I read one highly unlikely article yesterday suggesting we were going to sign Alfred Finnbogason AND were still bidding big money for Kevin Doyle ahead of an 11pm tonight signing deadline. It’s hard to be so wrong in so few words, but this one hit the mark.
Alfred is a target but, and this is the key point the newspapers have not picked up on, he is one of four strikers Celtic are seriously considering at the moment. He looks the part, as do the others, I am assured, but the deal has to be right for Celtic to move.
Our strategic plan is to buy players at a comparatively low price, develop them on the Champions League stage, and sell high, in order to be able to build a team capable of competing further in the Champions League.
To do this we need to buy from the right markets, at the correct age and on the right wage. There will be exceptions to this rule. A few weeks shy of his 27th birthday, Dirk Boerrigter is unlikely to appreciate greatly, but teams need experience to tackle the Champions League, as well as some specific skills, so Dirk is here for what he can give today, not to be the next £12m exit.
We will see more business like Wanyama and Hooper. Before Celtic agree a deal for Finnbogason there would need to be a gap between the buy price and the projected valuation IF the player is a success. If this gap doesn’t exist we will do business elsewhere. Sticking to strategy is more important than pursuing a target like some latter-day David “this time we’re really going for it” Murray.
You can also forget about the 11pm deadline tonight. That is only relevant if we need two or more new players to overcome Shakhter Karagandy. If we want to add Finnbogason, or any ONE other player, the deadline for a Wildcard signing is a day before the game, or pretty much when the team leaves Glasgow Airport, so there is no effective deadline tonight. As such, I would be surprised if a deal was concluded today.
Right now, at Lennoxtown and Celtic Park, people are deciding how to invest our money. We have the kind of choices consistent with a well-run club, but while we are a well-run club, we can’t get caught up in the hubris.
We are living through some big changes in our financial model. Revenue from domestic football (season ticket sales-now discounted, Rangers game £42-per-head ticket sales, hospitality sales, commercial income) has fallen, or disappeared completely (I reckon we’re in the region of £9m p.a. down in these areas, we’ll have a better indication when accounts are released later this month). On top of this, the club was running at a loss without Champions League football or significant player sale (£7m for season 2011-12, the last we have accounts for), and as well as some income streams falling, costs have risen.
I heard that one ‘St Mirren’ supporting journo on Radio Scotland on Saturday said with last season’s Champions League income and money from player sales, Celtic have a £40m transfer kitty.
In the name of all that is sacred, nine years after ‘What the Celtic fans want to know is where is all the Seville money?’, the same nonsense is being peddled. As far as some are concerned, we are back where we started on CQN. The first thing you do with your money is pay your bills, including tax… there is no creditor left behind at Celtic. After they are taken care off you can look to invest in footballers.
This year, the underlying loss has been flipped because of player sales and that Champions League income, although not by nearly as much as journos who regard researching accounts before commenting on finance as an unnecessary indulgence, will tell you. Without Champions League income (this season potentially £14m plus any prize money earned), the money from Wanyama alone would not make this a profitable season, even before the spend on our new signings.
The road ahead is clear. Get into the Champions League as often as possible without allowing any individual failure to cause a collapse, sign players who will flourish at that level, sell them for a profit, repeat and reinforce all aspects of strategy with an improved budget.
Over any business period, every penny which comes into the club, has been, and will continue to be, spent. Our money will be invested in footballers who will appreciate in value, and who will give Celtic their best chance of pushing further in the Champions League on a persistent basis. It will not rest in a bank account earning a pittance in interest. The strategy is ambitious and sustainable but not reckless.
A year ago some wondered if Celtic could survive, never mind flourish, without a Rangers-branded club in the league. If successful, this strategy will not only allow the club to flourish, it may even result in higher long-term income than Celtic achieved while locked in an arms race with a former rival, with a corresponding improvement in Champions League achievement.
Is Alfred Finnbogason the man, is he better than the others we’re looking at, good enough to excel in the Champions League? I’ve no idea, but he is just one detail in the wider Celtic strategy.
Stick to plan, Celtic.
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TBJ
Right. :))) lol
HT
Hope the holiday went well. :))
Weefra HH
Weefrathetim
Have seen quite a bit of the lad in the U 20s. Good, typical Australian athlete, who can read game, tackle and pass and move forward well. High hopes.
Tommysbhoy,
I’ve no idea tbh but I’d say you are still a wee bit high.
Especially this season. Under 13’s are 50 quid. Even in the decent seats.
Interesting though. Cana’s figures are low (as he clearly stated) but they sure as hell are nowhere near the £40m clear profit pash that was posted by some in here recently.
hamiltontim
yeh your right m8
delaneys dunky
Me too, I had high hopes for the lhaddie, especially after saturday performance, but, hopefully, the loan deal will help to harden him up for the SPHell. Just a thought. :))
Weefra HH
WeeFra
Magic time mate but sadly back to work today! :-(
Remember Scot Cuthbert was our next superstar defender
Don’t know if he is still at Swindon?
Auldhied
Just read your tweet to Mark Daly. Brilliant!!! :)))
Weefra HH
HT
Lucky you….
georgie munro
we’ve sold 45k sb so far or there abouts..a gues of 5k of them are £50 seats..thats why i left it at 40k..assuming the ave sb is 350?
Exiled Tim, can actually say i’ve seen Karagandy when they played St Pats 2 years ago. I was not impressed and think if we approach it in the right way we should have no problems.
HT
Yes I seen cars in our local primary school today. Are these “in service” days?
Weefra HH
Bt,
No for me.
John Kennedy was.
Just popped in, or should that be on, to say that I have enjoyed my escape from the nothingness of the ether of the interweb. Let’s hope I remeber my password t’morrow!
Chairbhoy – Cheers for your reply earlier. You are now officially an interweb mucker of Plato!!
I’m watching the telly at the moment and it has got me thinking that why are women comedians not very funny? or is it just me?
Night all
KERRANG CSC – ROCK ON – PLAY IT LOUD – ONE WAY TO ROCK
greendreamz
17:59 on
12 August, 2013
Its a results driven business……..everyone gets heaved in the end if they are not performing.
MON spent but couldn’t make the last 16
WGS downsized the wage bill and made the last 16 twice
NFL scouted talent, sold it on at big profit and made the last 16 in his second season
This tells you a couple of things:
1. Spending big does not guarantee progress
2. Football knowledge/intelligence is a more valuable attribute
3. Seeing a 20 year old and imagining him with 10% extra physical and mental development 2/3 years later is a true talent.
4. All the great managers had this talent. Stein, Busby, Shankly, Ferguson, Michels, Kovacs et al. Its what separates the winners from the triers.
We might be a huge footballing club in our own right but we operate in to all intents and purposes a country of no significance. We are right up there with Iceland, Norway, Finland, Ireland etc
All we need is a standing area for the GB and we are good to go………the model is working.
So you are telling me that all the “Great managers”like Busby,Shankly,and lets all laugh at this final one,Ferguson never spent any money on transfers.Away an bile your heid.Come back when its cooked.
call it £10m and £5 for arguements sake for sb and euro match takings,remember also the sales of players and the spending/transfers are not all paid in /out in one go as some assume and thers tax involved also hh
BT
I see you are well on the way to fitness again, what with your return to work programme. Hope it is going well.:))
Weefra HH
Paolo but they beat bate donchaknow?;)
Canamalar1 Some additions
From what we think we know, and I’ll be conservative,
Season ticket money £9M
SPL champs £1M
Telly £1M
CL £20M (+5 home games = £6m)
Player sales £18M (+ Ki £6m & Wilson £2.5m =£26.5m)
(+Real Madrid & Liverpool Friendlies)
Was it 9 or 10 players out ?
So far is it 5 in ? Lets say £6M
And I’ve no even looked at sponsorship or merchandise
Running costs £35M
Dividends, overdrafts, bonuses and loan repayments £5M
GeordieMunro – Yes i saw that but Bate sold their best players from what i can gather. I’m not saying it will be a walkover but we should go through, would be nice if we had a new striker though.
I know a fan who was at Hillsborough – let’s call him Andy B – he arrived back in Liverpool that evening, could not sleep a wink then phoned two of his mates at 7 am on the Sunday saying we need to get out of here. They drove the 200 odd miles to Glasgow to watch us v Hibs (I think) on the Sunday. He talks to this day about the support he received as he stood weeping in the old Celtic end at Hampden.
Ok guys, off to bed. Night night Timland #1
Weefra HH
Weefrathetim
Hope you are right. If the twitter rumours are true?
Geordie.
Just don’t want to build the buoy up too much..
Weee fra by the time I get remote access to work systems I’ve done my 3 hours..o))
Burnley78,
With respect (and having regard to your comment to PFayr at 22:19), I’d argue your attitude of deference is the greatest enemy.
It is healthy for a support to challenge the strategy and planning at our Club when we are in the position of domestic strength we enjoy currently. It would be easy to simply consider domestic achievement as the pinnacle.
To quote from Paul67, “Our strategic plan is to buy players at a comparatively low price, develop them on the Champions League stage, and sell high, in order to be able to build a team capable of competing further in the Champions League”.
If that is the strategic plan, with CL key to our goals, lets look at the current implementation of our plan.
We chose to weaken our squad by cashing in and selling Gary Hooper and Victor Wanyama (both players under contract), prior to sourcing replacements, ahead of the tie against Elfsborg. With our dream still alive (despite our Jenga type attitude to risk) and the riches of CL monies one step closer, we’ve now chosen to again play Jenga and further weaken the squad that played against Elfsborg by selling Kelvin Wilson (another player under contract).
Perhaps useful to again quote Paul67 from 4 June 2013,
“There is unlikely to be much difference in value achieved between selling before or after the qualifiers, so as long as the players stay on-side with Neil Lennon and the club, there will be no reason to sell before then”.
Are we sensibly implementing our strategic plan? Almost 3 weeks have now elapsed since Hooper was sold, a player we knew was potentially for the off since January – clearly no readily attainable striking replacement was identified. Still we cashed in.
Perfectly healthy therefore to question whether we are unnecessarily gambling with both our footballing and financial success. If we lose out on CL revenue through our failure to qualify, the resultant financial “loss” instantly wipes out any perceived upside achieved by the early sales of Hooper, Wanyama and Wilson.
Any strategy should have as its primary purpose football success. It is right that there is therefore increasing concern at the risks being taken and failure to deliver the best team on the park that our finances allow.
BT
Scunnered doesn’t cover it!!
WeeFra
Aye in service tomorrow too then the real work begins!
Now with all these millions the club has pulled in…..could big fraser foster be next to be touted……cant see him hanging around…..i wonder if they have set a target ££££££sss……no trophies are given out for bank balances
Paolo I was being a wee bit facetious. ;)
I’m with you 100% though
HH
THE EXILED TIM
Nah. Think ‘blood’ is the saying you’re looking for
Smartarse CSC
HT
Is that you till September weekend?
Bt, oh I hear you my man.
I think I’ve seen the lad 2 or 3 Times now and until Saturday I was far from impressed.
canamalar1
18:53 on
12 August, 2013
Dan,
I don’t believe Paul is being 100% truthful with his assessment of the finances, I believe this has been managed to frighten people into believing we are not in rude health, the reference to Murray is simply scaremongering, no one has asked the board to emulate Murray yet every time someone suggests spending a few quid (money we were told would be spent) we are greeted with the same drivel ‘do you want to end up like rangers’ it’s turning into a joke.
Exactly my thoughts.The Huns demise is now being used as a stick to beat the Celtic fans into a state of panic.How are the two circumstances even remotely the same?.We are cash rich,they were hawking themselves.We have a solid foundation,theirs was built on sand.They ran their buisness like a “Menage”.we run ours well.Never,ever in the last 20 years were they ever near our position.They had no money to spend,only credit.We do.
Is it too hard for people to comprehend that buying a striker will not bankrupt our club.Where are you getting this from.Step back and think about it.
Let Celtic keep all the CL money,and the money from Ki,and the money for Wanyama,and the money for Wilson,but FFS,please give the fans something in return.It is not going down the hun road.
delaneys dunky
I am confident the bhoy will lining up for us in the latter part of the season.
BT
Excuses, excuses, excuses. Starting to sound like a manager. Lol
HT
Know the feeling, I’ve been talked in to doing them friggin PM school runs again. :))
Weefra HH
Geordie Munro, no bother looks like theres more of a split tonite than usual.
HT sorry to hear the hols are over hope France was good, might see you at 5’s if im selected!!!
The hat
“clearly no readily attainable striking replacement was identified”
I agree with much of what you.say and I apologise for cherry picking but that statement is very hard to back up.
‘Signed’, yes
But not ‘identified’
BT
It is indeed mate. Hope you’re on the mend.
WeeFra
Pick them up as early as you please ;-)
Paolosboots
I’ve made myself available for selection if only to shed some of the excess holiday kilos!!
Defo off to bed now. I’m just giving Summa ammunition here. Lol. Night night#2 Timland.
Weefra HH