/Tuesday. Lots of made up guff and quotes from ex-players but nothing from the Rodgers camp or the boardroom.

  16. Tom McLaughlin on

    LETS ALL DO THE HUDDLE

     

     

    The guy next to me never takes part in the huddle. He remains seated and nobody ever objects. So if you don’t want to join in, stay in your seat.

  17. It should be a very interesting summer for celtic. Celtic did appear to be making inroads into improving the analytics, fitness, recruitment etc. in the footballing department. celtic do have permission for significant improvements to barrowfield training centre. Those started before ange arrived and I expect would always have been progressed regardless of who coaches the first team.

     

     

    The core of our team is good but few would deny we need more strength to go with the technical stuff and a bit more pragmatism would likely help us against the better teams we face. Despite the positives there still looks like a hell of a lot of work to be done with the first team squad. It remains bloated and that eats into the wage bill. Decisions also need to be made about how to best progress our top prospects.

     

     

    TEAM

     

    …………………………………………………

     

     

    Gk.

     

     

    Keep – Hart

     

     

    Purchase – Gk

     

     

    Loan – Tobi (development loan)

     

     

    Move on – bain, seigress, hazard, barkas

     

    ……………………………………………….

     

     

    Rb.

     

     

    Keep – Johnstone, Ralston

     

     

    Potential Purchase needed

     

    ……………………………………………….

     

     

    Lb.

     

     

    Keep – Taylor, bernabi (traditional fullback system)

     

     

    Loan – Montgomery, Anderson (development loan)

     

     

    Potential Purchase needed

     

    ………………………………………………………

     

     

    Cb.

     

     

    Keep – CCV, Starfelt, koni

     

     

    Purchase – 1 x lcb

     

     

    Loan- Lawell, Dan murray (development loan)

     

     

    Move on – Welsh, Scales, Urhoghide

     

     

    ……………………………………………………

     

     

    CMF.

     

     

    Keep – Mcgregor, iwati, hatate, o’riley, Haska

     

     

    Purchase – 2 x box to box midfielders

     

     

    Loan – summers (development loan)

     

     

    Move on – Turnbull, Mccarthy, Mooy, soro, shaw, Idigucci

     

    ………………………………………………….

     

     

    Am.

     

     

    Keep – Jota, abada, forrest, johnstone

     

     

    Purchase – 1 winger needed

     

     

    Loan – vata (development loan)

     

     

    ………………………………………………..

     

     

    Forward.

     

     

    Keep – kayogo, oh, meade

     

     

    Loan – Kenny (development loan)

     

     

    Move on – Ajeti

     

    ………………………………………………..

     

     

    As per above the new manager likely need to: move on 14 players who have no future at the club, agree to good development loans for about 8 of our most highly rated young players and to purchase anything between 5 and 7 players before replacing 1st team players that wanna leave I.e. perhaps abada, hatate etc. It may not be a rebuild but it is a hell of an in file

  18. IMHO, if you had a choice of player Staying @ Celtic between Reo and Kyogo, it would be Reo.

     

     

    Reo is Incredible like Furuhashi is 2.

     

     

    I Hope both Bhoys wanna have a Crack @ the CL again.

  19. Tom McLaughlin on

    DENIABHOY

     

    Hats off to whoever actually knows anything for not leaking details.

     

     

    My friend’s sister-in-law is a primary school teacher. A few weeks ago she was called to the head teacher’s office and told that the Postecoglou boys had been removed from the school as the family were relocating to England. She was also sworn to secrecy at the request of Mrs Postecoglou.

     

     

    She didn’t tell a soul — not even her husband who is a Celtic ST holder — until the move to Spurs was official.

  20. Tom McLaughlin on

    STEPHBHOY67

     

    Brendan Is a Spanish speaker and watches a lot of Spanish football. Might see him bringing in one or two Spaniards.

     

     

    It’s a market Celtic haven’t really exploited. Javier Sanchez Broto and David Fernandez was just dipping a toe in the water.