Sun setting on striker flop, Football for Schmucks

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News that the sun is setting on Amido Balde’s Celtic career will be welcomed far and wide.  His arrival on the back of a few YouTube clips and what now appears to have been a Portuguese marketing scam is a salutary lesson on how easy it is to expire transfer and wage budget, while incurring the even greater cost of poor recruits – Champions League failure.

We will never get them all right, but the processes Celtic went through to recruit a striker in the summers of 2012 (Lassad, Miku), 2013 (Balde, Pukki) and 2014 (Guidetti, Scepovic) are worth some urgent revision.  None were able to hold down a regular place in the team.

In mitigation, it’s easier to recruit a keeper or a defender (which we’ve done very well at recently) than a striker, but there will be lessons to learn from those six signings.  Quickly, I hope.

On the positive side, all of the aforementioned arrived with a degree of realism attached.  I noticed this morning: “Wabara really is in the mould of Barcelona great Dani Alves”.  This isn’t fun anymore.  Honest football fans (many are) are being treated like simpletons.

It’s like that Steve Carell movie, Dinner for Schmucks, where Paul Rudd doesn’t have the stomach to laugh at absurdly unfortunate guests.  Better they are put out of their misery than dragged through an ignominious humiliation before inevitably emptying their pockets at the alter of a Sports Direct retail contract.

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681 Comments

  1. SydneyTim

     

    21:14 on

     

    29 June, 2015

     

    Amazed at paui67 first true post for a while

     

     

    Been saying the same thing for 4 years now

     

     

    We have been told that PL controls everything within Celtic park

     

    In any top business the CEO would be removed for wasting up to 10m on these projects

     

    Park is a defo to go But lawwel should follow him

     

     

    ———-

     

    It looks like PL’s boss has a different view…

  2. Dallas Dallas: Thanks for that update. 15 times in court and still unresolved is totally unsatisfactory. What a waste of time and money, not to mention the worry for the ghuys who were charged.

  3. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    Ron,

     

     

    stop making false assumptions about me. I have already pointed out PL’s strengths. He should follow Jock Steins career at Celtic

     

    HH

  4. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    BSR

     

     

    is that a punt ?

     

     

    Sssshhhhh………

     

     

    He probably morally fits into the calibre of player we are prepared to recruit these days. desperate measures etc.

     

     

    HH

  5. clogher celt on

    Re, MacJ

     

     

    I only really took note of him on Saturday.

     

     

    I has no previous knowledge about comments about b……s, etc.

     

     

    We had a conversation onlone.

     

     

    He eventually said ” I love the Irish connection. I cherish it.

     

    I can perfectly well understand the sense of grievance the Irish people feel about their history.

     

    Recent and ancient.

     

     

    Anyway thinking I had made progress I asked him over.

  6. P67

     

     

    Very frank story today — What’s up ?!?

     

    PL getting a bit de-mob happy?

     

     

    Something for the future — tally up all the money wasted over the past few years?

     

    It would make our ECL failures look like small change.

     

     

    Oh well at least Labrokes is offering free money at the moment …

     

    Greece — Military Coup / next two weeks — 6 / 4 on.

  7. If only awnaw could offer his obvious wisdom to Peter Lawell and provide a list and price of players to buy .

  8. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    Ron,

     

     

    if only, but Peter wants his bonus all to himself. That list has provided 8m quids worth of bonus money.

     

     

    HH

  9. dreams of lisbon: He was at the AICSC dinner in Dublin on Saturday night. On the couple of occasions I saw him play I liked the look of him. With the season Nir Bitton had last season I don’t see many opportunities for him but I’d like to see him get a run of games before writing him off.

  10. The Green Man on

    Businessmen who think they know about football players.

     

    The height of absurdity.

     

    Some people are just catching on now.

     

    Takes a while sometime.

     

     

     

    HH

  11. The Green Deila on

    Messing around with Kodi. Anyone got a link to the addon one should install for sky?

  12. The Green Deila on

    The Green Man

     

    Will have a look, ta

     

     

    the_huddle

     

    Cheers, will have a read

  13. saltires en sevilla on

    An Tearmann

     

     

    aul proggers – like it

     

     

     

    deidco collapsed Going for the One. Fragile business plan sailed Close to the Edge of the Topographic Ocean. When Paul67 Relayer (ed) the news we sat at The Gates of Delirium eating jelly & ice cream

     

     

    I could go on…

  14. cliftonville celt from belfast on

    what is the stars

     

     

    20:48 on 29 June, 2015

     

     

    No bother mate

     

     

    I know everyone is entitled to an opinion but it’s interesting most of the boys on here from the 6 counties don’t want to enter into the discussion

     

     

    We are all aware how it ends up !

  15. Dreams of Lisbon on

    Almore

     

     

    Thanks for that. Last I had heard he had been loaned to Melbourne (I think) then got injured. I’m with you on not writing him off but he will need to improve markedly to oust Biton Johanssen & Brown from the central midfield berths. This season will be a big challenge for him if he isn’t sent out on loan again and is fit.

     

     

    HH

  16. Has some kind of midsummer madness infected CQN today? Looks very like it to me. Away and bile yer heids, cynics and know-alls.

     

     

    Celtic will still be providing the likes of myself with joy. In no small part that is down to the Peter Lawwells who love the Celtic, hard as too many of you seem to think.

     

     

    Night all.

  17. cliftonville celt from belfast on

    Out for a wee run there running up the Main Street in my hoops and there’s the People putting up their crappy orange arch

     

     

    Got a big ‘Alright zombies’ from me – didn’t seem too happy lol

  18. saltires en sevilla on

    murdochauldandhay & wee oscar

     

     

    21:42 on 29 June, 2015

     

    Our Champions league qualifying opponents Stjarnan lead Kevlafik 0-1 at half time, the toilet seat was used in celebrating the goal

     

    –///–///—

     

     

    Hope your meeting went ok today?

     

     

    Is that game on tv now?

  19. What is the Stars on

    Cliftonville celt

     

    Maybe they just don’t like hearing an alternative view. But that’s their perogative.

  20. Awe naw @ 21.38

     

     

    Look what we could have won …

     

     

    If PL understood the concept of a growth agenda …

     

    … and his bonus did not mean everything to him.

     

     

    He is a boy doing a mans job.

     

    He has his strengths but growth and brand building are not amongst them.

     

     

    The base questions remains.

     

    If it doesn’t make sense then his actions don’t make sense.

     

    I really do wonder if he has acquired any French property over the years?

  21. Server Announcement:

     

     

    The server will go offline for a few minutes in circa 10 minutes. Back as soon as we can.

  22. Lists!

     

     

    Not as if these haven’t been around for a few years (127):

     

     

    1890

     

    Inside-right William Naughton signed for Celtic in March 1889 but his only major appearance came in the club’s first ever league match – a 4-1 defeat at home to Renton.

     

     

    1896

     

    Outside-left James Carlin signed for Celtic from Paisley Celtic. He was almost exclusively a reserve at Parkhead but made a solitary first team appearance in a vital league tie at home to Dundee. Carlin was out of his depth as Dundee won the crucial encounter 1-0. Carling left Celtic that May for Victoria United.

     

     

    1898

     

    Centre-half Pat Donlevy played just one competitive game for Celtic after signing for the club from Glasgow Perthshire. His solitary appearance came in a 2-1 defeat at home to Hibernian.

     

     

    1899

     

    John Blackwood was among the briefest of Celtic careers making just a solitary league appearance in a 2-0 home defeat to Hearts. It just wasn’t to be for John.

     

     

    If you go to Celtic Wiki – you could have a field-day making lists. In fact you could probably write a thesis on the combinations of those that were bought and failed to make the grade.

     

     

    Still – they got to ‘wear the jersey!’

     

     

    H!H!

  23. cliftonville celt from belfast on

    what is the stars

     

     

    21:54 on 29 June, 2015

     

     

    I can assure you I’ve heard every point of view from everyone over the years

     

     

    To be honest I’m sick of it.

  24. Awe_Naw_No_Annoni_Oan_Anaw_Noo on

    Paul67 started todays debate. I think to question his sanity is a disgrace.

     

     

    Don’t take it personally Paul67.

     

     

     

    HH