My friends in Celtic, the third domestic trophy returned to the boardroom earlier this month. We sit 14 points clear at the top of the league table, and with 20 games remaining, you can get 20/1 on Newco for the title and 750/1 on Aberdeen. Yet again, Celtic are not so much a sporting favourite, than an investment asset (this is not gambling advice!).
We have nine points after six games in the Champions League and could confirm qualification for the knockout round next month. The club reported record turnover for last season of £124.6m, with £77m in the bank.
Good performances in Europe contributed significantly to this calendar year seeing only two defeats in all competitions: a random 10-man loss at Hearts and an absolute drubbing at Dortmund. 2024 is the year that delivered more major trophies than defeats. This has never happened before and surely will never happen again.
The summer transfer window saw £31.2m spent on in-coming players, with a new high watermark of £11m splurged on Arne Engels. How easily we moved on from the loss of Jota and Matt O’Riley.
A new transfer window opens tomorrow, so before the madness gets underway again, recall the angry and entitled writers who despaired all summer at Celtic’s transfer activity. Their form is as consistent as Cameron Carter-Vickers, so you will hear from them again soon. Transfer business is skewed to the end of the window and is more complicated than many would have you believe.
2025 opens at Ibrox, where it is seldom easy. However, a Celtic defeat would not convince any of the 50,000 attendees that their ‘heroes’ are capable of catching the champions.
In February we had slipped behind Newco and were playing poorly. I was concerned the title would be lost, Newco would earn a Champions League lifeline and Celtic would plunge into disarray.
As it turned out, the Premiership, Scottish Cup and League Cup were all decided in pivotal games against Newco: 3-3 draw at Ibrox, the 1-0 Scottish Cup Final win and the penalty decider in the League Cup Final. All of these games could have gone the other way, and for a period, looked as though they would.
It is to Brendan Rodgers eternal credit that he knows how to win tight games. Marginal differences in the game at Ibrox were enough to change Scottish football history – and not just for last season. With £77m in the bank, Celtic would have coped with a second place finish, albeit, there would have been a trauma. Newco, however, were devastated by the consequences of only taking a point that day. They celebrated the passing of their last chance.
We are in the fortunate position to have a manager, players and entire club who collectively have the corporate experience to get the job done. As long as Celtic perform as they have been recently, we will dominate in Scotland and give a reasonable account of ourselves in Europe.
Some of us lived through the 90s, when Rangers were out of sight and Celtic were under-resourced. Always. We won the league in 1998, due to a random series of events, including signing a winger from Feyenoord, but that was a one-off. The next two seasons were a return to more of the same.
The rebirth of Celtic under Martin O’Neill had a compelling side story: the corporate disaster zone that was Rangers under the bombast of David Murray and his non-execs. They lost £35m in one season; Martin found himself battling against a dying empire.
Rangers acted as though their domination was guaranteed. Even our 1998 triumph was handled interestingly by Murray, saying “9 out of 10, not good enough”. The seeds of their downfall were writ large over their accounts and those of Murray International Holdings, for anyone who cared to read them.
Their domination was so overwhelming, it was almost impossible to get anyone to listen to reality back then. So let’s be clear:
Domination is good.
Generation(s) of Domination is great.
Ignore the fundamentals of business and you sow the seeds of downfall.
Celtic are successful domestically because we recruit well, we develop players well and we have elite level managers, coaches and sports scientists. There is, however, a gap between where we are and where we could be.
Brugge spent around half of what we spent on Arne on their most expensive summer signing and spent less overall than Celtic (in absolute and net terms). They have not and never will spend £9m on a player from the Norwich City bench.
Champions League qualification is coming your way quickly and we will be up against teams who work the way we did to find and develop Kuhn, Bernardo, Johnstone, Jota and our Japanese contingent. Celtic excelled in that space for over two years.
Looking back on Ange Postecoglou’s time, recruitment now appears to be his strong suit (he has no such controls at Spurs). Brendan is more of a master tactician. If we continue to scout players Brendan has watched or worked with, we will decline.
The players we sell for a profit in 2027 and 2028 should be signing targets in 2025. They need to have development potential and eventually leave a price several times higher. If we get this wrong, it is the chink in the armour our opponents need to become relevant again.
Our operating expenses for the year to 30 June, which excludes transfer fees, were £105m. That’s the cost of doing business at Celtic currently. You don’t need me to tell you what happens to our profitability if we fail to reach the Champions League.
We are not Oldco Rangers; the financial reserves are there to prevent a cataclysmic retrenchment in the event we run at a loss, but keeping the club profitable, improving the player trading model (good though it is, it still has a long way to go) and maintaining salary levels consistent with our income spectrum will determine if you ever get to celebrate 10-in-a-row.
No harm to Real Madrid, who have normalised winning the Champions League, but Celtic fans have the best role in football. Despite being pushed all the way, we get to win so many trophies, achieve our own level of joys in Europe, with remarkably few god days.
This was not always the case and it took God-level strategic planning to achieve. It cannot last forever, but a quarter of the way through this century there is no sign of a sunset. The 2024 title win was genuinely pivotal. Congratulations to everyone at the club who played a role in delivering yet again, often in the face of absurd hostility.
Have a great New Year, Paul.
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A good lead article.
Happy Hogmanay Paul and all the rapscallions.
3-0 win on the 2nd, lessons learned from the LCF.
PS went to Drygate Brewery after the game on Sunday (beside Tennents) ; cool place with lots of beers, pool, darts etc. The food looked decent too
Paul . I don’t see us losing the business fundamentals, but do hope we freshen up the boardroom.
AT 1.15
Sadly missed indeed , my friend.
Stephbhoy67- and we couldn’t have a better manager to develop this squad, hope the rumour of a 3 year extension is true for Brendan
Greenpinata
Great Celtic men and contributors to this dear green place.may they be toasting the Celts success while looking down on us.
You and yours have a good one Gp,we are in a good place,we work hard for every bit of success,i recall 93/4 flyin up and down from London to watch Celtic and the odd fox on the park,the 30 years since i still recall them days andcthe work for turnaround is awe inspiring,nothing taken forgranted and our success merited.
Happy new year 💚
Hail Hail
This is bad news, would rather he played:
“Captain James Tavernier will miss the clash with Celtic amid a defensive injury crisis at Rangers.”
I would go for Bernardo over Engels on Thursday
AT.
Sad seeing the names.
YNWA
the saddest of cqn lists indeed.
Callum Presser
https://youtu.be/Fq4E9mFPmvw?si=O5MZIuyeJLrzpjpu
Brendan presser
https://youtu.be/I7PEAPaNtms?si=UYHVA7LJFKSAsNO2
HH
600k for Barron, a farcical situation, should have been settled before a ball was kicked this season, Aberdeen should have kicked up fk,and should have pushed for Barron not to play until they were paid,at least not against Aberdeen
I keep on saying it,because its glaringly obvious.No one can expect a player to perform to his best,without a 3 or 4 game run in the team.I know we play rotation,but maybe just not enough.
I don’t see a problem with playing Kyogo,Idah,up front with Kuhn.Maeda does not HAVE to start every week.Gives both strikers game time.Swapping one for another is a nonsense,epecially when well ahead.Go to a back 3,in some games,give all the midfielders more game time.We play out 90 mins regularly with a back 4 while 4 up.Payers need minutes on the pitch.
Just an afterthought,Maeda says he enjoys the left back position.When well ahead,try him.Try him there in training.
and now to the rumour mill.
I know there is a collective thought process that getting them in now means they are better ready for the qulifier play off, but unless they are squad ready, i dont see any need to rush the buys.
outgoings might be different.
i cant find any better year statistically, i thought maybe 69 or 70, but reading the celticwiki, apparently, we became complacent in walking the leagues and were seen as concentrating on europe.
in this regard, keeping us focused and winning, 9or not losing in europe, is Brendnas magic formula, brilliant interviews lately as well,
anyways, when they do their firesale to keep the lights on, i think they will struggle to maintain 2nd place.
———————
Rangers are looking to sell before they can add to the first-team squad in the new year, with striker Cyriel Dessers, left-back Ridvan Yilmaz, winger Rabi Matondo and midfielder Tom Lawrence facing potential exits in the January window. (TeamTalk), external
Scotland left-back Greg Taylor is a target for ambitious Dinamo Zagreb head coach Fabio Cannavaro, with the 27-year-old now able to talk to clubs with less than six months remaining of his Celtic contract and looking increasingly unlikely to sign a new deal. (Daily Record), external
Celtic would love to lure Kieran Tierney back to the club and are working on a deal to sign the Scotland defender on a pre-contract deal in January, with the 27-year-old out of favour with Arsenal. (Football Insider), external
Portuguese winger Jota, who is yet to play a full 90 minutes under manager Jorge Sampaoli, came off the bench for Stade Rennais this weekend to assist the final goal in a French Cup 4-1 rout of Bordeaux amid growing rumours of a shock return to Celtic for the 25-year-old. (Glasgow Times), external
Denmark goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel has confirmed he will hold talks over his Celtic future next month with the 38-year-old out of contract next summer. (Scottish Sun), external
Celtic are ready to let 24-year-old Stephen Welsh join Belgian club Mechelen on loan while bringing fellow centre-half Dane Murray back from his loan with Queen’s Park amid Premiership and English interest in the 21-year-old. (Daily Record), external
Celtic are keen on midfielder James McAtee, who has struggled for game time with Manchester City, but will find it tough to compete with interest from Crystal Palace, Fulham and West Ham United should the 22-year-old be made available for a loan or permanent deal this summer. (Football Insider), external
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers wants to add an additional goal threat to his squad during the January transfer window. (The Scotsman), external
Fiorentina and Lazio have offered a pre-contract deal to Burnley captain Josh Brownhill, the 29-year-old who is also wanted by Celtic and Rangers if the midfielder becomes a free agent in the summer. (The Boot Room), external
Portsmouth have agreed a £200,000 fee with Rangers to sign 21-year-old left-back Robbie Fraser. (Transfer Centre 9), external
Scotland winger Ben Doak, the 19-year-old currently on loan to Middlesbrough, could be used as a makeweight in a shock January transfer after being named as a key target for Crystal Palace and with Liverpool keen on Palace captain Marc Guehi. (Daily Mail, print edition)
Out-of-favour Union Saint-Gilloise striker Elton Kabangu has verbally agreed terms to join Heart of Midlothian on loan when the January transfer window opens, with talks between the clubs almost concluded for the 26-year-old Belgian. (Edinburgh Evening News)
AT,
Indeed.
Thank you, and a very happy New Year to you and yours.
Cheers and HH.
TB,
there were passages of play in the last 2 home games were as we started scoring the centre backs, and the full backs were taking it in turns to stay high up the park,
at times we are a back 2, even a 1.
i personally dont like it, such as the cup final breakaway 4 on 1.
the lowest ever goals against would be a record i would like to see happen,
simply in our next game, dont lose a goal at ibrox and we wont lose the game,
that is my tuppunce worth.
It’s almost as good a time as any to be Celtic supporter.
Happy New Year Mr67 and to everyone in the Celtic family.
Second that coneybhoy
it is a weird thing, but brendna probably does have the best squad we ever had, but he also has the advantage of the subs rules giving many more options than ever before.
it is funny to me, but someone asked other day , is this team better than martins, and would anyone from today make that team, goalkeeper yes, but beyond that i struggle with any of the current team, and indeed, the 2nd nine in a row teams, and anges taking place of anyone in martins treble winners.
I remember the Narrowboat Tim back in the day’s of ole R.G.Bargee.
Tav no show on Thursday. Which hun shall Daizen terrorise? 🤔
All of them I suppose.
!!Bada Bing!! on 31st December 2024 3:14 pm
600k for Barron, a farcical situation.
——
R2ngers allegedly offered £500k .. if so they’ll be delighted with this outcome.
Settled by an SFA tribunal with no right of appeal
I wonder if that guy will ask “Who are these people?” again.
RIP. Jonnie Walker….
How ironic for him to go on Hogmanay… especially with a name like that !.
Loved the sounds of the seventies ..
RIP Jonnie…
https://www.google.com/search?q=led+zeppelin+rock+androll&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-je&client=safari#
f tav is out
Thanks to whoever posted the link to Kyogo’s goals, that was the best 15 minutes of the week……….
So far.
You’re the cutest thing that I ever did see
I really love your peaches, wanna shake your tree
Lovey-dovey, lovey-dovey, lovey-dovey all the time
Oee, baby, I’ll sure show you a good time
Happy 2025 to all the hoops supporters around the world …
👍☘️🍷🍦🏆
Hoopy new year eratic!
And to you Jackie…
Just looking at menu for the Indian …. Need to get it ordered soon 👍😂🤤
Scales to start for me agin the lost souls – passing through the high press is very important so they don’t gain momentum.
If Rodgers I’d happy to accept a 3 year deal it will be the easiers decision celtic will ever make. Think it would also signal that the club have serious ambitions to improve on the pitch as well as off ìt
HH
I generally disagree with P67, especially politics and our board but his opinion on Brendans player signings is accurate. He needs help.
AT – Garry Duncan aka Delaneys Dunky.
For the list
D. :)
Brian Nugent -Woodhunchdog
Gerry Chambers- Ger57
Brian Mc Ginley -Ron Bacardi
Alex Mc Killop- Eurochamps67
Tony Gillespie- Setting free the bears.
Garry Dubcan – Delaneys Dunky
All a big loss to CQN in ’24
God Bless them and their families.
Ffs Brian Nugent -Woodhunchdog
Gerry Chambers- Ger57
Brian Mc Ginley -Ron Bacardi
Alex Mc Killop- Eurochamps67
Tony Gillespie- Setting free the bears.
Garry Duncan – Delaneys Dunky
Well bhoys I will wish you all the best from Tenerife for when the bell’s toll.
HH.
D. :)
Up on the catwalk, a big wheel is spinning
And Dollars to Deutchmarks, and pennies from heaven
GG- Ronnie
Neustadt Braw
St John
Maybe An Tearmann was referring to this year. I knew most of these fine fellows so it’s always a sad time of year. If any names have been omitted please add them. May they rest in peace and never walk alone. 😞
To all Celtic fans who contribute to CQN…and to those who lurk…Happy New Year.