I remember some disparaging comment from sections of the Scottish sporting media regarding Mikael Lustig’s performances for Sweden at Euro 2012. Mikael had only recently joined Celtic and was still finding his feet in Scotland. In short, we didn’t have enough information to make an informed judgement before the Euros. We do now.
His energy levels, speed, height, crossing and general levels of performance has been remarkably high and consistent. Sweden handed him the job of subduing one of the world’s top three players at their recent World Cup qualifier in Portugal, Ronaldo was shackled, scoring only when he left Mikael’s area of the field.
There is a notion that this type of player, who can perform solidly at Champions League and international level, but who we can convince to renew his contract, is more important than the more stellar performers, who have an eye on the exit door.
Adam Matthews timely return from injury will compensate for Mikael’s absence as he recuperates post-op, but we’ve never looked as effective on the right since both of them were fully fit.
The reaction to yesterday’s AGM at Ibrox has been surprising, mostly as it surprised anyone. The outcome has been a forgone conclusion for weeks (if not months), while the realisation of what the future is going to look like for Newco has finally dawned on a few.
A generation brought up to believe in sugar daddies will have to learn: expenditure must equal or be less than income over any given business cycle.
In this respect, I cannot figure why fans are so unhappy with the Newco board, whose central failing has been to spend far too much money on wages for a manager and players. From what I hear, no one at the AGM demanded football budget is cut to an appropriate level.
As their new chairman said, costs will be cut; doing so is a financial imperative. The current Rangers might play in the same colours as its liquidated predecessor, but things will never – eeeeeeeever – be the same again.
This afternoon is the final pre-Christmas posting time if you want your CQN Annual before the day:
Willie Wallace, Heart of a Lion:
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Lubo Moravcik, or as Chick Young introduced him on news of his signing… Morakchov.
Anyone remember his first game at Celtic Park, Dundee I think, and the drilled cross he played, hit the ball with the laces of his right boot, just off centre, moving the ball left to right to the outside, finishing head height at the back post on the 6 yard line. Perfect.
We should teach our kids how to hit a football like that.
Turns out he could do it with the other foot too, in open play or dead ball.
Remarkably talented footballer.
One day even Chick Young might be able to pronounce the man’s name.
EDB
I knew you didn’t, and if I disagreed with you I would say so >}
I also agree that they have been good servants to us, and wish them well whatever they decide.
Thanks, and a Felis Navidad to you as well.
The rainy season is starting here, only a few showers since April/May, at least the rain keeps the frost away.
HH
Murray’s mince more like
DJBEE
I bet I could get to the bar at BB faster than most of the CQN cliquers and that’s with me leaving from the hoose
fastfeetfergusCSC
Margaret McGill
Very funny, and next thing, we knew we were Thug n Thieves,
and this Christmas the Polis are coming to get us before Santa
has arrived.
Green Birigade Food Banks CSC
fergus slayed the blues
19:25 on 20 December, 2013
Vmhan
Wee buzzbomb was my favourite..
,,,,,,,,,
Fstb, didnae think ye were old enough to see him :>)
All players mentioned were great Celts….. Memories eh!
HH
Huns (plural) on Snyde (I know, I know) now want whatever they’re called to go into admin. Shug says you want them to go into admin again??!!
He even says second time again, I can’t help listening sometimes, usually a Friday with the red flowing.
Duffy says re-supporting rankgers
Awright I am away to bed.
The sound bites from Lenny around Joe and Sammy are very similar to those that surrounded Hoops and Big Vic, lots of “we have made them an offer” , “neither has said they want to leave ” etc.
Personally , I think they have both been good players, Sammy in particular away from home in a Europe has been superb.
However, if they don’t want to stay, I would punt them in January.
We need to do what is best for Celtic, and if that means a bit of hardball, then so be it.
Sammy will be desperate to go to the World Cup, but he will only do that if he is playing first team football. In Joe’s case I suspect he has already been sounded out by a Norwich / Stoke / WBA type team,and again, he either goes now, or his profile drops and he ends up with a promoted team, or one who just avoided relegation.
In both cases not playing first team footie will be detrimental to them, so either they go, or they play in the development squad.
If we could get £1m for the two of them, plus the savings on wages, then we can use that to fund the pay off to Bangura, and the medical bills for Boerrichtet :-)
PS Good luck to Mikhal Lustig, my player of the year for 2013.
Lubo – the Magician
Vham
Aye I’m only a pup ,the grey hair comes from following the bhoys ,I saw wee boaby on the old cine reels
HH
Neil Lennon has shut down his Twitter account. hmmm…
BSR
Maybe the Japanese fella will be Joe’s replacement, he will sell a few bit;s of merchandise, ticks all the boxes for the board, and by all accounts, is no a bad player.
I thought Dylan would kick on, but no game time is stunting his progress imo.
Atajic should be getting more time on the pitch for me, ticks all the boxes for me, his finish against the mothers was quality, he has it, let him prove it.
We have the operchancity to blood a few, let’s see if they can do it.
Biggest problem is the lack of protection for them in scotland.
Sort the referees, sort the problem.
HH
Djbee,
I have heard through the grapevine the two sevconian factions have appointed a mediator
——–
Is a mediator one of those folk you go and see if you want to talk to the dead :-)
Celtic Legend Lubomir Moravcik – A Gift From God
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52EPhY8xYuc
TET
I once doubted the signing of a Japanese bhoy .
The board had just signed a deal with Nike and I thought ,oh here we go .
I won’t make that mistake again .
NAKACSC
TET
Can’t disagree with any of that.
As for Lubo
I was amazed that he had never won a football honour before coming to the Glasgow Celtic .
That should tell us all that there are FOOTBALL players out there young and old ,it’s about having the right scouting ,or signing a manager that has saw them at first hand
without Wim and Uncle Joe we would not be having this great trip down memory lane
HH
jimtim.
I sent you an e-mail,but there seems to be a problem with yahoo,can’t get back on,when I get it fixed I’ll send you another.
Clashcitybhoy
I think so.
Mediator – or
media-tor. re. (media-thor)
That who brings rare mythical analysis, an animal that is an honest and truth writer and journalist who brings newsworthy reports. Lived in the ancient 60’s and 70’s
Ccb 1948
Class!!!!
Confession time re Lubo
Last weekend in Failte my friends and I were picking our all time Celtic XIs and – I blame whisky and lots of it- I picked Lubo ahead of Bertie or Paul McStay.
Should I sign the pledge?
Jimbo67 supporting Oscar Knox
Friend of mine twitted Neil 3 times abt the wisdom of the Turkey trip. No reply too any of them!!
Evening All,
The Winning Captains has wondered off to Christmas Land and so has left me to update the blog re the Annual deliveries so here goes.
Annuals were sent out today to the following destinations:
Norwich
Wimbledon
Motherwell
Thornton Cleverleys
Isle of Barrra
Erskine
Glasgow
Bishopbriggs
Troon
Mauchline
Motherwell
Bishopbriggs
Girvan
Westhill
Cardiff
Edinburgh
Belfast
Dumbarton
Glasgow
Elgin
Norwich
Dunoon
Port Bannatyne
Giffnock
Dumfries
Kilwinning
Bonnybridge
Dunboyne Co Meath
Washington USA
Coogee, NSW
Kitchener, Ontario
Tauranga NZ
Now, if you have not ordered one yet but still want it for Christmas Day then fear not. If you order an annual between tonight and Monday at at 3pm latest, CQN will pay for it to be sent by special delivery with guaranteed next day arrival at no extra cost to the purhaser.
£5 from every annual sale will go to the Malawi Kitchen fund which Paul championed a few days ago.
Remember that fund is to be used to provide a community kitchen in one of the poorest nations on earth– and this particular kitchen will provide food for 1200 children.
Now, we are banging on and on about this because we want to fund the kitchen as quickly as possible and because it is the time of year when “giving” is part of our being.
The Kids in Malawi view a square meal as a luxury yet a necessity. As you read this these same children will be undernourished, starving and in danger through malnutrition on a daily basis.
We want to change that– and change it for good.
I know that every penny is precious at this time of year, but if you are still thinking of a present for someone or thinking about an additional present or last minute stocking filler them please buy an annual.
Many who have received theirs have commented on how impressive it is. It is a weighty tomb at 228 pages and trust me you would not want to walk too far carrying a couple as they are hellish heavy.
All the CQN’ers whose names were on Winning Captain’s list are in there, and there are some new articles and features contained within.
So– it is a good present— BUT…… it is a GREAT cause.
I have said before that this is as near to the Penny Dinners that we will get and that is true.
This whole campaign is in the very spirit of Celtic– pay for something to do with that football team which was formed in 1887 that you will enjoy– and in so doing you will help to feed and change the lives of some of the most vulnerable people on the planet.
Sorry for going on.
Cheers
BRTH
Was there a comment made yesterday abt card o brien at yawn AGM?
FIFA did not ban Indonesia or take any steps. After all it wasnt anything political like waving banners. It was something far more trivial. Basically the manslaughter and abuse of 3rd world footballers. Who cares? really?
http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/25465409
jude2005
Was that last post in a code the rest of us have missed?
Fergus
I admit I was in the same camp as you re signing players from Japan, how wrong we were >}
Saw Japan”s last couple of games, they are a quality side, with quality players, we would do well to sign any of them today.
HH
BRTH,
I echo your sentiments – the CQN annual is a terrific read from cover to cover and those who choose to purchase will not be disappointed.
Towards the end of said publication, I bang on for a few thousand words about our great clubs charitable and sporting links with the sunshine continent, in an article entitled Out of Africa, so I’m delighted that some of the proceeds will go towards a community kitchen in Malawi.
The work of those behind the scenes,work that rarely sees the light of day through individual choice, is invariably the action that creates change.
At CQN, the desire to create the conditions for advancement exists in abundance. It’s a small measure to buy the annual, but it will help, and your Christmas reading will be enhanced in the process !!
TJ
An article from a friend
If you would like to submit an article for publication in the3towns, please send it to opinion@the3towns.com Articles should bear the name and full contact details of the author, and may be edited.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Looking ahead this Christmas
If I told you that most of the Ministers in the SNP Scottish Government are former pupils of Ardrossan Academy, you probably wouldn’t believe me – and you would, of course, be right.
Off the top of my head, I think First Minister Alex Salmond and Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill are both from Linlithgow and attended the local secondary school. Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon went to Greenwood Academy in Dreghorn; Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop is a former pupil of Ayr Academy; Health Secretary Alex Neil is from Patna in South Ayrshire, while Housing Minister Margaret Burgess is originally from Fairlie. Admittedly, there is a bit of an ‘Ayrshire Mafia’ thing going on there, albeit with a relatively wide spread across the county, but there is also Education Secretary Mike Russell who was born and raised in Kent, and Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead from the north-east of Scotland.
It would, of course, be totally incredible if just one school produced a majority of the politicians that govern our country – but if we turn our focus to the UK Parliament in London, that is exactly the situation.
At this point it is worth noting that, under the devolved constitutional settlement, the UK Parliament still has responsibility for crucial areas of government affecting Scotland, such as economic policy, welfare, taxation and defence. It is also worth remembering that the current UK Government is led by the Tory Party, which was soundly rejected at the ballot box by the people of Scotland. The Tories are only able to govern Scotland because our country remains part of the British Union.
Of the Tory frontbench in the UK Parliament, no fewer than 15 members went to the same private school – Eton. From there, most went on to either Oxford or Cambridge.
Many people in Scotland will either be directly affected or will know someone who is directly affected by the ‘austerity’ measures introduced by the Tory-led UK Government. Housing charities estimate between 80,000 and 105,000 Scots are being adversely affected by the Bedroom Tax alone. The Bedroom Tax punishes anyone in a public sector rented house who has even just one room more than the UK Government says they need. Tenants in such a position are having their Housing Benefit cut by 14%; anyone with more than one ‘extra’ room in their rented home is seeing their benefit slashed by 25%. This is happening to people who are already amongst the poorest in society.
This Christmas, thousands of people across Scotland – including here in North Ayrshire – will be reliant on Foodbanks to stave-off hunger. Some Foodbanks are organising Christmas dinners and are attempting to provide at least one small present for young children who otherwise would go without because their parents are poor.
Meanwhile, the people imposing these ‘austerity’ policies – the old Etonians in the Tory Cabinet – will have no such worries.
Prime Minister David Cameron has an estimated fortune of around £3m, mostly provided by his late father who accumulated his wealth partly by ‘off-shoring’ his funds in tax havens to avoid paying UK taxes. Mr Cameron is a fifth cousin of the Queen, and is married to Samantha, daughter of Sir Reginald Berkley Sheffield (8th Baronet) and Annabel Lucy Veronica Jones (Viscountess Astor): his wife’s personal fortune far exceeds that of the Prime Minister.
Chancellor of the Exchequer Gideon Oliver Osborne (he decided to call himself George when he was 13) is descended from a family of English aristocrats who were once overlords in Ireland and retain titles from that period. Osborne is married to The Honourable Frances Victoria Howell, daughter of Lord Howell of Guildford. The Chancellor has an estimated personal fortune of around £4m, mainly as the beneficiary of a trust fund that owns a 15% stake in Osborne & Little, the upmarket wallpaper-and-fabrics company co-founded by his father, Sir Peter Osborne.
Iain Duncan Smith is the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, the man whose department is overseeing savage cuts to welfare, benefits and public spending. Mr Duncan Smith is married to Elizabeth Fremantle, daughter of the 5th Baron Cottesloe. The couple live in a country house on Baron Cottesloe’s estate in Buckinghamshire.
The Under Secretary of State for Work and Pensions – the man behind the Bedroom Tax that is punishing so many already-struggling people – is David Anthony Freud (Baron Freud). The Tory Baron, who started out as a member of the Labour Party, lives in a £1.9m four-bedroom townhouse in London’s fashionable Highgate, and retreats to his eight-bedroom mansion in the Kent countryside at weekends.
In addition, the Tory frontbench that is imposing its will on Scotland includes: Philip Hammond, Defence Secretary, estimated personal wealth – £8.2m: William Hague, Foreign Secretary – £4.8m; Jeremy Hunt, Health Secretary for England and Wales – £4.8m; Francis Maude, Minister for the Cabinet Office and Paymaster General – £3.2m; Dominic Grieve, Attorney General for England and Wales – £2.9m.
So out of touch with reality are these Tory multi-millionaires that they could not even begin to imagine what it is like to exist on inadequate state benefits. What is worse, they don’t care. We are being virtually transported back in time, almost to the period of the Victorian workhouse: once again the poor are blamed for their predicament and are punished.
On December 25th, many Scottish children will have Christmas dinner at a Foodbank. If they are lucky, Santa might provide a present. Replace ‘foodbank’ with ‘workhouse’ and a vision from history reveals the reality behind the Tories’ brave new world – a world where the gap between rich and poor gets ever wider.
In Scotland, we didn’t vote for the Tories and we didn’t endorse their manifesto of ‘austerity’. We only have the Bedroom Tax and other welfare cuts imposed on us because our country remains part of the British Union.
To their shame, the ‘Scottish’ Labour Party’s position on Scotland’s future is that they would rather see Tory millionaires continue to impose their will on us from London, than have a Labour Government in an independent Scotland.
Let’s make this the last Christmas that Scottish families are hammered by devastating cuts imposed by Tories we already rejected at the ballot box. Let’s make this the last Christmas that foodbanks are needed to prevent Scottish children from going hungry.
On September 18th 2014 we can vote to re-take political control of our country. By voting ‘YES’ to independence in next year’s referendum, we can begin the process of moving to a democracy in Scotland where we always get the government for which we actually vote – and it won’t be Tory.
This Christmas, let’s agree to turn our backs on Tory austerity and, instead, commit to building a better, fairer, brighter country for all the people of Scotland.
Independence means implementing policies to meet the needs and aspirations of those who live in Scotland. Independence is simply being a normal country.
Ghuys
Most of our better players have signed contracts , so that the club gets a fee , however Joe and Sammi , whilst good professionals are not going to command a large fee.
Joe has upped his game since he came back from injury, getting forward and playing with more energy; reminds me of the transformation with Donati. Joe has previous in running down his contract, so the odds appear that he is for the off.
I suspect that once a reasonable lead in the league is achieved then both players will be quietly dropped around mid-February. Both will hang on and become free agents in the summer.
HH
William Hague, Foreign Secretary – £4.8m; wis he no saving money by sharing a bedroom with a member of his staff….thats probably where this bedroom tax larky started ……no so braw….
I would be sorry to see both players go but not devastated.
If they decide to go they ain’t moving to a bigger or better club.
Coz there ain’t one!
Simple
EKBhoy
20:36 on
20 December, 2013
Ghuys
Most of our better players have signed contracts , so that the club gets a fee , however Joe and Sammi , whilst good professionals are not going to command a large fee.
—-
I suspect if If Joe and Sammi were hot property the offers would be on the table for January. I hope they are as opposed to losing them for free.
God, that was a busy day….now to settle down and enjoy reading my ‘Friends in Celtic’ posts……. :)
Paul67
…and even when they were drasically overspending, they couldn’t put us down…….cream always rises to the top……..ICE CREAM in particular …….hahahahahahaha
AGM MY HEARSE…….
Six nil to the bhoys tomorrow.
Some behaviour at AGM’s is offensive imo.
Mags
That is quite shocking.
And some on here moan about a few banners and a few broken plastic seats.
Priorities.
HH
A few months ago I asked on this site for opinions of best Celtic team of recent times. After adding up the votes from submissions here and the people in the pub who had voted Lubo had received some votes but he didn’t make it into the team.
Imo the most skilful player since the early sixties was Jinky.