The count of how many times I’ve heard “I hope we don’t take the foot off the pedal like we did last year” has reached double figures. This is never a good sign. Football games, against any level of opponent, need to planned for and respected.
During last season’s League Cup semi-final, Celtic went two goals up early on, then made 100% sure the result would never be in danger by denying Newco even an attempt at goal (the match stats recorded one attempt, which was actually a wayward cross from a free kick). Compare and contrast with Borussia Dortmund’s two goal advantages last night. While I’d love to score a barrel-load, winning the game is all that really matters.
We have seen enough Celtic teams dominate possession in Europe against less-resourced teams only to lose to the sucker punch. This has been a harsh lesson, which I hope has been learned.
I doubt many of us know what to expect from Newco. They won the Championship but this season didn’t have to contend with vastly superior Hearts team. They are also in the semi-final because they thumped Premiership Dundee 4-0 at Ibrox, which is a huge result for any lower league team (we’ve failed to score twice against Dundee recently).
All my “Rangers” supporting pals tell me they are hopeless at defending, so there’s a decent possibility they will defend deeply and play on the break – just as several others have done effectively against us this season. We’re going to have a lot of possession in the final third, but Scott Brown and Nir Bitton will need to offer a lot of defensive cover.
Most of all, we’ll need discipline. There’s a red card winging its way to the first Celtic player to stare at an opponent in a rash manner. The First Minister will probably get involved too, so be prepared.
Did you read Walter “dare I say it, 10 in a row” Smith? What a man to have in your corner days before a big game. He’ll have them thinking it’s 1957 all over again!
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Charlie Gallagher! What a Player! is the new book by Celtic historian David Potter, published by CQN Books at the end of the month. Order your signed copy HERE or click on the image below.
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It’s Friday its five to five it’s ………….
What chance any former or present referee getting one of these letters from hmrc ?
I would find this absolutely brilliant if a david murray company paid the ebt
What’s your favorite song about someone who operates smoothly?
——-
“Donald Whaur’s Yer Troosers” ?
~~~~
Kid Creole’s ” Oh Annie”
BSR
On yonder hill, there stood a coo..
Its no there noo..
It must have shifted:)
HH
As Jobo returns from the oppressive spring warmth of Andalucia, he’ll be pleased to be welcomed back to ole EK by the snow.
Great post Mr Gemmell……..when i was a young ‘un the 60’s i would meet you and many other celtic players before a game in the hunt for an autograph and it was always Mr Gemmell Mr Chalmers, McNeil etc. I would never dare call you by your first names. Now i’m and old so and so!. Tommy, it’s a privilege !!
There’s an occasional poster on here – he was on earlier – who is getting on a bit but his mind is as sharp as a tack and he has one or two stories to tell about Celtic.
He could do with some company now and then and if you put the kettle on and make the tea you will be rewarded with some brilliant Celtic chat.
So if any of the older supporters on here, who may have seen him back in the day at a Celtic game running up and down the park, would like to pop in and spend an hour or two in the company of a legend , then please let me know.
Email me at david@cqnpublishing.co.uk to make arrangements.
Thoughts about liquidation
Take a piece of fruit, an orange say, place it in a liquidiser and switch it on. When done, do you still have an orange or just some sh!te leftover that used to be an orange?
That’s liquidation right there for you
BSR
Sade was in the same restaurant as me, Smiths of Smithfield, in London the night we played Liverpool at home in 2003.
Due to a business commitment I missed that game so my wife used my ticket and went with my son.
My business partner also had to give away his ticket to one of his sons and he was filmed when YNWA was being sung at the beginning of the game.
My wife played it over the phone to me.
2 minutes later the gentility of Smiths of Smithfield was shattered when she called to say we had scored .
Sade is very beautiful and one of my very favourite singers.
Patrick27 that’s pith
In Portugal on Sunday, in Alvor. Anybody know if any bars will be carrying the match? Otherwise it’s updates on CQN.
have a safe weekend bhoys
it’s hissing down here in n yorks
the tory councillor across the road has got his union jack hanging up already
joined the labour party last month
can’t wait for my life size cut out of jeremy to come
moon the hoops keep a sensible head on and we’ll win
don’t moon the hoops bhoys
TGM
McGonagle?
HRVATSKI JIM
Cool story.
I see ole Ronny slipped up and used the R……. word
Back in after a hard shift stripping wallpaper. Delighted to see some stuff from TOmmy Gemmell , a true hero. my good ladies family lived about 25 yards from your place in Craigneuk and remember well the party that night in May, God bless you.
I was equally delighted to see that I have been called a ” feartie” by some one who does not know me and I know not who he is either. Apparently stripping wallpaper in my daughters first home is an act of cowardice when the alternative is to sit and watch a sham of a football match being played under rigged rules at a shitehole of a stadium.
If I was not stripping wallpaper my time would be spent doing something other than watching the bigot fest. I have attended dozens of Celtic v Rangers games, I have enjoyed very few.
Sunday , smacks to me of a desperate act of the SFA cabal to maintain their status and Blazers. Excuse my language….fuck them and all who support them.
To my unknown critic, I would say eff you as well, but to be honest ICGAF.
Hail! Hail!
Good Evening.
Here is something new. All about the ‘exciting’ tax story on the front page of today’s Daily Record…
https://theclumpany.wordpress.com/2016/04/15/stupidity-and-subversion/
Have a great evening!
https://twitter.com/itsultralife01/status/720733439377416195
https://twitter.com/itsultralife01/status/720733439377416195
Very funny,Alf Garnett at Old Trafford springs to mind
Judas a pundit on sky sports with Neil on Sunday !! what’s that about !!
Hack:
“The last two semi-final games you ended up with 10 men, how important is it to keep 11 men on for the whole game?”
Ronny:
“Well, we trained the whole week with 10 men, so we’ll see how it goes.”
Ha ha – Ronny’s getting the measure of the SMSM numpties.
Judas a ‘pundit’ on Sunday?!
Will he be wearing a wig and a false beard?!
One of my favourite quotes from ‘Not the View’:
“The worst Catholic since Heinrich Himmler.”
HH!!
Can’t be bothered with the forthcoming game.
Crap tournament. Crap stadium. Crap pitch. Crap ref. Crap opponents.
Crap pundits as well.
The man with the longest line of all, in the long line of mibbery against Celtic is somehow seen as the best qualified to handle this game, and that’s only because he’s the most experienced.
I would just like Celtic to be involved in a match at Hampden that didn’t somehow, somewhere feature officialdom, but I won’t be holding my breadth, and both of his assistants come to the game with the perfect SFA lineage.
A day when lots of Celtic fans will find something better to do than tune in to the Sky motivational Sevco fest, who are playing at their real home with their real creators, and I’m not surprised that Celtic season ticket holders didn’t take up the full allocation, but there is ‘going to be a show and all that’
You would think we were playing Barca and of course we’re not, but we just don’t know what to expect because the truth like a lot of other things is hidden in Scotland, what we do know is that mibbery aside, the Ronny Deila era owes the support a performance in the cup.
I think RD trialled Colin Kazim Richards at the expense of injured Gary MacKay Steven these last few games and I don’t think the big guy passed, and can’t remember seeing anybody more unlikely to score since eh… Nadir Ciftci? so wouldn’t put it past Ronny to play two small wide men Roberts and GMS. So three players in contention for wide left, if we include three minute sub Stuart Armstrong, as RD seems to have forgotten Kris Commons.
Only a fool would have predicted a scoreline in a Celtic v Rangers game, so I’m going for
Celtic 4 Sevco 0.
JMCORMICK. I dont see why anyone would call you a coward for stripping wallpaper and neither are you a coward for not attending Sundays game.The fact is you see it in a similar fashion to myself why pay your hard earned money to follow rigged Scottish football.I also understand any supporter who wants to attend the game and it is there right to spend there money in anyway they wish. We are all different and make our choices but calling folk who make different choices cowards is just plain daft. H.H.
PATRICK27 on 15TH APRIL 2016 5:09 PM
Hahahahahahahahahahahahaha …. BRILLIANT
Jim McCormick
I’m with you, Bhoy …… I’ll be taking the dog for a walk on Sunday …. Prefer the company of an animal I like (luv), to rabid animals I detest
Good Evening Timland.
We’re bigger, stronger, and better than the hun.
We have a manager who’s been labelled a dud.
We have a side that has been told that they’re
the poorest Celtic side in a generation.
shutthefcukersupCSC.
JOE FILIPPIS HAIRCUT on 15TH APRIL 2016 6:49 PM
Agree with your comments to JM.
Me and Wee BGFC are going on Sunday, same as we do for any game we are lucky to get a ticket for. Not stopping giving our support to Celtic because they are playing against cheats and vermin in a rigged game. However, absolutely understand the position of those who make a
…point of not attending.
We are all Tims together – just slight differences in approach.
Hail Hail to each and eveyone of us – down with the SFA and Sevco.
HH
BGFC
Guess my latest letter to SFA got lost in cyber space.
Tommy Gemmell
Hail Hail
nuffsaidCSC
Nye Bevan,
Has Mrs Bevan forgiven you for letting Miss Bevan to attend the game :-0
If this guy comes to Glasgow he’ll need to change his name ;-)
Amin Toofani
I’m going on Sunday and will never seek approval,
explain or apologies for going too a Celtic game.