All we can ask from an international break is for Celtic players to return uninjured, which appears to be the case as we head into the intensive weeks ahead. It even looks like Mohamed Elyounoussi, who headed to Norway after taking a knock, has returned fitter than he went.
Players like Callum McGregor, Odsonne Edouard and James Forrest would have benefited from a complete rest, but at least they were taxed in only two games across the fortnight.
Squad management will play a big part in Neil Lennon’s thinking right now. Livingston and Rennes, who both visit Celtic Park in the next 8 days, have far more important games after facing Celtic. Livi play six of the seven lowest placed teams they can face before the winter break, while Rennes cannot qualify for the knock out stage of the Europa League and are one of seven clubs within a point of each other in Ligue 1.
Neither will see the Celtic game as a priority, we should plan our squad accordingly.
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Podium?
Happy Friday eve!
International break is over, bring on the Livingston and Leigh!
HH!
Woop Woop
Hello again all you young rebels.
Go on HEBCELT, is that a first?
H.H . Mick
HS
A copywriter in an advertising agency is his serious answer.
He was in awe of Gerrard as a player, has a whole chapter on him in the book. In his down time he was fanatical about football according to the big chap.
HH
Aipple! Good to see you.
Well done Hebcelt.
Mick hope you are all well, great news that Paddy is up and about again. Just dispatched Emma an Dylan’s Xmas pressies, morning usual all she wanted was Celtic related things😄😃😀
Top three celts for free kicks I’ve seen through Parkheads gates…
1. Naka
2. Lubo
3. Thommo
Close but no cigar…Collins , Pierre and Maloney.
HH
How’s things down the peninsula Mick ? 😎
Hello EDDIE, PADDY’s had a hard time of it but the angiogram showed
up a few probs, so between that and viral bronchitis and Pneumonia
he’s still slugging away.
Not seen Emma for a few weeks but our Christmas barbie on the beach
will bring us all together again for a Celtic festive party.
Hopefully Paddy will be up to his aul tricks again, but i won’t let him
climb the trees to hang our banners up, now there’s a wee job for a lively
Celtic ghirl.
H.H . Mick
Taylor has to start on Saturday.Also Ntcham.Mayberest a CH and play big Nir.Hopefully Griff coming on.2 or 3 goals by halftime would be ideal.
DBHOY
Collins No 1 for me simply because of that one at the midden
when Minty banned our support.
Feckin priceless that stunned silence from the hordes and shouts
of joy from the bhoys on the field.
That moment lives with me forever.
H.H . Mick
Ordinarily, I am all for squad management, keeping your best players fresh for the big games.
That said, I think we owe Livingston a good hiding.
Hail hail
I think our squad comes into its own apart from 1 area – up front. Losing big Odsonne is a big risk in December and need him in cotton wool. Behind him is a recuperating Griff, no Bayo and a raw teenager currently injured.
I’m hoping we have plans to fix that for the 2nd half of the season in January. And the answer isn’t Jonny Russell.
HH
H.A.G happy birthday mate.
,enjoy your night tonight.😚😊
HH
Neil has shown all year that he won’t make wholesale changes to his starting XI. One or two. That’s it.
We have a busy schedule but in all honesty, a very straightforward one. 8 leagues games, 5 of which are at Celtic Park and two Europa ties with qualification already banked. The Cup Final will take care of itself.
Taylor certainly deserves game time. Griff and Rogic will hopefully feature as well. These lads all need to make sure they contribute when called upon but I don’t expect to see a much changed Celtic line up over the next month or so with the exception of the Cluj match.
Mick
Collins had the precision and was effective around the outside of the box with them.
Naka had the power to score them from distance and the precision, truly unique imo.
Loved JC’s two free kicks against the huns at Ibrox. 1-1 I think when we had no bhoys to support the hoops. A little nod due to the Aussie who invented the ‘predator’ fitba boot.
HH
PARK ROAD 67
Hello again mhate.
Very hot at the moment 37 degs today ( DAVID 66 lol. )
As i said above with Paddy’s illness we are a bit unsettled but just as the
Celtic family do we gather together and hopefully our Christmas bbq on
the beach will be the biggest and best ever.
And as usual local charities, sick kids, etc. will be the beneficiaries.
Not said it for a while, but… the Celtic family eh?
Wha’s like us?
H.H . Mick
MELBOURNEMICK
Hope you managed to get a beer when out shopping with your Princess yesterday ! I can assure you it ain’t 37 degrees in Girvan 😎
Big Wavy- oh yes he is…
#pantoseason
PARK ROAD 67
Had quite a few but spent some time looking in a multitude of
sports shops for Celtic stuff for the wee mhan and wee Grace’s
Christmas and i’ve got to say it’s alarming how far down the
pecking order we’ve become since i arrived down under.
Used to be every shop had Celtic tops etc. but now very little and
as you all know i was shouting for our club to do something
anything in blogs gone by to keep our profile high here Oz but i
fear it’s too late now.
H.H . Mick
Elyounoussi Evaluated
http://celticbynumberscom.ipage.com/elyounoussi-evaluated/
Team for the weekend: Forster, Bauer, Ajer, Jullien, Taylor, Brown, McGregor, Ntcham, Forrest, Sinclair, Edouard
Bench: Bain, Frimpong, Hayes, Bitton, Christie, Elyounoussi, Griffiths
The credit for the invention/design of the Predator boot is given to Craig Johnston, who persuaded Adidas to adopt the idea in the 1990s.
However! The original idea was conceived by my father in the mid 1970s, some 20 years before Johnston and Adidas.
My Dad had the idea that a boot would generate more spin on the ball if the friction between boot and ball was increased, and thereafter set about glueing the pimple surface of a table tennis bat to a pair of football boot boots.
I know this because they were my boots, which debuted on the world stage in a league match versus Maggie Mary’s played at Molls Myre. Regrettably the glue couldn’t put up with the impact of wet blaes on mouldmaster, and the project was shelved.
I’ve never revealed this before because it was only recently that I overcame the abject humiliation of wearing what were – effectively – pink boots in a game of football. Given that colourful boots are all the rage nowadays, perhaps my old man was way ahead of the game in the aesthetics as well as the dynamics of the game.
H.A.G.
Happy Birthday, hope you have a great day.
KickintheNakas
I was at all of those games, brilliant memories.
HH
Celtic by Numbers
Great summary, as ever. Thank you for the effort.
HH
So every team in the SPFL up their game against us.
A result against us will set up and boost livi confidence going into games against lesser teams but we should not think they consider us a high priority.
Who’s kidding who here, they’ll come out all guns blazing and try to kick us off the park into the bargain, gat a grip, you never watched the SPFL before?
Playing my guitar with myself last night I composed a wee update last verse to the ‘Willie Maley’ song…
‘Neil Lennon kept us safe and sound
When Brendan took the English pound
All the trophies stayed in paradise
As Scott Brown keeps us all together
And we’ve got Forrest and Mcgregor
It’s Glasgow Celtic for 10 flags in a row….
And they gave us James McGrory and Paul McStay……………’
Anyone like it?
Mikey Johnston’s 2 week injury is now nearly 4 months? Any updates?
!!BADA BING!! on 21ST NOVEMBER 2019 1:55 PM
Mikey Johnston’s 2 week injury is now nearly 4 months? Any updates?
___
He didn’t appear for the development team which is a worry
Yep LazyDynamite, I like it, have been trying to sing it with varying degrees of success.
Bada, I must say it’s both worrying & mystifying. Tragedy is the kid was flying in the few games up to that. Looked like he was staking a claim for player of the year.
CORKCELT on 21ST NOVEMBER 2019 2:06 PM
I might try recording a youtube version later in the week when i get time.
It’s such a brilliant song that Willie Maley song.
Think Mikey picked up initial injury in Hun game on 1st September, it was reported as pain in his hip & groin area, think the original time frame was 3 weeks but that is now 12, I seem to remember he made the bench a few weeks ago but has disappeared off the radar since. It looks like he suffered a re-occurrence at that stage.
Well if Elyonoussi is fit after all that is a worry off my mind
😊
We need to win every league game as we neck and neck with another team, we have qualified for the next stage of the EL as we are at home im sure we will try to win the game against Rennes, not many chances to rest palyers until a gap appears in the league im afraid, that and a concerning long term injury list with little sign of any of the returning.
the battered bunnet
em
Great story well told! I wonder if there are other improvements still to be made to football boots today which could improve the performance of players. The new world marathon record, 1.59.40, by Eliud Kipchoge was run wearing the latest Nike shoe, indeed most of the fastest times recently have been achieved wearing them. Laura Muir, despite not being fully fit, ran 3.55.76 in the World’s 1500 metres last month wearing them, though only came fifth. Key seems to be the Pebax foam midsole, and also the use of a carbon fibre plate in the shoe. Now, different strokes for different folks I know, (not sure a 25-30mm insole would work) but there must be something in athletics we can learn from the impact on the impact if you like. I know Nike make football boots too, but if I had a choice between the modern version and that from the early 1970s I would choose the latter every time, apart from the pink uns, taken as said.
Celtic Mac,
They must have been new, I remember I used to be able to run faster when I got new trainers, we even timed it😁
Oh and I’m working on hover gutties that should improve things but I expect all the pedants will demand feet on the ground to count as running.