Last month I wrote about the highly-effective transfer windows culminating with the capture of Mikael Lustig in January 2012. The list of those who arrived over the next 18 months, culminating in the signature of Teemu Pukki on 31 August 2013, is largely a catalogue of expensive mishap. If only one of of the strikers signed during that period: Miku, Lassad, Balde or Pukki had made the grade, we would have been in better shape for the Champions League qualifiers.
Those mishaps sowed the seeds of where things went wrong recently but we brought in six players this summer, and in order to compete in the Europa League, we pretty much need five of them to command a regular starting place.
Craig Gordon is an excellent piece of business. Fraser Forster overcame almost all those doubters who would rather we bought Stipe Pletikosa in 2012 instead, but we have replaced Fraser with an equivalent, and banked the lion’s share of £10m in the process.
This alchemy is only possible due to doubts over Gordon’s fitness. We’ll find out how well-established his recovery is in the months ahead but the signs are good on this front.
Jo Inge Berget was signed on loan, like Amido Balde a year ago, he early in the transfer window. There is a great misunderstanding that there’s a shortage of players available early in the window. There are lots of players available the moment the window opens. For a reason. Jo wasn’t wanted by Cardiff City, who he made only two appearances for since joining in January.
He was given an unfair burden on his debut, in a highly-dysfunctional performance by Celtic in Warsaw, and, a solid performance against Dundee United apart, has been one of a number of players who have appeared lost in our game-plan since then. He has until Christmas to make his mark before he is due to return to Cardiff, but his chances will be limited by the subsequent signing on Wakaso Mubarak.
Wakaso is here on a year’s loan, with Celtic having an option to make the deal permanent, if he proves his worth. I hear good things about him; he has pace, strength, skill but his most prominent attribute is attitude, which he has in spades. This didn’t sit will in Kazan, where he was somewhat isolated.
Bulgarian midfielder, Aleks Tonev, bounced straight from medical couch to treatment table after his loan move from Aston Villa. He’s now fit and will be available for selection when play resumes after the international break and I hear Ronny Deila is keen on the player.
We now know that Manchester City teenage central defender, Jason Denayer, was brought in to play first team football. The player is highly thought of by City and Ronny, but I wouldn’t expect too much from him in what is his inaugural season of first team football.
Stefan Scepovic has the distinction of contributing 100% of the money spent on players signed by Scottish clubs this summer. He was Celtic’s first choice striker, and, as we discovered late in the day, was wanted by scouts in Spain, so the indicators are reassuring. His experiences over the past week have not without trauma for the player, but he kept focus and his word to join Celtic.
The overwhelming observation from our activity this year is the predominance of loan signings, which is a strategy I suspect was hatched after the ‘No refunds’ deals for Pukki, Balde and Boerrigter last season. We will get more from some of them than others.
Taking Berget for six months was clearly a short-term fix to an immediate gap in the squad. I don’t think we’ll see too much of him from now on. Despite the fact that Jo didn’t make a perceivable difference during our European qualifiers, I don’t have a problem with short-term deals in principle. We could have benefited from one for a target man.
Denayer will almost certainly return to Manchester next year, a more mature player, having pushed Efe and Virgil for a year.
Aleks Tonev and Wakaso Mubarak are here to impress, both are working for a permanent deal. I expect Mubarak to play in his favoured position on the left, with Tonev behind him in a more central role alongside Brown and Johansen.
Ronny has been putting apples in orange crates so far this season but with a central three of Tonev, Johansen and Brown, behind Mubarak, Scepovic and Forrest (or McGregor), he’ll have the personnel to play his favoured 4-3-3.
Two first team regulars left the club, the thoroughly professional Fraser Forster and Georgios Samaras. It was time for both to move on. Fraser, as Southampton was the right club for him, and £10m was the right price for us, Georgios, as he had become increasingly peripheral to team plans under Neil Lennon and would have been even more out of the picture under Ronny. Would Georgios have made a difference in our Champions League qualifiers? There’s a good chance he would have against Maribor but the gap against Legia was bigger than 6’3”.
Pukki and Balde were sent on loan, in the hope they impress and move on. Bon chance. Tony Watt was sold for £1.2m to Standard Liege, who will fancy they can take Tony’s undeniable potential and turn it into an asset their manager wants to work with. It’s been years since we’ve produced as exciting a young player as Tony but he’s now been shipped on or out by three managers.
I would still like to see John Guidette added to this list, even without European football – especially if he is prepared to stay beyond the end of the season. The incumbent strikers, Stokes and Griffiths, will continue to get game-time, but neither is suited to the lone-striker role.
I’m not going to sell a Europa League campaign as anything like the Champions League, but it is very important this squad is ready for Europe. Without much domestic competition (I’m ignoring Inverness and Dundee for a moment) we need to be competitive in the group stage and aim to progress to the latter stages of the competition.
Thumping Dundee United 6-1 taught us nothing, we need to mature as a team against European competition and exorcise the ghosts of Legia and Maribor. No matter how good the new arrivals are, there’s no way they would gel well enough to allow us to do anything more than endure >80 minutes of defending our 18 yard line in Champions League football this season.
We’ll miss the money, prestige and Zadok the Priest, but the Europa League is a better level for us right now.
My thanks to Canajunbhoy, who retires after running the Quick News section for the best part of a decade. Quick News will be back in a different format in the future.
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Soz for double post
setting free the bears for Res. 12 & Oscar Knox but saying no to CQN racists
21:59 on
3 September, 2014
TBJ
“But he took every opportunity to get onto tv”
—————
sftb,
much respect on many things on here,
but was the bold jim in the bar when the incident happened ?
proof ?
£1??????
Nah, nobody will believe anybody would pay that much…
Timabhouy
Noticed the following on your link:
72% of married men choose soccer over sex!
Alarming stats – numbers must be falling?
:-)
St Stivs, taken from the papers the day after
=======================================
Labour MP Jim Murphy, who was passing at the time and remained at the scene to help victims, said on Twitter: ‘Terrible here in Glasgow, helicopter crashed into roof of pub.’
He also said there were ‘multiple injuries’ and people off the street had to help evacuate people.
Mr Murphy, the former Scotland Secretary, told the BBC: ‘It’s a well established Glasgow pub.
‘It’s a horrible horrible scene, but well done to the folk who were here.
‘Everyone formed a chain of people from inside the pub to outside, and the fire brigade and everyone were here very quickly
I hope we never , ever, consider selling naming rights to Celtic Park.
I know many think that it is of little importance as we would call it Celtic Park (or Parkhead) anyway.
We would be declaring that nothing is sacrosanct , everything is for sale at the right price.
Reminds me of the joke
Man: “Would you sleep with me for £1 million pounds?”
Lady “I would say that I would have to give it serious consideration”
Man “Would you sleep with me for one pound?”
Outraged Lady “What kind of women do you think I am ?”
Man ” I think we have already established what type of woman you are,
we are merely haggling over the price!”
The Biggotdome naming rights are out of the hands of the club , they may as well put a red light on the roof and a sign saying open for business .
The Onlooker
Bobby Russell
23:59 on
3 September, 2014
St Stivs, taken from the papers the day after
=======================================
Labour MP Jim Murphy, who was passing at the time and remained at the scene to help victims, said on Twitter: ‘Terrible here in Glasgow, helicopter crashed into roof of pub.’
————
passing at the time
thats the crux of it.
just happened to be passing at the time.
Has Ronny resigned yet
The Europa League is a better level for us right now because essentially after a myriad of downsizing exercises to facilitate executive bonuses this is where we are. We just have to accept that our turnover is less than Hull as is our expectations. Unless yee talkin aboot the Huns begorrah then we awe canny wait! Europe? Geez a brek!
Night Night Timland. KTF.
Weefra HH praying to Wee Oscar.
So, naming rights is it?
I can feel a list coming on:
Mike Ashley (Dafty)????
Mental Asylum Dome….
Feel FreeToAddCSC
Caltontongues
Thank f**k your on
Been looking for you since Jan 26th in the vain hope I’d catch ye
God blind me
What was the big event 8 months ago I missed?
I stayed up awe night so I did.
What was the revelation again?
Saint Stivs – 00:03
“passing at the time
that’s the crux of it.
just happened to be passing at the time.
Bit like the good Samaritan then… ;o)
Blooter It!
00:17 on
4 September, 2014
Saint Stivs – 00:03
“passing at the time
that’s the crux of it.
just happened to be passing at the time.
Bit like the good Samaritan then… ;o)
—————
if only.
so seperate reported accounts, at the time said
he was in the clutha.
he was in the scotia across the street,
he was just passing buy.
he was on the scene before the emergency services
he was in the chain helping
he hasnt “capitalised on it”.
accidental hero ?
you decide.
Margaret McGill
00:14 on
4 September, 2014,
Obviously ye missed my response so, to make it not quite so easy, what do the following have in common (just some examples) :
1995/6
1979
1988
1998
2007
2008
Naming rights ?
How about “bhoys r us”
Keeps the Fenian theme
Keeps that childish dream going
Makes us all feel musketeer like
But maintains the corporate priority of spend some money or fck off
Europa dope being this years corporate theme
Im all for it!
Just Another Tim 23:32 on 3 September, 2014
Just Another Tim
23:28 on
3 September, 2014
Just been reading over FIFA’s regulations regarding international transfers. I can’t see anything specific regarding players documents have to be filed for a certain time. I suspect the SFA have appealed using FIFA’s Dispute Resolution Chamber process which states decisions can take up to 30 days to process.
Boring stuff but fascinating
http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/affederation/administration/01/27/64/30/regulationsstatusandtransfer2010_e.pdf
………………
Uefa and Fifa delegate to the SFA. It is within the SFA’s discretion to facilitate the transfers. UEFA and FIFA cannot possibly monitor every Association at deadline time so they allow the discretion to each Association. The FA embrace the spirit of that discretion – the SFA do not.
The SFA/SPFL screwed up and then invented the appeal nonsense to wriggle out of it.
There are no rules, no requirements, no stipulations – nothing.
The idiots in Scotland came up with this crap to kick the problem down the road and absolve themselves of responsibility.
I am waiting for the Sports and MS media to scrutinize the statement and question those who released it.
Long Wait CSC
Mags,
1st should have been 1975/76.
Imagine you were born in1972 and went to you’re first game in 1981 and you hammered St Mirren 7 v 0, great team to follow, so you did through thick and thin, early ninetys bringing your Uni Irish mates getting them to be fans despite the pish on the field, they stayed fans and were rewarded in the 2000’s, I remember shocking failure at Celtic, anyone giving out now is either a child or a malcontent that will never be happy, point of note my dad’s dad actually played for Celtic, a miner and a great guy
Tone loc
Good man
caltontongues#teamoscar
00:22 on 4 September, 2014
El Niño?
toneloc
mcgarvey hat trick and my favorite away strip of all time
St. Stiv’s
If you don’t mind, I am going to stay out of that.
I tried to make a plea for decency but ended up giving offence to people I never intended offending.
Passions are running high just now and, for the first time as an intended No voter, I am finding that the jibe about being “feart” might apply. I am a bit scared of how angry we are becoming.
So, I am going to steer clear of the politics for the next two weeks. It’s all pretty futile anyway. People can dream up what they want about someone and it will seem real to them.
We can now have a moonhowling day shift.
I’ll stick to Celtic for now. Ideas about Celtic are less fixed, it seems.
Well, at least till we lose to Aberdeen in 9 days :-)
Margaret McGill
00:28 on
4 September, 2014
caltontongues#teamoscar
00:22 on 4 September, 2014
El Niño?
—————–
Sort of but, I though you being anti Old Firm would get that in a minute.
BTW, there is only ONE hun title in the list:-)
What is the stars
Cheers
St Stiv’s
setting free the bears for Res. 12 & Oscar Knox but saying no to CQN racists
————-
i know how you feel.
two good friends have became rabid NO anagonists each morning as i come into work..
whit aboot , whit aboot, whit aboot.
so best to park it, and all come back celtic supporters some day late september.
ourselves alone.
keep it lit.
caltontongues#teamoscar
00:32 on 4 September, 2014
Ok fair enough
Let me get back to you
TheOnlooker, it’s all about price. If someone wanted to pay £50m p.a. to rename Celtic Park the Emirates Stadium of the North I’d bite your hand off.
Like your George Bernard Shaw story suggests, it’s not that everything can be sold, but everything has value, and value is often transferable, i.e. £50m income from naming rights means £50m more to spend on……..
The lady George offered £1 on the train that day had a very real human issue to address.
St Stiv’s
Loved Frank after that until I played a kick about with him and some mates up in King’s Park and he nearly broke my leg!!
Mike Ashley has not underwritten the new Zombie share issue.
Mike Ashley has been invited to… By Sondy Easdale.
Mike Ashley is a very shrewd, very streetwise and smart bloke who treats every penny as a prisoner.
That invite will have needed a ‘pleeeease RSVP’ but I wouldn’t hold my breath, ‘Sondy’.
Paul67
00:37 on
4 September, 2014,
See if yer gonnae post on here, a wee tip….
Please date stamp as above-:)
Nitol
What on earth did Green/Sevco have to gain from the £1 deal? I really don’t get how this could have happened.
Was it just a foolish move by Charlie hoping to woo Ashley into parting with more cash or is there something else to it?
a few years ago. in my late night drunken ramblings, i let it known my family tree and a daft who do you think you are vindication that my name meant something,
Ulster Celt ,
i think it was gave me a link to a poem.
its ours , i like it, its relevant today.
wriiten 250 years ago,
——————
OURSELVES ALONE, by JOHN O’HAGAN Poem Source
First Line: The work that should today be wrought
Last Line: Redeemed — erect — alone!
Subject(s): Nationalism – Ireland
THE work that should to-day be wrought,
Defer not till to-morrow;
The help that should within be sought,
Scorn from without to borrow.
Old maxims these — yet stout and true —
They speak in trumpet tone,
To do at once what is to do,
And trust Ourselves Alone.
Too long our Irish hearts we schooled
In patient hope to bide,
By dreams of English justice fooled
And English tongues that lied.
That hour of weak delusion’s past —
The empty dream has flown:
Our hope and strength, we find at last,
Is in Ourselves Alone.
Aye! bitter hate, or cold neglect,
Or lukewarm love, at best,
Is all we’ve found, or can expect,
We Aliens of the West.
No friend, beyond our own green shore,
Can Erin truly own;
Yet stronger is her trust, therefore,
In her brave sons Alone.
Remember, when our lot was worse —
Sunk, trampled to the dust —
‘Twas long our weakness and our curse
In stranger aid to trust.
And if, at length, we proudly trod
On bigot laws o’erthrown,
Who won that struggle? Under God,
Ourselves — Ourselves Alone.
Oh! let its memory be enshrined
In Ireland’s heart for ever!
It proves a banded people’s mind
Must win in just endeavour;
It shows how wicked to despair,
How weak to idly groan —
If ills at others’ hands ye bear,
The cure is in Your Own.
The foolish word ‘impossible’
At once, for aye, disdain;
No power can bar a people’s will,
A people’s right to gain.
Be bold, united, firmly set,
Nor flinch in word or tone —
We’ll be a glorious nation yet,
Paul67 ,
I know the argument well ,as I have it regularly with many friends who share your view.
I usually end by annoying them with hypothetical shopping lists to test their theory
How much to change the strip from Hoops to stripes?
How much to change from green to pink?
How much to change the name from Celtic to Buckfast Utd…?
I suppose we all have a price , its just that mine has too many zeros to fit in the box.
….leading zeros : )
the Onlooker
Redeemed — Erect — Alone!
Hi Paul67
Any info you can share with us on Our illustrious Celtic lawyers and their response on res 12?
If it’s along the lines of the board are looking into it and are being honest as the possibly can with the res 12 protagonists don’t bother !
Thanks to:
pigalle
Bournesouprecipe
Geordie Munro
Martim
rimtimtim
Awe Naw