I’m not going to say I saw this coming, I didn’t see defeat, but when I wrote a couple of days ago that you and I have seen a lot more games like Celtic’s away to Lincoln Red Imps than Brendan Rodgers, and about European football in July, I knew this one was never going to play out in a triumphant manner.
On the first day he was appointed I asked one of you to compile Brendan an Efe highlights video – I assume we were all busy. God love Efe, he’s a fine man by all accounts, but he’s three years into a slump which is not going to end at Celtic. Brendan must now be aware. It’s no longer Efe’s fault if he costs us again.
I also made the point previewing this game that we can’t expect a squad comprising only one addition to last season’s group to perform remarkably different in qualification than a year ago. In this sense, Celtic performed as expected, this one had all the hallmarks of our recent Icelandic ventures.
The manager may not be embarrassed at the result (I suspect he might sound different privately) but many supporters are. Gibraltar has a population similar to Bellshill, but without the football heritage and support mechanism. Would defeat to Bellshill Athletic be embarrassing? You bet. Yesterday’s result was too.
We are woefully slow in build-up and have only one player in the squad who can create the 7 or 8 chances per game needed to get a result, and he’s 33 next month and currently injured.
We remain strong favourites to qualify for the next round but there is an enormous amount of work to be done in the next month. This is not a Champions League squad.
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It’s looking like after all the euphoria it is heading for a false dawn. The puzzle for me is I thought BR would not have sighed up without some sort of an assurance of funds for new players. I would say watching that last night Ambrose, Bitton, Brown, Forrest, Cifti, Janko are not good enough or have had their day. Armstrong and Rogic really have to get the their finger out. The rest were just about okay. Scary
Not really getting all this stuff about the players being “not good enough”.
Not good enough? To beat a part-time team? Really?
They were good enough to comfortably win the Scottish league. Okay – not the best, but a decent mid-level European league.
Clearly they didn’t play nearly well enough last night, but they will beat that team comfortably at home.
Isn’t this more about the death of 4-2-3-1? We saw it at the Euro’s, if you play one through the middle it’s not that hard to defend against. Everyone is saying that teams are better organized these days. I disagree. How and why are they better organised? It’s down to playing 1 striker.
Lincoln Red Imps sound more like the mixed infants dancing display than a fitba’ team…
..anyways, many happy returns to ole [even older] Old Tim.
Morning Celts
Leigh Griff…..40 goal striker, played on the wing…..wake up brendan ffs.
Scott Brown..,,,,Drop him
Bitton….yeah, somebody was clever knocking back 6m
Efe….Just no.
James Forrest….just no
Celtic beaten by a part-time team from Gibraltar…..That is bad, no doubt.
Cheque book out….or its going to be another season of a Celtic team……with no heart.
Shocking.
HH
I see the pitch is being quoted by some as as factor in last night’s debacle. I could understand this if we played fast silky football ala Barcelona or the 1970 Brazil team. Sadly we don’t and the most perfect pitch in the world won’t make Efe Ambrose a competent defender, Scott Brown, a good passer or James Forrest, a fast direct footballer with the heart of a lion. The truth is, these and many others in our squad are utter muck and Brendan Rodgers must now realise that he has been sold a pig in a poke by Dermot Desmond.
The big problem now is that the season ticket money has been banked, Lawwell’s bonus is virtually guaranteed and I suspect very little will change in terms of the crap players the new manager has to choose from. I hope I am wrong but I haven’t been in terms of the club’s direction over the past five recent seasons.
One thing I think the club should do in terms of recognising how bad last night was. We should tell New Balance that the kit will be binned. I’m not suggesting it was to blame although I have seen comments about the stupidity of wearing an all black strip in the Med. in high summer. At least the players weren’t wearing the hoops for what turned out to be the worst game in the club’s history.
Bring back the 442, Leicester City style. Solid no nonesense centre halves, overlapping full backs who can also defend, two hard working central midfielders who can pass the ball, a playmaker coming off one wing and a pacy winger on the other and a front two partnership that has pace and scores goals, one can drop off when not in possession.
Gordon
New RB Sviatchenko New CB Tierney
Roberts New CM Armstrong New LW
Griffiths Dembele
Armstrong could be replaced by McGregor or Henderson or Ajer as CM.
Rome was indeed not built in a day
We have gone from a position of financial strength in 2012 to the hampden and Gibraltar shambles
Why ? One blogger said mr Rodgers has to look at each position and fill it with a player suitable
That all stopped in 2012 with the moneyball project ie only buy players who we could sell to EPL within two years A total shambles from Lawell and park that cost our club over 60 m in lost income
Brendan now has to work very hard to reverse lawell’s losses over last few years
Ps. Resolution 13 Sack Lawell and park
Mr Rodgers
This is the key to a team with no heart.
A goalkeeper who isnt confident, spreads the uncertainty throughout the team.
Id suggest thats why we were looking at Danny Ward.
Replace CG with a solid dependable keeper.
Sell the mentally weak….who have started where they left off last season….Drop Scott Brown, Bitton, Efe, James Forrest, Ciftci,….or sell them now, if we can.
No more of this disgraceful mental weakness.
A team of highly paid so-called professionals well beaten by part-timers from Gibraltar.
That is not good enough for Celtic…..No fecking way.
HH
Assuming we overturn the imps next week, I hope and pray that I will be watching an unrecognisably different Celtic team in the next qualifying round.
If not, we will not see the final qualifying round.
I didn’t think we could go backwards from some of last season’s awful displays, but last night we did.
We are still a team of strangers.
Only 3 weeks into the Rogers era so there is time.
However the squad are still playing the same nonsense and games.
Two seperate teams out on the park who will not pass to each other.
The side to side nonsense is killing us.
SB is finished unfortunately barring a miracle.
NB has downed tools — Last night was nearly as bad as the SCSF debacle.
All that was missing was the phantom sore leg.
Not an auspicious start to the ole 50th anniversary season….
DBBIA/FoolsGoldCSC
Lessons for Brendan
1) Efe should never play in central defence – the only option for Efe (imho) is middle of midfield or be sold
2) We set up 4-3-3 with Brown Bitton Rogic in the middle basically our creative midfield was made up of our two holding midfield players (Brown Bitton) from last season
3) We played Christie up front on the left and Griffiths on the right – imho playing the 2 of them out of position
4) The pitch was a nightmare and definitely brought us down to their level
My final point, Brendan – correctly – needs to see his current players play in real games before he makes his mind up i think (again only my opinion) he has seen enough of Efe and he has concerns about Gordon Brown Bitton
67ECW
Leigh Griff….played out wide.
FFS….How stupid is that?
Seriously.
If that is Brendan’s idea of progression…I worry.
Seemingly, Brendan watched all our games from last season….Well, he must have fell asleep after watching 5 minutes.
What next….Craig Gordon on the left -wing?
Are we sure Ronny has left the building?
HH
Gary67 10:06
Not convinced that’s the answer. Leicester play a counter-attacking game.
We have been found out in the past with that system – McGeady/Maloney wide. Also more recently – Aberdeen in the cup two seasons ago. You just get outnumbered in the middle.
I’d go with a 4-3-3. And get McGregor in the team!
SYDNEYTIM
I’m broadly in agreement with that,bud. BR will have taken the job knowing that there was serious work to be done on the squad.
Not just in replacing some,but in getting the true potential from others.
He will also have demanded assurances that money,up to an agreed level,would be available for players that HE decides are required.
If ever the club needed a strong manager to face down the bean-counters,it is now. We’ve been buggered about for too long as it is.
And another thing attitude will impress Brendan not sure Forrest took his chance to show positive attitude
But I thought (and I am not a fan) Cifti had a go
67ECW
The team lost last night because nobody wanted to fight their own individual battles.
LRI got the message very quickly and reacted appropriately.
Consequently failed at the basics.
No leadership on the park.
I guess we should drop Efe. Play Lustig at CB.
Bring in Gunter at RB.
Even the subs last night were a joke. Could Brendan have got it any more wrong, I seriously doubt it. Ronny Deila hold your head high this morning, that bunch of gutless spineless losers let you down big time. The new guys gonna make you look like Mourinho.
Also….stop with the excuses,…..thats why we are in this position.
Good players can play on any surface….End of.
If you cannot do the basics….why are you a professional football player ffs.
Too much money for Prima Donna halfwits with no heart….stop this now.
You cant fight for the jersey….then GTF
HH
And one more thing – not playing Roberts ???
I think Brendan was protecting him from the pitch and saw it as a physical game
Roberts will not play in the friendly on Sat but will next week
67ECW
When Ronny left I said the new manager would do well to equal his achievement of winning the league by 15 points. RD got the most out of these ordinary players. I think some people will soon be revising their opinion of him.
BR should start by getting rid of Bitton and Forrest. Showing some fight is a minimum requirement. When things are not going your way these are the last players you want. Unfortunately GMS, although a nice footballer, is in the same category.
Bobby. To show the fans the club really means business, Lawell should be removed now
A comment about black strips. Alex Ferguson ( who I am not saying is the worlds best manger). Binned man united blacks strips saying it was harder to pick out your own players
It is a know fact. So how sanctioned it
67ECW
I hope you are correct and we will see Roberts. However I fear Forrest and Armstrong will get the nod. Roberts and McGregor were outstanding last 10 games of last season. John Kennedy speak up, you were there.
TGM … @ 10.25
Good players that can be bothered can play on any surface.
Something was missing last night.
Don’t understand why he isn’t giving Roberts a game?? Can anybody tell me something I have missed with that one. Also think Armstrong should be starting. Thought he brought some good energy through the middle. Both bitton and Ambrose need sold now.
I sometimes wonder if the players are fit enough?
Perhaps the problem is that the players BR wants won’t come to Celtic(last night will have helped with recruitment FFS!) so he has to work with that lot none of whom appear to have any heart or pride or real desire.
However, he is not helping himself by playing that team.
EVERY supporter could have told him about playing Efe at CH and about a midfield of Bitton, Brown & Rogic and that Griff scores goals in or around the box NOT out on the feckin right wing!
Things can only get better…I hope.
Now we should see what kind of manager we have.
Efe has one year left on his deal, at say £10k a week. Just pay him the £500k and say bye bye. He will end up costing us way more than that.
Just as well we didn’t spend three weeks preparing for that match last night, eh?
Kris Commons…oh lordy…the guy was done 2 years ago.
Bitton and Forrest are two of the biggest shitebags I’ve ever seen at anything.
Brown is a world championship starer and shit passer of the ball
efe ambrose is the biggest dud of a centre half who costs us games week in week out.
Brendan Rodgers if he plays all of these 4 again in one game would deserve his jotters instantly,
lets hope he is a quick learner.
As for our PLC, spend some fecking money on the squad.
the fans have backed the club big style this year.
the PLC have spent 300k. that’s as much as a disgrace as losing last night.
Paddy Roberts our most effective and influential player last year dropped????????
this may be a long season afterall
I really hope Brendan roasted those mugs in the dressing room.
Fecking chancers most of them.
Brendan….be ruthless.
The players who wont fight for the jersey…..get rid of them now.
They are a bad joke.
Scott Brown first…..we need a real creative mid, not a liability.
Craig Gordon….Drop him until he learns to fight
Efe….Surely
Bitton…Bit-part more like.
James Forrest….More interested in his quiff…..chase now
All gutless….sadly.
Clear it out Brendan…..now.
HH
GLASSTWOTHIRDSFULL
If we play 433, and that’s what I’d like to see, then we need to do it playing players in their best positions. If we want to get Griffiths and Dembele in the team it has to be a formation with two central strikers playing as a partnership. Last night we had Griffiths on the right wing, out of position, Dembele as lone striker, he played in a front two at Fulham, and Christie on the left wing, out of position.
To play 433 we need pace on the wing, we don’t have that and is probably why BR is trying to get Sinclair.
Ownie bhoy on 13th July 2016 10:31 am
Some called McGeady a one trick pony, which is inaccurate but that would be one more trick than Armstrong possesses. No guile, technically average Dundee Utd player.
HH
I think SAF binned the grey strip after they got humped at Southampton- he might even have done it at h/time.
Anyways, only one team in the world should wear all black…
Here’s a wee scenario, Forrest has one year left on his deal. Nobody whatsoever is remotely interested in signing him. Let’s say for example Paddy Roberts was in the same boat. The offers would be flying in. For heavens sake Brendan wake up.
We shouldn’t have to wait till we’re beaten by Sevco to appoint a new manager; we shouldn’t have to wait to suffer complete humiliation against a team of part-timers to get rid of the dross in our squad. But we do!
As a club we should be pro-active not merely reacting to disasters.
Where is the vision? Where is the plan?
Can anyone tell me what our style of play is?
Oot!