We saw enough about Motherwell at Celtic Park in October to know how difficult an opponent they will be tomorrow night. The Lanarkshire side took a second half lead and were undone when their keeper passed to Benjamin Nygren, who levelled, before Daizen Maeda scored a 92nd minute winner.
The goal Newco scored against them at Ibrox on Saturday is their only concession in seven Premiership games. That defensive record is the bedrock for their climb up the league. They failed to score in four of those games, which would normally be a comfort before Celtic play an opponent. There is reason to believe tomorrow will be different to a normal Motherwell game.
In all of those seven most recent games Motherwell had the majority of possession, including 54% at Ibrox and 55% at home to Hearts. Motherwell’s attacking difficulty is because they face sides setup to give them the ball and defence. I expect Celtic will flip the possession stats, forcing Motherwell to play a counter-attacking game, presenting both opportunities and challenges.
Jens Berthel Askou is a stick-on for Manager of the Year. He has brought a brand of football to provincial Scotland which even the notoriously grumpy Motherwell fans can get onboard with. Whether his side can withstand Celtic’s uber high press will determine the outcome tomorrow.
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Stand up, if you love the darts.
Happy Monday!
Sit doon cos I cannae see
Paul67
What larks
Celtic need a bit more defensive discipline.
A clean sheet seems aspirational these days.
A scoring striker would also appear to be on our wish list.
Many of the SPL ‘also rans’ are having a decent season. Results against this middle belt could be vital come May
Keep the high press low
Sorry Gene.
I have sat down agaIn. Rude of me.
Lots of bewilderment and cynicism shown towards the penalty that Motherwell were not given on Saturday. I think though that the Rang2rs player clips the ball as he intended to just before the Motherwell player is tripped.
We’ll see what the VAR Review take on it is. Fernandez is very lucky and if it had been given few would have disputed it, but it’s not the outrageous decision it looks to be on first viewing.
looked to me that the motherwell players leg was in a natural position for the direction he was running, and he did not thrust it out to the side to initiate the contact.
its typical of when the huns get a controversial decision for them that the agenda of the micro-analysis is around finding any pixel of evidence to say why it was correct that it was given, but when they get a controversial decision against them then the agenda of the micro-analysis is around finding any pixel of evidence to say why it shouldnt have been given.
that is 100% given for the huns, as we seen for a lesser ‘challenge’ at tanadice a few weeks ago.
£3m for Josh Mulligan?…..can’t see it happening…..it would put too much of a dent in the £100m sitting in the bank earning interest….is there no one out there maybe a couple of millions cheaper?….
Happy St Thomas Becket day!
One Club. Back our Board, the Team,and Wilfried Nancy.
Petition:
https://c.org/xsGXWMNsxw
17 sigs.
Tried to sign but the pen kept flying out of my hand. Tried to digitally sign but keyboard melted.
I take it Welsh isn’t playing for them tomorrow?
BACK TO BASICS re: Welsh
Nope!
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cn9804p8rn4o
Parallels with Celtic perhaps?
Not so much the “managers as magicians” bit but, rather, the loss of energy after years of being on top …
and what needs to be done by who to regain that energy
Aipple 👍
Thank you.
I wonder if he’ll be recalled next week.
Laxalt on 28th December 2025 11:08 pm
LR67….apologies for my posts/language the last few days….I went too far and im sorry.
HH
That is your second hit Laxalt.
BSR
Then Lionsroar67.
Your reaction to both was needless abuse.
All done under the veil of anonymity.
Hope you mean what you say
SIONNAIGH @12.37
Tell you what , I’ll back the new board provided it’s not the same as the old board .
Dixie Deans
https://youtu.be/ZtCV5i9FNfg?si=H3Xuwbdz1K1YPdbg
David Low in his ACSOM interview gave a better insight than most, into the pickle. It’s a shame there isn’t a conciliatory tone from within Celtic , they will have to find one eventually , January would be a good time to start.
The last thing Fergus McCann intended when we queued in the Jock Stein Lounge for our £600’s worth of Celtic, was that those shares would be lost, in the ether. Whether David Low Jeanette Findlay or whoever gathers them, is hardly a pressing issue, and maybe a generational priority.
He was right about results driven, titles aren’t won in January but they’ll give you a good clue who might win.
RIP John Dixie Deans
We’ll do well to get a draw. Especially if he persists with Ralston who is woefully exposed in this system. Motherwell are excellent but struggle to convert. We need that to continue tomorrow.
He should be manager of the year but the hun press will give it to McInnes. One of their own.
It was surely a penalty to Motherwell. Does anyone on here think that the game had been at Parkhead, Dickinson and Aitken wouldn’t have contrived to give it?
Bowie from Hibs would look like an erchie for us because he’d be playing in the same “one striker” system.
Kenny isny an erchie.
But playing him as the lone striker makes him look like an erchie.
Larsson as a lone striker would be an erchie.
3 at the back, 4 at the back, are good concepts.
BUT.
They have to PLAY AT THE BACK – not on the halfway line or further up the pitch.
Is that not the area of the pitch were the midfielders are supposed to play?
How about when our back 3 or 4 get the ball they stay where they are and:
option 1: blooter the ball up the pitch?
option 2: if the defender can’t get turned to blooter the ball up the pitch, then play it back to the keeper for him to blooter it up the pitch?
option 3: if the first 2 options are unavailable, play the ball out for a throw in?
3 at the back should mean 3 defenders AT THE BACK.
I think that WILF is a Revolution.
Think Clint Eastwood/Tom/Gunny/Highway in the movie:
“HEARTBREAK RIDGE” – His platoon thought that he was a rocket until they realized that he was the MAKING OF THEM.
Celtic FC has been “Heartbreak Ridge” this season with toxic shifty managers playing out their wee sly schemes before getting their erchies deservedly removed from the premises.
With spoiled fans who continually FAIL to see the FULL picture bawling their eyes out wanting to sell the club to new owners etc, all because these supporters cannot see through RODGERS THE GRIFTER, and that is the achilles heel right there.
Gullible galoots will fall for ANYTHING.
Celtic should be up for sale to NO ONE.
Celtic should be controlled by sensible fans with backbone, but recent events has shown that there are not any of them around anymore, who can be trusted, like Matt McGlone and the “CELTS FOR CHANGE” Guys, or Willie Wilson the “SAVE OUR CELTS” HEROES, WHO PAVED THE WAY FOR “CFC” and they did not too bad.
We have an environment were the Celtic supporter base have been the biggest suckers in the History of Celtic.
No Integrity, No Backbone, No Ethics, No Comrades All Spirit, since the JUNGLE Headquarters was demolished by Thatcher and her Hillsborough lies.
Just like the YEARS LATER in the year of 2022, the Children of Thatcher with their Covid 19 lies, claiming to be looking out for your safety. lol
I don’t see any supporters group who make enough sense to be trusted these days.
They just get worse – with ZERO answers – just sniping, bitching, grassing, finger pointing, gaslighting, clique pile ons, virtue signalling, wanting people who can see what they can’t to be silenced and get on their knees and worship the cliques of suckers calling themselves “The Celtic Collective” who sleep at the wheel until Rodgers bewitches them with his Jekyll & Hyde Transfer Window piss EVERY TIME! lol
How about a Timdom that grows up before they start dictating paths for the future of Celtic FC?
How about a Timdom that don’t fall for a self indulgent manager who’ll play games rather than be the hero and tell fans that the Celtic FC NDA is a form of sado masochism which should be nowhere near Celtic?
The NDA is WORSE that any Rodgers Transfer Window Jekyll & Hyde pantomime piss 2twice per season from the insincere Rodgers.
Why didn’t Rodgers go off script and tell you all that the NDA sucks, is anti Celtic, like the great MON went off script and told you all that “THE SLOW LANE” project piss, 10 new players every window is a license for backdoor racketeering.
Do you think that these PLC [Financial Heavyweights] according to the late, HUGH ADAMS, are a bunch of duds buying midden player after midden player, because they don’t know what they are doing?
This project player stuff is what Fergus McCann & Jock Brown threatened Wim Jansen and Murdo MacLeod with in 1997/98 season when WJ & MM were trying to stop a 100 Million Rangers Juggernaut from wining 10 in a row.
Both WJ & MM Double winners in 1998 were forced to either resign or be sacked, after stopping a Hun 10, and winning a League and Cup double as well.
Where was the “Collective” pretentious pks then?
I’d rather WJ was saved and wee corner shop tyrant McCann was ousted.
McCann cost Celtic the next 2 titles AND the CL money whilst we were building a stadium as well, because of his wee man syndrome episodes.
Was that not a more valid reason for a “Collective” to be formed?
No wonder the VAST MAJORITY of the stadium BOOOOOED the wee tyrant fkr and his BIG BRASS NECK on flag day!
BOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!
Why am I saying this?
Because fans have been lied to and brainwashed by planted puppet re-writers of history books describing McCann as some sort of Jesus of Celtic figure. lol
Dodgy as fk David Low is McCann’s stooge! lol
Anyway, 3 or 4 at the back means AT THE BACK, not on the oppositions 18 yard line.
Kenny looks piss because he is a lone striker who does not get LONE STRIKER LONG BALLS, to run onto.
What a time to be alive.
HH
oot.
Mulligan was on a Bosman last summer……
Will take a guess at Brother MacLean for Saturday, Son of Satan on VAR
I read a while back when Mulligan was playing for Dundee, that he wouldn’t play for Celtic, his comment suggested to me that he is a Sevco Fan.
BACK TO BASICS
According to the Daily ranger WN is leaving him at Motherwell….we must have very good cb’s if he cant get a game for us.
THE BATTERED BUNNET on 29TH DECEMBER 2025 12:33 PM
Even if Fernandez gets contact on the ball first, his interception is so minute that it barely changes the direction of the ball, the Motherwell player is still through on goal and has a reasonable expectation of getting on the end of that ball – he’s prevented from doing so because he’s tripped. It’s still a pen imo.
It’s clear that must win games and no excuses are a thing of the past on this blog…
Nancy needs to win. Regardless of whether people want to manage expectations, the expectation to win remains.
TIMHORTON on 29TH DECEMBER 2025 2:28 PM
BACK TO BASICS
According to the Daily ranger WN is leaving him at Motherwell….we must have very good cb’s if he cant get a game for us.
……
Welshy too slow for WN and lack of inches not helping
HH
According to Wikipedia, Welsh is 6ft 3in.
Not a hope Welsh is 6ft 3 more like 5 ft 11
Ruben Amorim on finally changing from a 3-4-3 after over a year in charge
https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/c62l28499jjo
However he says he could only make the switch when his side were doing sufficiently well – otherwise it would look like he was bowing to external noise.
“When I came here last season, I understood maybe I don’t have the players to play well in that system, but it was the beginning of a process,” he said.
“We were trying to build an identity. Today is a different moment. We don’t have a lot of players, and we need to adapt, so they understand why we are changing.
“It is not because of the pressure of you guys [media], or the fans.
“When you [media] talk about changing the system all the time, I cannot change because the players will understand I’m changing because of you and I think that is the end for the manager.
“When we are playing well in our system, that is the moment to change.
Clancy, ref
Douglas Ross , 1of the linesmen
Dallas , var
V Motherwell
It might help if some on here actually knew the rules, or the Laws of the Game. Even if the player, in the Ayebrokes scenario, “touches” the ball first it does not mean he has not committed foul play. It could involve ‘careless’ play (possible), ‘reckless or excessive force’ ( not in this case) or ‘contact with the opposing player in a way deemed unfair’ (given that he tripped the Motherwell player and prevented his forward movement a foul/penalty should have been given). Ergo the referee never even considered giving it as it could have led to the loss of two points. A higher calling called some might say.
From what I saw of the Edinburgh derby Mulligan would bring energy, aggression, strength and pace to our mf. Depending on the price ( hjbs regularly screw our wonderful negotiating team) I would take him.
The cf is a better player than anything we currently have.
Didn’t mean to post so soon there.
Problem with the hibs cf and every prospective Celtic cf is that he’ll need to play with his back to goal. Not sure he can do that.
Celticmac: “It might help if some on here actually knew the rules, or the Laws of the Game.”
It might very well 😂