When Celtic won their first 7-in-a-row by a 10-point margin in 1972, there was scarcely a cloud on the horizon. The also collected the Scottish Cup that season, lost the European Cup semi-final on penalties and, but for a mishap against Partick Thistle in the League Cup final, would have completed their third treble.
A year later, the league-winning margin was cut to a single point and although 9-in-a-row was famously achieved in 1974, the seventh consecutive title would be the last truly dominant Celtic league win for 16 years.
Jock Stein’s team of the mis-70s was vulnerable in ways your Celtic team of today is not. Stein was brilliant and changed everything about Scottish football when he arrived at Celtic in 1965, but the longer he stayed, the closer his rivals could ape his methods.
At Sean Fallon’s funeral Mass, Alex Ferguson mentioned that he and his wife would deliberately go to the same restaurant Jock and Sean dined at on a Saturday evening, so that the young Rangers player could quiz them both on the game. It was a school day for Ferguson. People watched Celtic, copied their tactics, scouting and preparations. By 1974 Stein’s advantage was gone.
This interpretation of Scottish football history was clear in 1997, when Rangers matched Celtic’s “9”. Their golden era was not the consequence of a radically different manager, but of sheer financial power, power that unlike Stein’s in 1974, remained in place as Rangers planned for 10-in-a-row.
There has been little consistency across our current 7-in-a-row. Three managers and countless players (not the 44 used in league campaigns between 1965 and 1974). If you were to try to match the current Celtic formula for success, you would attempt to replicate their scouting, sports science and maybe their playing style, but most of all, you would need a business plan that produces income which can, on occasion, reach £100m.
Like Rangers in 1997, Celtic today have a financial advantage over all others in Scottish football. Unlike Rangers in 1997, Celtic do not have anyone readying themselves to match their investment in the team. While Fergus McCann and Jock Brown were busy signing Henrik Larsson and the like, no one in Scotland can come close to matching Celtic’s £9m investment in Odsonne Eduard, or their £52m wage bill.
Nor should they. Under Fergus, Celtic worked their way close to Rangers turnover. By 1997 there was still a gap, but it was bridgeable without putting the club into peril. Even without Champions League football, other clubs are years away from getting to within striking distance of Celtic.
This position of strength is a consequence of professionalism throughout the club. Look around as you walk up Celtic Way tomorrow. Picture in your mind the next stage of the regeneration of the old place, with the hotel to your left, and a museum and visitor centre.
That Champions League income is important, but we have been busy in the background. The cumulative value of the Dafabet shirt sponsorship deal that was signed BEFORE Brendan Rodgers appointment and revolution in 2016 was worth as much as a Champions League group stage qualification. The renewal of Dafabet’s sponsorship for seven years, announced this morning, is worth an absolute fortune. Add to that, New Balance, the Magners sponsorship on the back and other key partnerships with Eden Mill, Intelligent Car Leasing and others, and you see a football club underpinned by strong finances, before it sells a season ticket or scores a goal.
One Saturday night In the early 1990s (not on a match day), at the Walfrid Restaurant, our table was served a main course without potatoes. The spuds duly appeared with the sweet.
This is an obscure observation to trouble you with today, but it encapsulated everything about Celtic of that era. We didn’t have the organisational knowledge to server potatoes with the chicken instead of the carrot cake. How could we hope to recruit, develop and tactically deliver success on the football field?
There are reasons why potatoes came with the carrot cake – it is not because the kitchen staff didn’t know better, just as there are reasons why we are ‘knocking it out the park’, on, and off, the park these days. Getting things right in any organisation is not quick, easy or cheap. It takes planning, training and several iterations of learning from mistakes. We were a shambles. We are now a thoroughly professional outfit in every area we operate. Look at what our commercial team are achieving in contrast to what happens elsewhere.
That is why we are going to win the league this season. It’s why we will win “10” and it is why we will continue to win successive titles for the rest of your life. This success is not built upon the wisdom of Jock Stein or Brendan Rodgers, it is a consequence of planning to win, and never lose again. Ever.
While Peter Lawwell is hugely important in the operation, it goes well beyond him now. You will find the same unforgiving demands at every corporate contact point. These commercial deals take the risk out of making expensive managerial appointments.
I have concerns about our prospects against AEK Athens – a stronger opponent than we are capable of facing in the fourth qualification round. The chances of a third consecutive treble should also be given perspective. We have escaped ‘one of those days’ in two years of cup competitions, that does not mean we are immune from them.
Champions League football may or may not happen this season, but we will not collapse “like a pack (sic) of cards” if we miss out. The show will go on, because we have planned for such an eventuality. Average attendances will hover a touch below capacity, we will continue to improve.
If you are too young to know how special tomorrow’s Flag Day is, bore yourself talking to an auld yin’ for a while. This success has been worked on for decades. It is a result of denial and restraint, while lemmings were heading for the cliff. It is a milestone in history. It is a beacon that shines a green light far beyond Celtic Park. It is a wonderful thing.
Enjoy it.
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Jamesgang
Glad to see your comment. I was wondering if I was the only one who gets the level 5 feeling when I read CQN’s articles?
We need to note and celebrate our accomplishments, for sure. But, How can a state of the club report not deal with Res. 12, or the hole of a league in which the club operates?
We are still years ahead of the others even without CL money?
I hope we never have to find out how many years by not giving ourselves EVERY chance of qualifying.
That would be much worse than serving potatoes with carrot cake.
We are in a good place, but complacency is ever the enemy. HH
Just read the Scottish headlines.
It’s good to be inextricably linked to scum. Business is business. OF scum business
CELTERELLA
TBH,I don’t quite get your point re the article.
Sponsorship settled till 2025. Income trajectory upward. Player quality similar-if not as much as we Mineshafters would like!
In that respect,everything in the garden is rosy. Beef up the defence,job’s a good ‘un.
None of it is dependent on 10 IAR nor is it dependent on the huns,and I genuinely don’t think the article suggested that.
Btw-are you going to the game tomorrow? Just on the off-chance you’re in the UK. If so,I’ll mail you about summat. If not,no need.
HH
There is no doubt that the club has improved but that doesn’t mean all is well.
I was on a recent tour of celtic park and the guide (a very nice chap) kept going on about rangers. rangers this, rangers that. I was going to say something but the wife warned me off.
When I read this stuff from Paul I just sigh. I thought celticquicknews was supposed to be an antidote to lazy journalism? Instead it is just sychophantic guff with no analysis, debate and challenge.
Paul67 is just part of a propaganda machine that Lawwell has established. The main objective these days is to deflect you from noticing that the board have colluded in corruption and that the game in Scotland is hopelessly rigged.
All this we will win the league forever stuff is nonsense.
And Celtic should be doing better in Europe than we are – financially we are in a good place and should be punching well above where we get to.
We in reality we are underperforming – but that’s because we don’t have an ambition to overperform on the pitch – just on the balance sheet.
Its a shame that CQN has become a lie unto itself. But then again I remember Paul, who had been posting articles on the huns for years, telling the world how much he missed them when we had our first game against the new club.
Crass, classless nonsense….
Just wait until we become a really big club and manage to get to the English Premiership. Spurs fan on Talksport this morning his season which cost him £850 last has jumped up to £1600 this season.
BMCUW
I didn’t see the European vision.
I didn’t read any vision other than “steady as she goes” and we are marginally better off than the Stein era. I mean FFS! Are you kidding? Throw me a bone of some description that doesn’t involve defeating Glasgow Rangers
CELTERELLA
Shoooorly,none of the outlets mention OF?
The BBC one I read even referenced the mass brawl after the Wigan game.
Admittedly it didn’t demand action from the authorities against an out of control rampaging mob.
BMCUW
Attempted murder at Games is Rangers not Celtic but when you run the crows…..
With
Bada Bing!
No fan of Jock Brown either but I’m surprised (pleasantly) whenever I look at videos of Celtic goals from years ago when he was commentating, the goals are ‘well taken’ ‘magnificent strike’ ‘wonderful’ etc. etc. Not once did I hear him say, ‘poor cover there’ ‘he couldn’t miss, poor from whoever’.
When was the last time we scored a goal and there wasn’t some ‘expert’ on to tell us there was a foul downfield, looked offside, poor defending it seems and has done for a long time since we played great football, great passing and scored a great goal with it be recognised by any TV commentator, there is always a negative.
Say what you want about Jock Brown, Archie or Arthur Montford they always praised good play and goals never looked for a way to down play it.
Rant over!
Since we fergus came into celtic park our club has more often than not looked at the bigger and long term picture. The result is very evident. Still lots of improvements to make and revenue opportunities to explore.
The hotel, superstore and museum is a must
Improved parking facilities in and around stadium is a must
Quality fanzone area is a must
Celtic t.v improvements/ increased uptake is a must (why celtic dont offered as part of season ticket renewals is beyond me)
Not one of these things are particularly exciting but all are needed moving forward.
Fergus’ 60,000 capacity stadium was and is the best thing he ever done. Surely these is a company out there that wants the naming rights to one of the must atmospheric stadium in europe.
HH
Hessen is super hot…warmest average temperatures in the whole of Europe according to local radio…German breweries running out of bottles for their beer!
but my cellar is full and cool…
great to see the Brit Broadcasting Corporation getting ripped into this week from John Beattie ….(good rugby man like oor man from Dunblane)….these Westminster Unionists need chased out of Scotland ….figuratively speaking of course ….
Wings over Scotland …..awfy braw
smiley Saor Alba thing …
Braw
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS on 3rd August 2018 12:10 pm
NATKNOW previous article…
There were a few places in Ardrossan/Saltcoats which sold it. I tended to avoid them,but if I couldn’t,it was Guinness time.
“Alfie’s” or The Castlehill Vaults,in Ardrossan,had a line drawing of a horse slurping from a bucket labelled Tennents and peeing into a bucket labelled McEwans.
Sums it up…
—————————————————————————————–
:-)))))))
Love it!
I did most of my drinking in the People’s Republic of Coatbridge – not much of it on sale there mate…!
MCPHAILBHOY
Very true.
However this is the New Firm Era
CELTERELLA 125
Ah,well-you’re preaching to the converted on that topic. But I’d say our signings in the last 30 months have been more focussed on their proven quality than on them being cheap,available,and rubbish.
We saw enough of that in the previous decade.
There’s definitely been a shift in focus when it comes to our signings in that time,so credit where it’s due. Good enough to take the next step,dunno. Doubt it.
Hopefully good enough to avoid the embarrassing results we’ve had over the last few years in Europe. That’ll be a start.
And hey,Leicester won the EPL. There’s still a miracle or two out there!
HH
Continuous improvement in the team is a MUST, i wouldve thought.
Thought id mistakenly stumbled on an accountants gathering
BMCUW
I can think of 11 or 12 that have signed under BR
I rate 3
Some I haven’t seen
4
If we get past AEK we will have URNed it!
Now to other matters.
I know you are in the ‘know’ PAUL, so how much are the Dafabet and Magners shirt sponsorship deals actually worth? I heard a figure of c£5 million a year for both.
And the New Balance kit deal – how much is that bringing in?
We should be told!
:-)
HH!!
MCPHAILBHOY- when the fire alarm went off at CP, which was every 2nd day, everyone would evacuate to the Fire Assembly Point…….except…….you’ve guessed it.I took great pleasure in moving him away from the front door, where he stood as if he owned the place.HH
There are at least 6 mentions of Rangers in this state of the club report.
What exactly is the clubs plan to smooth the risk of losing out on £50m income from Champions League non qualification?
The Europa represents a better opportunity for coeff points but we should be incrementally improving the team in each transfer window in direct proportion to our increased Turnover.
This year our Turnover is going to be close on double the total in Deilas years. The team underperformed under Deila and has been coached to a better performing unit. So there is a little wriggle room in smoothing risk and in underperformance moving to better performance.
That said, we have lost – Armstrong, Roberts and Sviatchenko from last summer/autumn. As Brendan Rodgers has stated we are weaker.
We continue to excel because of the outstanding fans we have and the luck of finding men who are passionate about our club to run and promote it. Still we have the expectations of only a 50/50 chance of beating AEK at best.
We knew there were 4 rounds to negotiate since god was a boy. We knew it would likely involve teams beyond the basic sides we have faced from Kazakhstan and the Nordics etc over the last few years but we still contrive to asset manage risk on an invidial player basis rather than see the benefits in managing the quality of the total asset. £7m now for Armstrong… let Sviatchenko go when Hendry and Compper were coming in as replacements? 6 months to assess Compper and he hasn’t played – he clearly isn’t what Rodgers wants.
I expect the wage bill to have risen in line with the new deals for Rogic, Edouard. However what is the total net increase in wages from last year and what is the ratio to turnover now?
Lastly, if AEK are a threat and a significant risk to qualification then I presume they are getting a better bang for their buck given that they have less money than us. If so why?
Badabing!!
Ha ha very good! Did you also make sure he was last back in?!!
Hail, hail!
Neg
I thought you didnt give any money to Celtiic ? Or have I got that wrong ?
Apologies if I have.
HH
Mullet And Co 2
I’d imagine that AEK and all teams in Greece are getting better bang for their buck because they are not neighbours to La La English Football Land where a really average footballer who may never play for their parent club are multi millionaires before they are 20 years old! While we don’t compete with the EPL directly their influence is massive, how many top flight Scottish players have left here to go to the 2nd or 3rd or 4th tier in England, not for the glamour or for the ‘team they always supported’ but for the money.
AEK have been studying us most carefully. Their financial future is as precarious as ours and I am convinced they are doing their homework.
MCPHAIL BHOY on 3RD AUGUST 2018 1:52 PM
Badabing!!
Ha ha very good! Did you also make sure he was last back in?!!
Hail, hail!
If it was raining…..;))
BADABING
I recall a fire alarm when I frost arrived down here. Not a problem,we were all drilled in where our assembly points were.
Soon as I got outside,I lit up a cigarette. Got bollocked for it-during a fire alarm!
A couple of other people lit up,told them to worry about inside rather than outside.
We want eight
And we won’t wait
So Paul does a topical article on our club’s finances, and tells us that it is down to the prudence and professionalism of our off field staff. What’s not to like? But the negatonians jump in to complain about all the things they reckon should have already been done. Magic!
AEK Athens are the champions of Greece, a superior league to our own, yet the knives are already being sharpened for the board/BR/scapegoat nae use players in the event we don’t beat them. We should have done this that or whatever.
We could sign one or two quality players in the latter part of the transfer window, but we should have done it earlier. All this from experts who have no idea how to run neither a business nor a football club.
Much of what is said is opinion posing as fact because “I am a better, or more informed, Celtic fan than you.”
Gies peace!
Sorry to be coming over like a happy clapper, but some of the repetitive negativity is so annoying, especially since we are in such a good place.
HH
According to the financial results of our club we made £14m profit last year
£14m is not a game changer
CELTARELLA on 3RD AUGUST 2018 1:10 PM
I hate always being right.
——
Errrrr no you don’t!
??
We should refuse the tickets for huns game, can’t guarantee fan safety, would also leave them exposed.
Paul 67
The dead club’s 9 in a row also included a DOS illegal, and the use of EBT’s illegal, hardly a fair comparison to compare it to the Jock Stein led 9.
P67 — at least you don’t try to hide it but you are now officially PL inspired AstroTurf with a bit of history thrown in to generate some brownie points with supporters of a certain vintage.
It has taken 2 years but PL — a second rate property bean counter who has no understanding of a growth agenda — is now back in charge of the purse strings, the squad and our future. His bonus is paramount and that is predicated on us running a cash positive position with the bank so that the Irish Raj aka DD will not need to put his hand in his pocket ever again.
You talk about progress in the context of a generation without detailing the shambles and missed opportunities of the past decade.
Three cheap managers — how much money did that cost?
CL league opportunities spurned on the altar of individual greed and a heated driveway.
Has PL never heard of global warming?
This season — full AWB mode — lets go round again.
Half finished squad being worked towards injury as we strive for another CL qualification.
Things are looking tough so now the excuses are in full flow — EuL is now our level.
Or at least it is until we dimish to the point that it will be beyond us.
First it was about managing / reducing our debt.
Then it was about eliminating our debt.
Then it was a cushion for a rainy day.
Now £20 mill in the bank is not enough.
We have brought in £15mill plus this summer from player trading.
We have put out £5mill in cash this summer with the possibility of more in the future.
We are generating cash without trying but we are moving forward with a hobbled squad showing ever bigger gaps that were known about 6 and 12 months ago.
We have a captain who is on his last legs.
We are missing a proper DM and an experienced CB.
We have no recognised back up LB and a gap at RB in the reserves.
We have no aspiring and capable CF in the youths.
We have a very annoyed manager who is getting more vocal.
But everything is great according to the CQN monkey dancing to the CEO tune.
Money in the bank for the rainy day.
Unfortunately our current strategy is a rain dance that will overwhelm us.
GER57 on 3RD AUGUST 2018 2:16 PM
So Paul does a topical article on our club’s finances, and tells us that it is down to the prudence and professionalism of our off field staff. What’s not to like? But the negatonians jump in to complain about all the things they reckon should have already been done. Magic!
——-
I’m no negatonian. Rather a humiltonian with much to be humble about.
I thought the tone was at times glib and rather triumphal. That’s not my kinda Celtic.
HH jg
Basic question — what is AEK’s T/O?
Figures for 2016/17 will do.
Plus any thoughts on 2017/18.