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Remarkable transformation due to brave tactical variations

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By on CQN BLOG & Comments

Amid the enormous events of the season it is easy to overlook the remarkable transformation in Celtic from a team which was bumping along in third place in October.  The 3-3 draw at Rugby Park, when Celtic recovered from a 3 goal deficit in the final 20 minutes to grab a point, is often referred to as a turning point but I don’t subscribe to this, Celtic drew 0-0 at home to Hibs two weeks later as the deficit from the top of the league headed towards 15 points, albeit with two games in hand.

It’s not often I’m told “get a grip of yourself” but that’s exactly what was said when I suggested to our chief executive that if we lost the next game away to Motherwell we were in danger of finishing third.

He then went on to quote me the points gained/lost ratio Neil Lennon enjoyed between becoming Celtic caretaker manager until his team lost at home to St Johnstone in August – a remarkably successful period.  He knew the same ratio between that St Johnstone game and the 0-0 against Hibs, which he said was a problem that would be fixed.  For good measure adding that we would beat Rangers on 28 December and go on to win the league.

Refreshing, though it was, to hear such utter conviction in The Plan, I wasn’t convinced.  Rangers were on a roll and we just couldn’t put a series of wins together.  The change came against Rennes on 3 November.  Celtic came from behind to win the game 3-1, playing a tactically different game than we had all season.

Since then Neil Lennon has bravely changed tactics with more regularity than any Celtic manager I have known, even during games we have often seen three different strategies deployed.  Not all have worked but he has shown a willingness to take chances and has learned plenty about his squad in doing so.

This willingness to take chances and to learn has delivered the league title.

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  1. Aipple on

    BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS

     

     

    I’m a superglue man myself as well. Had a few nasty cuts over here in US and with the lack of insurance at time used the old glue. Works a treat.

     

     

    Rankers will be liquidated almost a cert but as for the tainted titles and medals I just can’t see them losing them. 134m in debt and it will all be washed away over the summer and they’ll be back as a fresh turd NewCo playing in the SPL with nothing but a measly 10 – 15pt starting penalty.

     

     

    Great day yesterday, spent most of day after match in garden with a sackful of IPAs and had a great webcam chat with family in Scotland. Agree with all the ESPN comments, for once they did a great job and stuck with it, was great having two folk in studio prepared to tell it like it is.

     

     

    Early highlight of day was Burley going a wee bit quiet when he heard us signing ‘Craig Burley, you’re a w@&%er’

     

     

    Happy days.

     

     

    HH!

  3. Auld Neil Lennon heid on

    Steadward67 on 8 April, 2012 at 13:22 said:

     

     

    Lads – I know he must be on the wind up – but has anyone else read Gordon Waddel’s blog/column in the DR website…why I do this to myself I have no idea….but was a bit surprised to read about how bigotry is live and well in the shape of a tweet by General Sectary of CSA re death to protestants or something like that……..I am probably way behind on the news but I would be astounded if anyone connected with Celtic would be so stupid to tweet about protestants….but of all the things to highlight that represents how bigotry is alive in this country.sheesh….surely a wind up and I think I have just wasted vital minutes of my life thinking about it….but was just wondering if there was any truth in it I suppose – would be disappointing

     

    ===========================

     

    For you and all Cqners there is a bit of payback in Gordon Waddles article (which I have not read, but understand the subject matter).

     

     

    I’m not going into the rights and wrongs. just sayin Waddle.s motives are personal.

  5. Kojo on

    My dear,dear,dear,friend.. Kojak.. @ 14.38

     

     

    Hiya,Palomine?

     

     

    Yep.. It is Awe Aboot , Psychology… Pal..

     

     

    It is how ye APPROACH the GAME.. no..

     

     

    Sae much as ..

     

     

    HOW YE PLAY. the Game!

     

     

    That is why.. Coaches..in the American Fitba League.. who kin

     

    Prep thur Teams.. in the Dressing Room.. intae Hiving the Right

     

    WINNING attitude.. afore the Game.. Get the Big Bucks..

     

    It is an Art. ..

     

    And is No an easy task…

     

     

    Big Jock, hid it.. Knute Rockne Hid it…

     

    Mr. Mowbray… DIDNAE hiv it!

     

     

    and.. let’s Hope that … Neil .. Hiz It!

     

     

    and..Ah believe he hiz.. but, he is still

     

    Perfecting It!

     

     

    And.. After watching oor Wonderful Display of Hauteur and Elan.. wi a Leetle Soupcon o’ Swagger and a Big Tate o Confidence.. which oor Bhoys Positively.. REEKED o’..in the Foist Half.. Yesterday.’

     

     

    AH turned tae Ma Companions.. who wur also watching the game..and Ah said..

     

     

    “By, Gad, Chaps.. Ah believe that oor Lads are , at Last..

     

    Beginning tae Discover..

     

     

    The Secret o’ ..No Jist Winning.. But.. of Winning.. CONVINCINGLY..”

     

     

    Sure.. It Soitenly, Undoubtedly.. Ineluctably.. awe

     

    Boils doon .. tae

     

     

    Hivin’…

     

     

    The RIGHT Attitude… Going INTO the Game..

     

     

    If ye hiv that.. plus the Inherent ability tae Play the Beautiful Game.. Well…

     

     

    Then.. Nothing kin Stoap Us.. fae Sweeping awe Before Us.

     

     

    in Ma Opinion.. of course!!

     

     

    Nice chatting,pally..

     

     

    Kojo

     

    Yer pal. who thinks ye are swellegant..

     

     

    Still Laughin’

     

     

    Gotta Go tae Mass, noo..

     

     

    Seeya, Latah..

  7. Che on

    TTTT re your post earlier about your masters golf bets, apparently on hearing youve bet them both players have immediately withdrawn citing external influences as the causation, roughly translated bubba said last winner he picked at the masters was bobby jones.

     

     

    Normal service has resumed im back to being a cheeky bassa…..

  9. Invercelt on

    Agent Craig @ 14.10,

     

    Good to know you’ve met some genuine Geordies. BTW if you’ve not been there, Newcastle itself is well worth a visit.

  10. croppybhoy on

    On the huns cheating

     

     

    Really surprised at any Celtic fan who feels that we should not take what is ours

     

    We – along with every other club they played while fielding illegible players – were cheated

     

    We – along with every other team they played while fielding illegible players

     

    – did nothing wrong

     

     

    Cup competitions are more difficult to resolve because they not only cheated the teams they played in the finals but every other team they played on the way there.

     

     

    League titles can be resolved by doing as UEFA did with Sion – all games played with inelligible players re-recorded as Huns 0 – Sports men 3

     

     

     

    Tommy Burns was cheated

     

    Wim Jansen was cheated

     

    Josef Venglos was cheated

     

    John Barnes was cheated

     

    Kenny Dalglish was cheated

     

    Martin O’Neill was cheated

     

    Gordon Strachan was cheated

     

    Tony Mowbrey was cheated

     

     

     

    All these guys and their staffs and players were cheated

     

    They all deserve justice

     

    Anything else would be tantamount to saying cheating is ok

     

     

    We need the titles that we won fair and square

     

     

    Or

     

    should we reject this season’s if we only win by 9 points?

     

     

    Nonsense

     

     

    Teams that play by the rules deserve their reward – cheats must be shown to have failed

     

     

    HH

  12. Ceaser67 on

    They say they dont do walking away. The better start they owe Glasgow Taxis £238.28p.

  13. Kevtic on

    When Neil managed Mowbrays duffers of 2010 to 8 straight league wins I thought this day would come. The Ross County result was a red herring. Turning a team that hasn’t won anything into winners is like turning a big fecking tanker – it takes time.

     

     

    First you need to build confidence which only comes with winning matches regularly.

     

    But this only takes you so far as you still have to learn what it takes to win the big crunch matches and handling the pressure of playing for (and managing) a club the size of Celtic.

     

    Neil has done a remarkable job in these two years under very difficult circumstances and hopefully he is our manager for years to come.

     

     

    Peter Lawell should have great faith in Neil as he bailed Peter out big time after the double flop of Tony Mowbray.

  14. Celtic Mac on

    Paul67 et al

     

     

    There is no doubt that the result against Rennes helped give us the confidence to go on a good run of results, but you need to look back a week earlier to the 4-1 result, also against Hibs in the League Cup to see a team which for all its’ inconsistencies could dig out a result. Not unlike the Rennes game in some respects, a goal down in the first half, stepped up a gear in the second with goals from Forrest, Hooper and Stokes. Now those players haven’t always delivered, but when they have we’ve got the results. Of course Samaras played against Rennes, and showed once again what he is capable of. Those four players have been match winners for us, and sometimes Neil Lennon has been tempted to play all four, with Sammy and Jamesy out wide, and for reasons we have seen over recent seasons that does not always work. Even so I would not mind seeing those four line up at Hampden next week, or if young James is not available then, if we get through, in the final itself.

  15. Auld Neil Lennon heid on

    Paul67

     

     

    You raised a point which intrigues me and that is why after ending the previous season on a relative high (it all looked as if it was down to an aberation at ICT when I thought personell and attitude were wrong)everything nosed dived for a while at the start of this season. Was it just tactics or did other problems come up that took a while to settle?

     

     

    I do remember watching the Rennes game down in La Carihuela and thinking “thats promising” and even as late as last Saturday on the way to the ST J game when I heard the line up with Loovens, Lustig, Mulgrew and Rogne in the back four that Lenny was playing a physical side not to lose.

     

     

    As it turned out Sandaza and Sheridan were big lads whose threat was largly nullified. On the Rangers game my pre match concern was Stokes because holdng up play is not his forte and you need that if the opposition are physically strong and committed, but after the sending off I have given that game no more consideration in terms of tactics or attitudes.I apply mty Stokes point to the Killie game where I think loyalty got in the way, another lesson learned I hope.

     

     

    Will we adopt the same approach of horses for courses next season? Will any of the lesser used horses be freed and will we go for a bit more quality (at affordable prices) than quantity.

     

     

    More than Glasgow is green and white, the future is too.

  16. croppybhoy on

    Apologies

     

     

    To the earlier list I should have added the name of Neil Lennon

     

     

    He was cheated last season by the cheat in the Cardigan!

     

     

    We get the all back!

     

     

    HH

  18. setting free the bears on

    Seeing as CQN has turned into Dr. House, any tips on how to recover my lost voice?

     

     

    My wife advises gargling in salt water but I think she recently increased the insurance policy and her advice may not be disinterested, far less affectionate.

     

     

    What does CQN prescribe?

  21. Auld Neil Lennon heid on

    Kevtic on 8 April, 2012 at 15:25 said:

     

     

    Haud oan, I thought that was Jeanette Findlay? ;) <======== a joke lads.

  22. Kevtic on

    Kojo – “Is the Pope German” like it lots.

     

     

    The same wee Wullie who is brave enough to give the same team three penalties twice in his short career yet can’t give a last minute penalty in a Cup Final.

     

    It’s akin to sleeping with the boss to get on.

  24. sparkleghirl on

    setting free the bears on 8 April, 2012 at 15:29 said:

     

     

    Gargling with lemon, honey & whisk(e)y.

     

     

    If you haven’t got the lemon and honey I wouldn’t worry too much :)

  25. setting free the bears on

    Dr BT

     

     

    I like your radical re-appraisal of modern medical practice.

     

     

    Some of the so-called real doctors on here would advise that medicine has to taste unpleasant for it to do you any good.

  32. lennon's passion on

    setting free the bears on 8 April, 2012 at 15:29 said:

     

     

    Retrace your steps probally be in the last place you look : )

  33. hamiltontim on

    Che

     

     

    Now thems is two words no normally associated with me!!

     

     

    Now if we were talking about CT, that’s another matter entirely :-))

  34. leftclicktic on

    alex thomson

     

    @alextomo

     

    and will hear this week from UEFA/SPL/SFA on Salmond and Fraser interfering with HMRC and Administrators. Watch this space.

     

    2:28pm – 8 Apr 12 via Twitter for BlackBerry®

  35. lennon's passion on

    31003 on 8 April, 2012 at 15:35 said:

     

     

    Have you stopped bleeding if not have you seen the film 127hours :)

  40. setting free the bears on

    lennon’s passion

     

     

    I think I lost it in the high notes of “You’ll never walk alone”. Now if you guys can just wander through the words one more time and see if you can find it for me.

  41. Che on

    HT wee calton said the cravat he was wearing in 67 last night belonged to you…….is he doubling up as your butler?

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