Negatives out of the way first: we’re not good enough, this is a low achievement by a Celtic team who have reached a group stage. There’s no disputing that, but amid the predictable ‘Throw them all overboard’ reaction, I know I’m not the only one who is not panicking right now.
When I heard we were playing three wingers (Forrest, Mackay-Steven, McGregor) I anticipated a thrashing. Gordon Strachan would often drop all his craft players for the more industrial types in European football, with good reason.
As it turned out, we had the majority of the chances, and all the better ones, as we spent most of the second half pushing for a winner.
No arguments with Leigh Griffiths assessment immediately after the game, that was his worst performance in a Celtic shirt. Nor is there dispute in Ronny Deila’s retort that he’s scored plenty for us before and will continue to do so. Even the greats have days like that, including the Swede.
The midfield formation was fluid throughout the game. Tom Rogic initially played as a defensive mid, before moving in front of Stuart Armstrong (who moved everywhere) and Callum McGregor. The defensive mid role Rogic played isn’t one carried out by either Nir Bitton or Scott Brown. We’ve not had anyone in this role since the departure of Victor Wanyama (still pining) and it remains a large gap in the offering.
Lesson: we need a defensive mid. The deep lying playmaker + box-to-box player isn’t robust enough in Europe.
Callum McGregor carried possibly the lowest expectations of everyone in a Celtic shirt but he put in an excellent shift. His goal was outstanding, losing possession immediately before Ajax equalised took the shine off things a bit, but it was still a strong performance.
Do you know the last time McGregor started a game? October 2014. Under those circumstances that was a remarkable performance.
General consensus is that the defence played well. Kieran Tierney is as good a left back as we’ve had in years. Had he not gone off with an injury the result might have been different.
Jozo Simunovic is clearly out best central defender. I know I’m not setting the bar too high with that statement, but he’s a move in the right direction. He’s also young, still working on his fitness, and will continue to progress.
A week ago Celtic Underground’s Harry Brady suggested Dedryck Boyata plays better alongside Simunovic than without him. Dedryck still has a long way to go but the evidence suggests partnered with a game-reader like Jozo has helped him. Let’s see where he is at the end of the season.
And Craig Gordon? He could have stopped both Ajax goals. That’s not to say he was to blame for either, he wasn’t, but these were the kind of stops he was making in last season’s Europa League.
Ronny is 18 months into the job and has contributed to the situation we find ourselves in (tactical mistakes in both Molde games), but this is not the time to lurch off plan. We’re not good enough largely because we’ve recruited too few players since 2012 who have improved the team.
We need to continue to develop players like Tierney and we need to recruit better. Get this right in January, and again in the summer, and we will be vastly better. The alternative is likely to be to pick up a best from the SPFL pool, or someone from the English circuit who cannot get a better paid gig. And then it would take until November 2017 before we could assess them properly.
Return of the Bampots
Tonight, for one night onlyt, Phil Mac Giolla Bháin, John Fallon and myself are in the Hibs Club, Carfin, for a Q&A in aid of Mary’s Meals, with Phil Agnew hosting. The event starts at 7:30, £5 entry, can pay at the door.
Looking forward to seeing you there.
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It’s all gone Pete Tong. Was in the Vogue today whilst they were making a banner for tomorrow.
HT 9.48pm
That posts says it all for me, apart from the time some people give up for others, like when a young Hamilton fan was in court….. Am quite glad some poster question the Trust, the more publicity the better, in my opinion, they far more good than bad
Keep at it !
Have we won 4 from 21 against full Time Opposition in europe under Deila is that True?
Amazing that some fans have still fallen for living wage and bankier AGM
This AGM was controlled by the spin
Master Peter Lawell to talk about anything apart from the dross on the park
Winning Captain
In hindsight I’ve no idea but at the time both the Affiation and the Green Brigade were fully supportive of our statement.
Im Gonna Keep on asking…Have we won 4 from 21 against fulltime opposition in europe under deila?
the glorious balance sheet @ 9:17 pm
“SFTB from earlier
I’ve just logged on again and saw your post from earlier. I think we’ll have to agree to disagree,
I see a clear narrative on here from some posters downplaying our European results on the grounds that Celtic operate in a footballing backwater and are disadvantaged due to the financial power of other league
yet the board’s performance is defended by the same posters on the grounds that we aren’t bankrupt and are winning the “backwater” league against much poorly resourced rivals.
It’s inconsistent to me but hey we all see things differently.”
I think the problem stems from the way you frame the contrast.
In your first statement, you are talking about the team (European results)
In your second statement you are talking about the Board.
The contradiction comes from comparing two different entities.
I also do not see this “defence” of the Board- as much as feeling that we are directing a lot of anger at something that we cannot change- our economic setting (for me the Celtic Board, in common with most Boards is too large, overpaid and over-bonused but even if we halved their number and paid them nothing, it would have a marginal effect on the finances available to the team).
The e-tims article analogy about the car showroom tells you how “ambitious” you are for your club if you expect someone else to pay for it. Scottish taxpayers have just subsidised a dung heap full of Rangers titles and trophies. I don’t want a fly by night Abramovich type sugar-daddying my club.
Let me hear your practical solutions for making us a more competitive club. But i emphasise “practical”.
Merely urging that we buy better players, hire a better coach, pay bigger transfer fees, is just a wish list to Santa and not a plan.
WC
The GB are definitely still in support of the CT statement.
HT-ignore the trolls,keep fighting the good fight. HH
SFTB….you post a lot and seem to know a bit..May i ask You is it True under deila we have won 4 from 21 against full time opposition in Europe..was posted by TGBS..dont know if its true or not..Maybe yoy can confirm or deny..Just Asking
BGX
You are a great one for demanding answers. You even called on Billy McNeill to be answerable to you at one point.
Stop and think- you have a question- how do you think it will be answered by others? They would have to check Celtic’s list of Euro results under RD- easily done- a few seconds of your time
Then they will list out the names of teams we have recorded wins against- again another few seconds
Then they will have to google these clubs and determine whether there is information as to whether they are full-time or not- that might take a bit longer but it is eminently doable by the posters on here.
But, it is also eminently doable by yourself.
So get yir lazy erse in gear and answer your own question- this is not Ask Jeeves.
Dear Board of Celtic FC,
I am writing with regard to my absolute astonishment and disbelief as to the sheer magnitude of your complete lack of talent and failure to carry out the job for which you are paid to do. I am not aware of any swear word or other derogatory phrase in my current vocabulary which comes close to a description of your ‘performance’ (and I use that term loosely) this season, but let me just say that you have collectively reached a level of inadequacy and ineptitude that neither I nor modern science had previously considered possible.
In fact I recall a time, in my youth, when I decided to call in sick at work and instead spent the entire day in my one bedroom flat wearing nothing but my underpants, eating toast and ——- furiously over second-rate Scandinavian porn. Yet somehow, I still managed to contribute more to my employer in that one Andrex-filled day than you complete bunch of toss-baskets have contributed to this club in your entire time here.
I would genuinely like to know how you pathetic little p@@@flaps sleep at night, knowing full well that you have taken my money and that of over 40000 thousand others and delivered precisely —- all in return. I run a business myself, and I believe I could take any 40,000 of my customers at random; burn down their houses, impregnate their wives and then dismember their children before systematically sending them back in the post, limb-by-limb, and still ensure a level of customer satisfaction which exceeds that which I have experienced at Celtic Park at any time so far this season.
You are a total disgrace, not only to your profession, not only to the human race, but to nature itself. This may sound like an exaggeration, but believe me when I say that I have passed kidney stones which have brought me a greater level of pleasure and entertainment than watching each of you worthless excuses for professional businessmen attempt to run a club, week-in, week-out.
I considered, for a second, that I was perhaps being a little too harsh. But then I recalled that I have blindly given you all the benefit of the doubt for too long now. Yes, for too long you have failed to earn the air you’ve been breathing by offering any kind of tangible quality either as Board members or as people in general. As such, I feel it’s only fair that your supply runs out forthwith.
I trust, at this precise moment in time, that Mr Bankier is in his office tapping away on the easyJet web site booking you all one-way Inter galatical flight to Zog, complete with an overnight stay with our friends at the SFA. Don’t bother packing your toothbrush – you won’t need it.
In the event that our beloved CEO can’t afford the expense then I am prepared to sell my daughter (including her unborn child) to a dubious consortium of Middle Eastern businessmen in order to pay for the flights. Christ, I’ll drive you there myself, one-by one, without sleep, if I have to.
Failing that, understanding that most dubious Middle Eastern businessmen are tied-up purchasing Premier League football clubs, I ask you to please take matters into your hands. Use your imagination, guys – strangle yourselves or cover yourself in tinfoil(Chris Graham style) and take a fork to a nearby plug socket, or something. Just put yourselves and us fans out of our collective misery.
So, in summary, you pack of repugnant, sputum-filled, invertebrate ——–; leave this club now and don’t you ——- dare look back. You’ve consistently demonstrated less passion and desire than can commonly be found within the contents of a sloth’s scrotum, so frankly you can just all —- off – don’t pass go, don’t collect your wages, don’t ever come back to this City again.
I look forward to you serving me at my local McDonald’s( at below the living wage) drive-through in the near future.
Yours sincerely
A very disillusioned Tim
It was asked at the EC committee meeting of the CT meeting on Tuesday what had been the general feedback personally and on the Internet of our recent actions.
Mostly, it was positive.
Thank you fellow Tims.
BGX on 28th November 2015 10:15 pm
SFTB….you post a lot and seem to know a bit..May i ask You is it True under deila we have won 4 from 21 against full time opposition in Europe..was posted by TGBS..dont know if its true or not..Maybe yoy can confirm or deny..Just Asking
————–
You not able to work google?
Hamiltontim
Thanks. I have no doubt that the Green Brigade are supportive of the statement. As I undestand it the unhappiness lies elsewhere. Indeed I would be amazed if further joint statements were issued again.
HT, cool story, and I agree about JF’s obvious passion for helping her fellow supporters.
It shone through when I spoke to her.
I’m sure H has you proper organised now:-)
CRC, that is why I have, and continue to call for Mr Bankier to resign his position.
He hasn’t behaved himself at all.
Bada
Cheers sir the support on here does genuinely matter.
Eddie
Two great posts tonight.
Is the fight over yet
SFTB..SO its true…Thankyou…And What did i ask mcneil.?…Just asking?…
.
WC
There are still some who enjoy their nest being feathered.
The Huddle…Just wanted to ask the Esteemed SFTB…Problem with that?
I like inverness, which means ‘mouth of the Ness’ and comes from the Gaelic Inbvher Nis….which oddly enough also means “mouth of The Ness”…. Well if everyone can’t speak the same lamguage, I think it’s a step forward to know that at least all the different grunts, moans, mumbles and girns are at least trying to translate the perception of the world into words.
Anyway, back to Inverness. I walked round from my palatial apartment, my target the fleshpots of the rarely seen avante garde bus station precinct.
Sadly it was so cold, that I went into the first bar I came across; it is called The Thistle. It has three things going for it…..a lovely pint of Guinness, a coal fire and a sign above the bar that says “Bullshit is spoken here” …….I feel at home!….and then….”you spelt that sign incorrectly” someone who had taken control of my lips said pointedly.
The bar suddenly became animated in the way you would imagine switching off life support to a dead football club would be.
The noise of them extracting themselves from their own personal bar worm, Cardigan glued elbow indentations in the counter, for a moment drowned out the experimental BBC 2 on the even more untried 405 lines, the background music from a recent Tony Blackburn Radio 1 morning on medium wave and the sound of tokens being ripped from their soon to be discontinued Beer Ration Books.
“You’ve dropped an E” I continued deadpan, realising that the modern connotation of ‘dropping an E’ would have been confused with something they had heard on Dick Tracy on the Home Service.
“Bullshit is a wee watery wet fart of the English. Us real Scots use the manly, hairy legged, loin girding…..BULLSHITE!!!!!” I raatled out with gusto…..briefly taking a moment to sip my Guinness and look ultra cool in the land of cloudy beer drinkers..
They turned away for a moment to talk more keech, this time about Shinty, who I gather plies her trade over in the bus precinct.
And then a brainwave. I have bet them that Celtic will win the European cup in 1967. I’ve even given them really good odds….otherwise they might sniff a rat……yes I know the saying is “smell a rat”….no-one says ” sniff a rat” surely.
Well there is…just one…me. I hate clichés.
Anyway, I only came on to see if anyone knew anything about the game being on or off tomorrow. …
P.s. did you see that advert on the telly last night? Asked the wench with the jugs…of beer, “aye, they ‘lift and separate’
Hail hail
estadio
BTW last post stolen from another site, thought it was funny.
BGX
You asked him why he did not paint his arse tartan and show it to all his neighbours to prove he was as big a patriot as you are.
eddieinkirkmichael
not a hundred miles from my mind set right now,,
WC
In addition I’d point out that I initially wanted the statement issued only by ourselves.
We always knew the GB would be supportive.
Estadio
I’ve sold yer ticket! :-)
SFTB….now thats a Lie…I Never Said anything like That….I Think there maybe a subliminal message in there regarding You and mcneils arse…Do your thing…
Eddieinkirmichael…..
The board have never been close to us
Good night fellow Celtic fans and at 10am mass the morra all who have been mentioned on here will have a wee thought in my mind
CQN ….. Good night and God Bless
Me thinks the blog has now ran its course. CQN has become more divisive than useful in taking Celtic forward. It reached a new low for me today. I will continue to find discourse with Celtic minded folks in other ways. Paul 67 you are absolute gent and represent the very best of us. It has been an absolute pleasure. Adios amigos. HH
Just when you were hoping things were going to get worse over at the Govan…..everything turns out rosy at their AGM……THE glib one gets a standing ovation……once big Mick has been repaid his 5m loan we will be debt free…..to another standing ovation……we always come second best wi these AGMs………looks as if HMRC and big MICK have been told to GTF.
Estadio
No idea if we are on same time lines, substances can do that, especially good cider and wine,
Any way , head due west from bus station , very good boozer on near side of bus station. I do not recollect the name having spent a few hours in Gellions’ on the High St, a proper wee pub.
Gordon64, I hope you reconsider that.
I have enjoyed our discourse.
The blog can put me off from time to time too, but I just engage with those I want to.
Others I scroll on by.
Gordon64
I refer you to my comments at 10,27pm…….shame,
BGX
“SFTB….now thats a Lie…I Never Said anything like That ”
Maybe no- but give it time.
Now, how about making a point every now and again (about Celtic, I should add) instead of Just asking (and telling us about your porn habits.)
SFTB…Poor effort , But its Cool….ps…My PORN.habits….How do you know of my Porn habits?…Just Asking..and LMFAO…
Topkat 10.35….
Officer Dibble will be on the scene soon…….
Let the Glibster bump,hips gums, seemingly he has been told no stripping of titles, I think the same people tole him he wasn’t glib and shameless
Hamiltontim
Surely if the parties to the statement are in disagreement less than a week after the release then lessons need to be learnt?
It’s turned into a big rammy among Celtic folk.
And maybe more supporters would be interested in the way we are heading on the park – Europa league also rans plus the club’s position on a decade or so of us being cheated.
That’s just a hunch though.
Once the rammy starts we’re all at each other’s throats and not a word has been asked about our dismal Euro record in the last year or the cheating issues.