Footballers often play two games a week but their peak fitness levels are achieved when the play once a week. More often than that and the muscles don’t recover quickly enough. Top players’ muscles are finely tuned to deliver 90 minutes of exertion. To reach this peak, they NEED games as well as training. It appears to be beyond the ken of sports scientists to create a training routine which matches actual matches.
Apart from a 25 minute run-out against Hearts two weeks ago, newco’s players will not have played a football game in 22 days when they line-up against the champions on Sunday. If the boot was on the other foot, I would be concerned.
Celtic watchers will note that they score more goals late in games than early. Ronny’s team try to win the battle for territory, the ball and energy before running over the top of opponents. Whatever happens in the opening 20 minutes on Sunday I would expect Celtic to be far more effective in the final 20 minutes of the game, when their superiority will be most effective. There’s a chance newco will crumble early on, but I don’t expect many chances at either end until later in the first half.
While we all know how Celtic will play, it’s harder to figure out how Kenny McDowell will line-up tactically. If he was Ross County manager he would defend his 18 yard line for 90 minutes and hope for a breakaway, but I’m not sure that’s a viable strategy for Sunday. Lose an early goal and he would be caught between damage limitation and attempting to get back into the game. It could get very messy.
My hunch is that he’ll play a conventional 4-5-1 and attempt to find space out wide behind Celtic’s full-backs for Kenny Miller to run into. The full-backs will play forward, there will be space, we’ve just got to be faster than the 35-year-old ex-Celt now plying his trade in the lower leagues.
Despite their form against Hibs and Hearts this season, newco have an excellent record against Premiership competition in the cups. Three wins, against Inverness (only one point behind Aberdeen on same games played), St Johnstone and Kilmarnock, without a goal conceded, is a measure of what they are capable of, when they put their minds to it.
The wins against Kilmarnock and Inverness are particularly noteworthy, as both Premiership clubs enjoyed the majority of possession, but were frustrated in attack and hit with sucker-punches. This is what McDowell will seek to do at Hampden.
Ronny, get the job done. Very, very, very, thoroughly.
A reminder for North American readers that the Annual Celtic Supporter’s Féile is on in Philadelphia this weekend. The events include live music each day, the US premier of The Asterisk Years, with a Q&A with Paul Larkin and Graham Wilson of Beyond the Waves podcast, as well as live coverage the semi-final. You can find out more, including how to book, here.
Have you booked for the CQN11 Str Patrick’s Dinner on Friday, 13 March? We’re hoping to raise enough money to build Mary’s Meals a school kitchen in Malawi. Mary’s meals emailed an hour ago with a report on one of the kitchens we built last year, in Kholoni, where they are now feeding 1245 children each day, a considerable increase in the roll-call since the availability of kitchen facilities, see the photo above.
Email me for tickets, celticquicknews@gmail.com (to the Dinner, not Malawi).
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Jonnyrambo67@20:13
That was tongue on cheek so the song exists ! Never heard of it……
Just looked at Stephen McGinns twitter page.
Sign the guy. . . . . . . truth teller !
A sign from the gods,, Film 4 Zombieland about to start
Robinbhoy
cheers for earlier on
Tied up in work coming home and dinner
Jamesgang,
count yirsel lucky it was only a few hours with him. I had the (mis)fortune to spend 2 and 1/2 days in his company in Milan for the Last 16 CL game in 2007.
Thats when we both discovered we both posted on CQN!
HAIL! HAIL!
Token
Lennybhoy/ TT
I remembered my phone.
Only cis Oldtim was there to keep me right!
I’m blessed. Very blessed to be a part of the CQN family.
HH jamesgang
Smeg, Just when I was feeling soooooooo confident about the Mighty Tims playing against Scotland’s newest club, for the first time ever, I find out that their star centre back Mohsni WON’T be playing against us. I mean, I was counting on him playing!!!!
Did I just walk into a parallel universe?
SOAL shy, retiring.
Near retirement age maybe, but retiring as in shy.
Nah:-)
Emeraldbee@21:11
No idea who their CB’s are however if Master Mohsni is first pick then the rest must be pure pish……
I’m home met my best friend Oldtim
Also met great bhoys AT SOAL and jamesgang
I don’t give a flying feck about the orcs but my dad will not be at a Celtic game for the first time this season
That’s his take on the scum and he knows more than we will ever know
Watched the 3-0 game earlier and enjoyed “st mirren” fan chick’s reaction
Sundays game cant come quick enough, if we play our own game and don’t get into a battle with them we should coast to an easy 3-0. I don’t think expectations of a 5, 6 or 7 goal total are realistic.
Just watched some old YouTube footage of previous games, right in the mood now, but maybe I’m peaking too early? Ah well will go through it again tomorrow
blantyretim is praying for the knox family
21:17 on 30 January, 2015
You get my text earlier about where I sent coupon picks this week?
Keep the Faith!
Hail!
blantyretim is praying for the knox family
21:17 on 30 January, 2015
Your dad is absolutely spot on, and I agree with him wholeheartedly ……l will never enter the same stadium as those hate-filled hordes again, and that pleases me very much …..when we were in resistance mode I attended home games reluctantly, but now that oldco are deed (how good does THAT sound) I don’t have to endure that dreadful experience ever again….
I left the BV heading for the train and unfortunately I got the bus
263 all the way home with BT signing songs of freedom all the way through Brigton and Cambuslang
No Black and Tans came near
Pretonpans bhoys
I saw a picture of some of Sevco’s players on the park in some second division game a they were playing in a few weeks ago and I swear I only recognised Elbows and the Pie Man. There were a couple of really ugly, baldy (shaven-headed) orc-like characters who I could honestly say I’d never seen never mind recognised!
Adding some piquancy (who’s that for a Friday night?) to such observations, I have since found out that at least 8 of Sevco’s ‘big names’ are out of contract this summer. On the assumption that (a) they are still alive then and (b) Ashley’s henchmen are still in place, what state will their playing pool be next season. Especially as the most likely scenario is they will still be in the second division next season!
Anyone like this wee tune
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CBRQM0vErH8
BT
Agree with your dad. I too will not be there on principle. Give him my regards -a wise man.
Lennybhoy
Nope
67
For once u and he agree
Been a busy week not had much chance to think about the game, been looking forward to it though definitely the talk in the toons. Celtic FC 3 – 1 Masquerading as Rangers FC.
Hard fought game but we should prevail the victor
chasbhoy
17:10 on 30 January, 2015
Going to be in Ayr on Sunday.
Would appreciate any advice on where to watch the game.
———
Coatbridge.
johnbay
Spoke to Alec H after our wee talk he was asking for you and looking forward to you coming back to tyre
Hrvatski Jim
Thanks mate.
I’m off to the MacDonald resort in Calahonda on Sunday, thanks for your observations earlier in the month.
blantyretim is praying for the knox family
21:33 on 30 January, 2015
Must’ve been when you were on the 263, resent it.
Keep the Faith!
Hail Hail!
Emeraldbee@21:32
“Piquancy” sorry that type of language is not acceptable even on on Friday night, yellow card :0)
Just heard from my wee mate there who works in the central station. A mob of NI huns decked out in full deadco gear prowling around . Dodgy atmosphere in town according to him.
2 nil half time then John Guidetti diets on for second half. Gets his hat trick and we get 6.
I soooo want that to happen.
This week has summed it all up for me.
Hopefully it has aligned our support too.
I will be happy with one nil. But would love to hammer them.
BT
Aye need to arrange a wee swarrie in the tyre. Maybe Oldtim could go further east for a wee swally
Don’t know if any irish based lads heard tom english on the Dublin based radio station Today Fm earlier ( about 645) usual stuff, presenter asked him what about these celtic fans who say Sunday is the first t
Still having some trouble logging on to CQN so I decided that I would see if things were running as normal.
This isn’t scientific but I looked at last fridays article and at this time it had 14 pages of comments, compared to 8 for todays article.
Now I’m no authority on why posters choose to post on blogs but I would have thought that people would be more likely to post on the run up to our first ever game against the tribute act from Govan as opposed to a blog on the same tribute act’s goalkeeper betting on games.
Still having to clear cache before I can log on, used both .co.uk and .com , I think others may be having similar difficulties.
Lennybhoy
I was chanting tunes on the way home.
We shall not we shall not be moved not by the orcs the dobs or the kid on Huns we shall not be moved
I will continue sorry
Premature posting
…Sunday is the first time these clubs have met etc, he gave an answer along the lines of ” martin o Neill, Kenny daglish, neil lennon, uefa and the sfa all acknowledge they are the same team. ….
Burnley78
21:42 on
30 January, 2015
6-0 66/1
6-1 80/1
6-2 150/1
What one should I bet on? :-)
HH
CRC
Whits
Norman Bates FC…………
johnbay
Have a wee look at Parkville guest rooms Oldtim will be happy to stay there and have a wee tyre night
He refuses to stay in my or anyone’s home
Big Cup Winners
Enjoy Calahonda. Sounds better than Scotland at this time of year.
Gearing myself up for Sunday. …Come on Andy. Get the day off to a perfect start.
BT
Ofski to get rebelled up
Sorry oops am a feck oh ah
Marrakesh Express
Just scrolled back and seen your post about wee jinky’s best
game against Dundee United, i was honoured to have been
there and witnessed it, at one stage the fullback and midfielder
were arguing who was going to try and tackle him and just like
todays crowd we had the usual numbskull up the back of the
jungle who shouted ” awe fur feks sake Johnston part wey
the baw ” unbelievable.
H.H Mick