Last night’s win didn’t look on the cards until the opening goal; Astra were passing the ball better and creating as many chances as Celtic. It looked like the game we expected – without Commons or Guidetti. However, we find ourselves top of the group with 7 points from 9 at the halfway point, having recorded a draw away to top seed Salzburg.
There’s still a lot of work to do, a win away at Astra next time out in no way guarantees qualification, but we stand an excellent chance of progressing and a decent chance of topping the group.
Having thumped Ross County at the weekend there was a notion we’d turned a corner, which fed some of the frustration last night, despite the result. What we saw was very poor passing from a disjointed team. Players were receiving the ball in too little space, where options were already closed. This impacted the effectiveness on Callum McGregor and Mikael Lustig in particular, but it seemed when every Celtic player looked up there wasn’t a good pass on.
This is all a consequence of change. We look disjointed because we are disjointed. We’re disjointed because we’re rebuilding.
The relevant questions are:
Do we need to rebuild?
Are we making progress?
Yes, we need to rebuild. The squad, tactics, training and other processes are all going through change. For so long we watched Celtic squads remain constant and grow old (under Martin O’Neill), or out tactics become rigid (under Martin and Gordon Strachan), to the point that we were crying out for some experimentation.
The above is seldom disputed but the question of progress is more important. Right now Celtic need results. They need to survive in the Europa League long enough to test and improve their passing, movement, instincts and, where necessary, squad.
Last night’s win wasn’t pretty but it was vitally important. The next challenge for this team is also important; we need to go to Romania and put on the kind of performance we did in Salzburg. If we can do that, we’ll have earned a platform to build on.
Caesar & the Assassin, the accounts of Billy McNeill and Davie Hay as Celtic managers, is available below.
Billy and Davie will both sign the early orders we get to them, more here.
1,761 Comments- Pages:
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Hrvatski Jim
17:01 on
24 October, 2014
Ashley is going for a takeover, merely offering them emergency funding to see out the season in return for them signing over some more stuff into his name!?
HH
jamesgang
Agreed. The man is vastly under used especially at corners!
LB
and now the rest….he’s good…but he’s not that good!
lustig efe vvd izzie
denayer
brown johansonn henderson
guidetti scepovic
We’d wipe the floor with that time. or else you’d all be on here calling for my head!
HH jamesgang
jamesgang
17:04 on 24 October, 2014
Team for Saturday please
Gordon
————————————-
Hendricks Tanqueray Bombay Beefeater
livibhoy
shut it smarty pants!
just cos I hit ‘post’ too early and you’ve been the star of the blog today with your constant stream of well-written, ‘evidence’ based posts….doesn’t mean you can get all lippy with me ya wee whippersnapper!
HH jamesgang
Here’s a thought.
Mike Ashley can merge Sevco and Newcastle. Newcastle play in Scotland. Their fans get trophies and guaranteed European fitba. They claim to be a big club. Now they can be one.
Sevco could be wound down altogether and Ashley has a cracking big Sports Direct Arena for a variety of sports in Glasgow.
Going for a rare pint tonight and think I will discuss this loudly to see if I can get any bites.
Obviously I will start with a guy who I know works high up at Newcastle and he heard that…….
LB
Davidopoulos
OMG another of the CQN erudite witty gang (a very small clique!) is on my case now!
HH jamesgang
jamesgang
Hahahahahaahahahahahaahahaha
Games on Sunday too auld yin!
LB
Oh FFS now those in favour of a living wage are anti-Celtic! Yeah I concur in the same way the rebels who opposed the Board and their grandiose plans to move to Cambuslang were anti-Celtic. I well remember the best fans in the world booing Fergus as he unfurled the flag- can’t get too many to admit to that either now. The club can pay what is in today’s terms extremely good wages to some very average players. Wages that most of the support can only dream of. That’s why it is entirely consistent with the Celtic ethos to support the living wage.
Bada Bing
Just catching up
Has Graham Wallace jumped ship aswell yet before Ashley neck and bahookeys them out the door :)))))
Ohhhh I forgot they owe him £600k
Never have I enjoyed anothers suffering as I do that mobs,
ps
Hrvatski Jim
Brian Kennedy
Wahahahahahahahahhaahahahahahaahahahahahaha
Another who is jumping on the “I tried to save you ” bandwagon
Tinfoilheid Graham brokenhearted that the “glib and shameless liar and convicted criminal” has fled these shores.
davidopoulos
17:07 on 24 October, 2014
jamesgang
17:04 on 24 October, 2014
Team for Saturday please
Gordon
————————————-
Hendricks Tanqueray Bombay Beefeater
——————————
Dont forget the Fever Tree tonic.
jamesgang
Erudite? I like that.
Eruditopoulos
Doc
17:12 on 24 October, 2014
davidopoulos
17:07 on 24 October, 2014
jamesgang
17:04 on 24 October, 2014
Team for Saturday please
Gordon
————————————-
Hendricks Tanqueray Bombay Beefeater
——————————
Dont forget the Fever Tree tonic.
——————————————–
That’s it – I’m away to the pub…
vespacide
16:28 on 24 October, 2014
I may be wrong ,and I probably am 90% of the time, but the issue of the living wage was first raised on Celtic forums some time ago.. I also believe that the matter was raised by a shareholder at the last AGM nearly a year ago and it received short thrift from the board.
I wouldn’t say that Kevin MCKenna is anti-Celtic and is in any way hiding behind a moral Shield
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/nov/23/celtic-fc-refuse-pay-living-wage-disgrace
I want to see both Ronny and our Serb centre forward do well, as I do for all players that are a part of Celtic.
Watching the game at the weekend Scepovic would have had a tap in if Callum would have rolled the ball to him in the second half.
Last night he did moss a couple he should have scored but at least he was there to try and I was extremely glad he scored.
The conundrum now is does he play next game when Guidetti is back?
Play them both I say and let’s see.
Stokes has been playing well and could play the role behind a front 2 as he does have the eye for a clever through ball or shot from distance.
Callum could do with a rest so maybe do that too.
Again I do not see it anymore with Kayal.
Livibhoy
Aaaaarrrh!
you’re too bl00dy smart for my own good you!
right – quick pint before I meet mrs jg at the station before I take her to lennybhoy’s gig.
anyone in the blane valley?
with apols to to the person who didn’t like CQN being used to organise opportunistic swifties!
HH jamesgang
My friends in Celtic,
I like WGS, I liked him as a player, I liked him as our manager and I rate him in the Scotland job. I also respect his attitude when talking about us.
But let us not forget that WGS was never universally accepted by the Celtic support and many couldn’t wait to get shot of him.
Unfortunately that is a fact no matter how much we now praise him.
HH.
Davidopolous, I’m already on my way!
learned cqn
I’ve watched the bhoys this year and like many of us I know things ain’t right but I don’t know why. Can anybody cast a light on this in footballing terms: the only thing I feel is that any quality we do have haven’t been on the pitch at the same time –
can’t figure it out – the spine ain’t right, I thimk stokes is a good player but he hasn’t a partner, I can’t think of a match when our wings have been good
atalosscsc mon the hoops
vespacide
Just because anti-Celtic people are exploiting the living wage issue doesn’t mean Celtic are right. Celtic’s stance on this is simply wrong on SO many levels. At a stroke it has turned us into just another humdrum wee Scottish club no better than the rest of them – comforting the comfortable and afflicting the afflicted.
iki
Think of the money from the onesie market:))
Jamesgang, arranging swifties on here is fine, quickies not so much.
tamrabam
16:53 on 24 October, 2014
I can guarantee you that if Seveco make it through the next few months and are back next season…..season books will shoot up in price and there will be no 2 for 1 deals for our matches against them
Doc
;-)
aff oot Timdom
HH jamesgang
Doc
17:19 on 24 October, 2014
Jamesgang, arranging swifties on here is fine, quickies not so much.
—————————
Guffaw!
Dave King Statement
——————————————————————————–
I have been asked to make a personal comment on the rumour that the Rangers board is considering a loan from Mr Ashley. I don’t see the offer of a short term loan by Mr Ashley affecting me in any way. Our offer is for a long term permanent solution that can take the club forward and unite the fans and the board for the first time in many years. The board is in the final stages of reviewing our offer and I expect a definitive answer early next week. Frankly, it doesn’t seem possible that the board can do anything other than recommend it to shareholders given the dire financial circumstances and the fact that no other long term solution is on offer. Mr Ashley’s involvement (and recently announced continued commitment) with Newcastle precludes him from making a similar offer of long term permanent equity.
What Mr Ashley can do is attempt to increase his vice-like grip on the Rangers brand by improving his retail position as a condition for supplying short term debt to tide the club over until our permanent funding is in place. But I know that there are other investors also willing to provide bridging finance. The board will therefore not have to accept punitive terms even if Ashley attempts to oppose them. We must remember that the board is ethically and legally bound to act in the best interest of the company and all shareholders. Ashley can not expect preferential treatment and will not get it. I am confident that Graham Wallace and Philip Nash have enough integrity and commercial experience to do the right thing.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOPS
Nash has bolted :)))))))
Jamesgang
richie may be in bv at the moment.
It’s high time kojo was on here bumming up the youngsters
jackiemac
Without Commons or Guidetti we are toothless up front.
Also, yesterday was 4231. Saturday Celtic played 433, which suited the players better.
BT, might be?!?!?!
Statement from Peter Lawell, Celtic PLC 24.10.14 re the ‘Living Wage’
“With regard to recent media coverage of discussions surrounding the issue of wage levels for staff at Celtic Park, as Chief Executive of the PLC, I would like to categorically state as follows;
Nanananananananananananananananananananananananananana
I can’t hear you
My fingers are in my ears
Nanananananananananananananananananananananananananana”
I’m hearing that there are plans to upgrade the training facilities at Lennoxtown,,,anyone know anything about this????
HH
Up_Over_Goal, I thought we played 4231 on Saturday, we just did it better, Johansen played the centre of the 3 and has the engine to get back when needed.
Another reason to hope for another collapse at the eboladrome is that maybe the OF loving twat DD will sell up and buy up some irish first team like Liverpool or something.
What do people make of Wakaso? or Tonev?. So far they look like duds to me.
greenpinata-HH
Leftclick-Sashley wanted shot of Wallace, he will be haggling his severance money just now.
ibleedgreenandwhite1
17:28 on 24 October, 2014
I’m hearing that there are plans to upgrade the training facilities at Lennoxtown,,,anyone know anything about this????
HH
Put Ronny in charge of Lennoxtown ?