If you want to criticise Celtic for taking a January holiday while the country suffers and you have been stuck at home for 10 months, go for it, there’s acres of space below. The football bubble is difficult to reconcile when people are currently falling ill and dying in such numbers, the optics are poor; Celtic, really?
But if you are responsible for setting the rules of the football bubble, like the Scottish Government are, you are responsible for what is permitted within that bubble.
If you gave specific permission for Celtic’s trip to Dubai, like the Scottish Government did, you and you alone have no right to issue PR statements of condemnation.
This contrasts with the Scottish Government’s congratulatory comments for Newco after punishing their players who broke bubble rules, a marked contrast to their reaction after Celtic punished Boli Bolingoli.
I get that this Government is a world leader at PR, that their leader appears to spend much of her day preparing and delivering her message of PR brilliance and that they effortlessly dig into Celtic without self-awareness.
And I know this is a lot easier than their day job, like deciding whether to send infected patients to care homes or not, running an education system, controlling a police force who witness sectarian crime without concern, and ensuring NHS hospitals do not have to issue statements of regret after poor cleaning-related deaths.
All this magnificent PR keeps eyes away from how that day job is being performed. Scotland has a death rate higher than all but six countries in the world, including countries run by incompetent fools, like the rest of the UK – who we continue to shadow for inexplicable reasons – and the US.
Your government wants people to talk about Celtic, not look at the death count. The former is embarrassing and the latter is worse only in Peru, Belgium, Italy and three former Yugoslav countries. I am not part of this cult.
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Shortie still going on about Celtic going to Dubai, yesterday they actually asked the Deputy First Minister if we would be allowed back in? What?
He replied that we would but full quarantine rules for overseas travel will be applied, not sure what that means, maybe they will make up some new ones just for us :-)
!!BADA BING!! on 5TH JANUARY 2021 4:38 PM
“We will appoint a foreign manager, who is used to having players bought and sold from under him……..let me think who would do that for Celtic?”
Bada that happens at most major European clubs, Ajax, Dortmund, Liverpool, Man City & Bayern etc. It’s the norm now that a committee is responsible for identifying and deciding who goes and who stays and who they will try and buy in the next window. The Head Coach, “Managers”, are included at some point in that process, but, the majority of these clubs do not allow them to have the final aye or nay, except, of course, he’s one of the top 5, that’s generally a decision that’s made by the committee or a casting vote from the DoF if tied.
If we want to truly be a European club then we do have to adopt these principles in recruitment as well as the Sport Sciences etc.
I don’t include PL being the DoF though :)) por cierto
“I’ve seen comments from the club that it’s more for R&R than training”.
—-
Really FM ? Could you provide me with those quotes or are you talking pish ?
To me, the greatest folly in all of this has been letting schools re-open
—
well said
i made that point several times on here months ago
if we all look at our own town or city – think how many schools there are and how many hundreds of kids are in each of them, and how they gather together outside and inside school, and then go home and mingle with their families- there is no way transmission of covid in our communities could be halted while schools remained open the way they have been.
and the uk governments knew this
which is why they had to hyper-inflate other areas and claim they were the major cause of transmission and use those as squirrels to deflect from their pig headed refusal to act on the real major causes
it was an admiral intention to get the schools open but circumstances quickly overtook those admiral intentions but the governments refused to act, almost to the point of criminal negligence considering how many covid related deaths and illnesses that inaction must have caused, not to mention job losses and devastation in those other areas, and additional billions on the national debt
i believe if the schools hadnt reopened the rate of infection – and deaths – would be much lower
but here we are 10 months later and the governments have made zero progress, but are likely to get bailed out by the medical firms vaccines, which they can claim no credit for
so you heard it hear first – the main issue has been hyper-inflated squirrels!!
AN DÚN on 5TH JANUARY 2021 5:53 PM
heard her say that with a cheeky wee grin on her face, yeah please direct us to the location of these comments
PC- thanks for reply, not at Liverpool since Klopp turned up, that was one of his conditions, and I don’t think he’s bought a bad one yet,I’m sure you get my point, but we need a proper football man to be a Director of Football, particularly for squad management, and to work hand in hand with a head coach. HH
AN DÚN:
Yeah I found that rather suspect myself.
I mean, to me it seems clear that there’s no footballing reason for this, it’s a jaunt, it’s a Jolly Boys Outing for team building or some other such thing more than training or anything, but to suggest that the club’s own statements spell that explicitly is not true, to be frank, unless we’ve both completely missed something.
It’s there in the implication when the club talks about doing this every year and when Callum repeats that assertion as if this wasn’t exceptional circumstances, but it’s nonsense to say the club has made such a statement explicit. I’d love to know what quotes she was referring to.
SETTING FREE THE BEARS FOR RES. 12 & OSCAR KNOX on 5TH JANUARY 2021 3:37 PM
Your defence of Neil Lennon is admirable. However, I would like to present the case for the opposition.
You mention a similar reaction from fans to losing TIAR in 1975 as is currently happening. That must be your memory from conversations on the terracing, from discussions with friends socially etc. We didn’t have social media in those days to gauge the reaction of large numbers of Celtic fans like we do now. My memories differ from yours. I certainly remember disappointment at failing to get TIAR but there was absolutely no recriminations of the type we have now. Our manager was Jock Stein. He had won the European Cup, taken us to another final and only the previous season we had contested the European Cup semi final against Athletico Madrid. As for criticism of players. That had and has always happened and will happen in the future. Jinky and Yogi as well as others were criticised. There is very little similarity in the reaction of the support then compared to the reaction of the support now. Fans are angry because we seized defeat from the jaws of victory due to the sheer incompetence of those in charge of the club. They should never have appointed Neil as manager on a permanent basis.
Pointing out that Neil rejoined us knowing the damage it would do to his mental health is not a point that should be used in Neil’s defence. If that has any truth in it then he was guilty of folly. Please don’t use that as something we should feel guilty about. It is not our fault.
As for abandoning our previous support of him, you are well aware that thousands of Celtic fans made it clear that we did not support the appointment of Neil. Lots of us were opposed to it second time around.
Your introduction of John McGinn is totally spurious. He was not and never has been a Celtic player. Again large numbers of people and posters on here didn’t want him signed. He’s a mere distraction of no relevance in this debate.
While you are not just talking about Neil when you mention fans inflating the weaknesses and failures (of Celtic employees) without any counterbalancing measure of their strengths and values, in Neil’s case, sadly, there have been a lot of weaknesses and very little need to inflate them. At this time, after a horrendous season so far, it is difficult to think of strengths to highlight as a counterbalance.
The fans who want Neil Lennon to leave have nothing to be ashamed of. Others have pointed out earlier the near deification of Neil amongst a number of our fans. I don’t quite understand it but I respect their views. His time has come and gone. I still see Celtic primarily as a European team. We need a manager who is up to the demands of making Celtic a force in Europe again. Neil Lennon is not that man. He has cost the Club millions of pounds in lost European revenue and quite frankly our performance in the Europa League turned us into a laughing stock. We will never realise any ambitions while he is at the helm. That’s the bottom line.
!!Bada Bing!! on 5th January 2021 6:03 pm
PC- thanks for reply, not at Liverpool since Klopp turned up, that was one of his conditions, and I don’t think he’s bought a bad one yet,I’m sure you get my point, but we need a proper football man to be a Director of Football, particularly for squad management, and to work hand in hand with a head coach. HH
——–
I’m not sure about that, last I read Liverpool are very proud of their transfer setup using a “committee” and not relying on 1 person (the manager).
Didn’t Klopp say he wasn’t in favour of signing Salah but the club were.
J.F. Let’s do.
Not just the schools, all education.
Unis and Colleges as soon as they opened, figures through the roof.
Students appear to have been treated appallingly, as cash cows for the Unis.
They are still have to pay for Uni Accommodation, that they are not allowed to stay in, also all workplaces had to implement 2 metre rule, Unis still crammed students in bedsits, in some cases 12 students sharing one kitchen and they wonder why figures exploded.
ROCK TREE BHOY on 5TH JANUARY 2021 5:41 PM
John Kennedy moulded?
That’s all very well depending on who is doing the moulding . If PL is moulding him into the kind of Manager he wants God help us. If Lenny is moulding him into a manager who will operate in the same manner as himself regarding tactics , team selection etc then God help us .
THEORIGINALSADIESBHOY on 5TH JANUARY 2021 6:03 PM
My memories differ from yours. I certainly remember disappointment at failing to get TIAR but there was absolutely no recriminations of the type we have now.
I agree, indeed some fans sung, it’s magic you know, we are happy with 9 in a row.
How Liverpool’s transfer committee went from laughing stock to most respected in Europe
https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/how-liverpools-transfer-committee-went-16479508
“The arrival of Jurgen Klopp re-opened the lines of communication between Liverpool’s manager and the transfer committee.
The Reds boss, unlike his predecessor, was willing to loosen his grip across certain avenues of the club, freeing Edwards and his team up to work in a more relaxed environment.
The results have been spectacular for everyone concerned.”
” the prospect of a negative press ”
Celtic ? In Scotland ? Never
JIMMYNOTPAUL:
I was absolutely flabbergasted when I realised student unions were still charging students for rooms they weren’t staying in or for education they weren’t getting. Total greed and exploitative.
I graduated Stirling with 2.1 Honours. I never got the certificate. It doesn’t hang on my wall. Stirling retains it because they claim I owe them £165 for a room I never spent a day in.
So maybe I shouldn’t have BEEN surprised, but I was. It’s horrific.
Just seen bojo say from Monday England will be giving vaccine updates everyday ! Seems Scottish government not as keen ! Wonder how that could be !
STV has Nicola Sturgeon suggesting that we went to Dubai for R and R rather than training and STV chose to back this up by showing the players lying by the pool. No pictures of us actually training. Wonder what slant the BBC Scotland will push?
Oh, and our First Minister said she was being diplomatic…..
THE_HUDDLE- thanks for the info, I knew Klopp had much more input than Rodgers etc,managers won’t have the time to scout players constantly at his level,i watched a piece on him recently, and he identified a player for a certain position ( that will never catch on…),and the Club went after him.HH
I wonder if the FM sits on her ass and drinks tea and has pictures taken of her i office hours?
Scottish Government has known from the outset that we were going to Dubai. When did they decide we shouldn’t be going?
Surely they should have communicated that before Saturday?
Did they just decide yesterday that they weren’t happy about it?
Her Police Force have allowed sectarian abuse of Celtic players and staff, stood back and allowed it, an Inspector at arms length from an abuser done nothing, now its to be investigated after a complaint from Celtic.
Sectarian graffiti painted underneath the Kingston Bridge in Glasgow with the slogan Kill all Taigs does not warrant a response.
Now she wont publish figures on the numbers vaccinated in Scotland.
All her focus on a trip to Dubai which is taking place with allegations of it not being what is was supposed to be.
Does anyone know who is producing these photos from Dubai? Is there a gang of Scottish press out there with the team and if so, did they fly out on the plane with the team? Surely not. Surely we cannot be entertaining Scottish journalists given the negativity they show towards Celtic. Possible though given that we entertain adverts for the Daily Record at the stadium.
BBC Scotland’s report was much more balanced. It showed us training; the photos of the players sitting round the pool were mentioned but not shown, as they were not verified.
Their correspondent also said that he understood that the SFA had no plans to investigate the trip.
Bada if my memory serves me well Liverpool pre the beast had a selection committee that was part of the boot room which he dismantled.
Sid… I was using Cathro as an example of where it can go spectacularly wrong…. But hearts were getting praise for being innovative and indeed he must have shown something in the interviews……. Rather than not knowing what I’m talking about I’m using him as an example of knowing exactly what I’m talking about…… Naivety is worse than mediocrity in a manager situation……
NS commenting about the photos.
Not long since she was pointing out how the photos from the wake with her mask off were misrepresenting her.
Connairre
Apparently at least one Celtic supporter staying in the same hotel.
Jimmynotpaul, I was in my 20s when the TIAR never happened, I left the country that summer.
There was no demand for 10 just that it would be nice tae get double figures. Initially we were singing “its magic you know oh oh gonna be 10 n a row”.
After New Year and they were top of the league they started chanting “never be 10 in a row”.
When it looked like neither we or the Hibbees were going tae win it we changed it tae “happy with 9 in a row”.
We sung that at both the Scottish and Glasgow Cup Finals, with bravado and gusto tae.
DESSYBHOY! Sturgeon has never missed a chance to talk through this pandemic! Got to wonder why she is hesitant to update on vaccine! Surely this is a chance to prove how devolved health works!
WINNINGEMMELL on 5TH JANUARY 2021 6:17 PM
” the prospect of a negative press ”
Celtic ? In Scotland ? Neve r
Indeed WG.tis lovely watchin the naivety of the social meeja circus surrounding Celtic.and easy to wind up too.
HH
An tearmann
From earlier : Cheers. Never thought a discussion on shared would be a light relief.:)
AN TEARMANN:
Do you know one of the principle reasons Rangers died whilst their supporters stood around and waited for someone else to come and save the day?
A combination of two things; a sense of entitlement and sheer laziness.
They, too, were winning things and enjoying success. When you tried to tell them their club was badly run and that they were on the downslope they never believed a word of it.
Their entire support was sleeping at the wheel; I laugh at how they blame everyone else for it, including Murray, including Whyte, when had they done a little homework and looked at their club with any sort of critical eye they’d have seen the trouble coming a mile down the road as many of us did.
Tell yourself that our job is to be cheerleaders as you like; some of us take it more seriously than that. I know this; if people weren’t doing it, people like you certainly wouldn’t be.
So accuse of being in bed with the enemy as you well; Ibrox fans would have said the same about any of their own bloggers had there been any who were giving Murray stick during “the glory years.”
We know exactly what we’re doing and why.
Tontine Tim. 7.09.
Thanks for confirming my memory of it.
You know, when I was posting, I was thinking, what if my memory is playing tricks and it was only a few of us, so great joy, when someone with great knowledge like yourself, remembered it, too.
WT
Wait and see they arent particularly good at running devolved departments, annual flu jabs were taken away from GP surgeries, I therefore got 2 appointment one from the NHS on a National level and one from my local health board, this was the first appointment I attended told the staff I had another appointment with them to give me it on a different date, girl said ok put the letter on a desk , I got my jab, several weeks later the National people sent me a letter saying how important it was to get the flu vaccine,I contacted them and told them to update their records as I had been done,so the systems are not joined up, many people will get several appointments for the same thing even though they had it and other waiting wait longer.
Shambles.
Totally agree with you Paul. Fantastic excuse to avoid real issues. With media and politicians in tandem against us the game’s a bogey. Only ourselves to blame though ultimately. Can some Celtic person of good come to our aid! Has anybody got Fergus’s phone number?
Desmond Makes The Call On Lennon. So What Does The Rest Of Celtic’s Board Do?
So the news broke today that Dermot Desmond backs the manager and is happy for him to continue in his role after the “January review” – which clearly was every bit as much a piece of window dressing as we all thought it would be when we heard about it.
Well, let’s be honest, it’s not much of a surprise is it?
As long as it’s mathematically possible or completely and unmistakably untenable – which means such an unacceptable state of affairs that it unifies the fan-base and leaves them nowhere to go – they will stand by their man.
Decide for yourself what the reasons for that are. I think it’s a mixture of misplaced loyalty, lack of imagination and a total failure of strategic vision, but you may have theories of your own. What matters tonight isn’t the decision itself – which in my view is clearly wrong, and even dangerous to the club – but the way that it’s apparently been made.
The press has said it’s Dermot Desmond’s call. Which kind of makes me wonder why his opinion is the only one that seems to matter at Celtic Park.
Let’s do a quick refresher on everything Dermot Desmond is not.
Dermot Desmond is not a sugar-daddy owner who bankrolls Celtic with his own money.
Dermot Desmond is Celtic’s largest shareholder, not the majority shareholder.
Dermot Desmond is not the chairman of Celtic.
Dermot Desmond is not the head of the football department at Celtic.
On the surface of it, Dermot Desmond lacks the statutory authority to make that call. He doesn’t have a majority of votes on the board for it nor the shareholding to make his writ run. If he was chairman or CEO you could understand how the rest might be inclined to allow him the leeway to take unchecked decisions on some issues … but surely not this?
Where does he get the idea that Celtic is his to run as he sees fit?
What do the rest of the directors do all day?
What influence do they have?
What authority do they hold?
Do they have opinions on the big issues, or are they just mutes who accept what Desmond wants? Are they serious individuals, as we’re always told, or are they empty shirts and placemen?
Celtic is not a dictatorship, but to all appearances it seems to be run like one, with Lawwell and Desmond riding roughshod over everyone else. The rest of the board might hide behind “collective responsibility” but I have always believed that was a philosophy that allows cowards to keep their heads down and the ruthless to do what they want.
I want to know from time to time what other people on our board think. I want to know that they are independent, with opinions, which makes retaining them worthwhile.
Look at our chairman and ask yourself; when did this guy make an effective contribution? When has he ever? What is his purpose? Listen to Lennon himself for an idea of what I’m talking about; how many times have you heard him say “I speak to Ian regularly”? He talks to Lawwell every day. He talks to Desmond at least twice a week.
So why those two?
What’s his relationship like with the chairman of Celtic Football Club?
It’s just not actually clear if he talks to Bankier or the rest of the board at all.
But it’s the whole board that should be making the call on his future, not his two pals.
Dermot Desmond is not Celtic.
Without the votes to dominate the boardroom, why is he allowed to? He doesn’t finance the club, so nobody ought to be worried about his taking his ball home; if he walked tomorrow, what would the impact on Celtic actually be?
I would reckon somewhere close to zero.
So what is going on here?
He gets to leak it to the press that the review is over and that Lennon stays?
Are you telling me that nobody on our board – nobody at all – thinks that maybe this season is gone and that we should be working to put ourselves in the best possible place for the next one? We hear how Desmond “chose” Rodgers, how he protects Lennon, how he “won’t give in” to the protests … but since when is his The Final Word?
The Ibrox board under David Murray is damned by history for allowing him to run up debts, introducing EBT’s and finally for not opposing the sale to Craig Whyte. Their excuse was that Murray was the big chief because he owned the club and that he would take decisions which they were in no position to oppose.
What’s our board’s excuse?
When do these people crawl out from under the bed and start exerting their own influence on events? Do they even care to? Or are they just utter chancers, who’ve got used to the soft seats and the people who smile and shake their hands on the good days whilst being perfectly happy for others to take the flak when things aren’t quite so great?
Do they think that their low profiles will insulate them from a share of the blame?
Well it’s not going to.
Every one of Celtic’s directors is under the same microscope here; I’ve already done a lengthy piece on why we should consider the position of Brian Wilson. Something on our absentee chairman might be appropriate for the next one.
See, in a sense I understand this; Lawwell is never shy about strutting around like a peacock when things are good, and Desmond himself preens for the media when all’s well in the world whilst the rest of our board never gets either spotlight or credit.
If their view on this is that those two are good at hogging the limelight and thus can be saddled with the blame, I’d say think again because that’s the kind of utter selfishness which will be remembered.
It’s time for the rest of them to start speaking up and fighting for what they believe in, if that is they believe in anything at all.
Dessybhoy
Similar experience. Several reminders after I had been immunised.
I watched reporting Scotland and felt that the report on us was reasonably balanced but completely unnecessary. Apart from an opportunity to have a go at Celtic, I cannot see that it was really newsworthy.