We spent just off £30m this window on Arne Engels, Auston Trusty, Adam Idah, Paulo Bernardo, Viljami Sinisalo, Luke McCowan and the loan fee for Alex Valle, while Kasper Schmeichel arrived on a free. There is a lot to like.
Early this window, I was worried that Brendan would veer off plan and concentrate players in their mid-20s – a short-term gain with long-term pain. When Sinisalo arrived, we knew the plan was still in place.
Viljami is now a full Finland international with around 80 appearances in senior football. He will understudy Kasper for at least this season but he is working with the best in the business in Stevie Woods. Two years from now, if not earlier, he should be first choice and ready for the challenge.
Today, Arne gets all the attention for that record-breaking fee. What we bought in him is mostly potential. He has the potential to grow into an established fixture in the Belgium midfield. Please remember, he is a few days shy of his 21st birthday; even Matt O’Riley had periods where form slipped during his brief 2 ½ years here.
Arne will be the same. You and I have the responsibility to nurture his talent and make sure Celtic Park is a place of growth for young players. Forget about the fee paid, it is almost certainly too much for where is he. Think about Arne as the Belgium midfielder of the future.
We know what we are going to get from Paulo Bernardo, who did well in our biggest games last season. The same is true of Luke McCowan – value and more at that price. One of the reasons Adam Idah is now a Celtic player is that his preseason did not go to plan. Consequentially, he is a bit short of fitness right now (you may have noticed in Paisley last week). That will change soon enough. He is a solid striker and a good alternate to Kyogo.
Net spend in the EPL was down 40% from last year’s window (2024: £627M, 2023: £1078m). Financial Sustainability Regulations and the on-going breaches of EPL rules have taken effect. Clubs need to live within their means and if they aspire to compete in Uefa competitions, they have to live within a budget restriction which tightens from last season through to next season.
The clearest manifestation of that is Ivan Toney. The England international striker was sold for £40m, and Brentford only achieved that figure by going to Saudi Arabia. No English club was prepared to pay as much.
In this context, Celtic achieving a new Scottish sale record with Matt O’Riley going for £26m is interesting. Not only is it new ground for Celtic, but the comparative with England is significantly better. My hunch is that net spend in England and elsewhere will continue to soften next year as stricter rules come into force. Our money should be more valuable going forward, our players, less so.
As we mentioned earlier this week, Matt O’Riley is textbook case of how to recruit and develop a football player. Do more of the, please, Celtic. He was our most financially valuable asset, but I expect we will be able to fill that gap easier than we would if Kyogo, Carter-Vickers, Hatate or McGregor left. It was a remarkable deal, in so many ways.
Your football club is in a great position, managed on a tier one level. Transfer windows work in a consistent and predictable manner. Anyone who fails to understand this, self-identifies as an undisciplined child. Think of yourself, if no one else.
Bring your A Game tomorrow. Confidence wins nothing. You, me and the men on the park in green and white will have to perform if we are going to collect the points.
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Fred Colon
Many thanks for doing your taxi driver yesterday.
It was much appreciated.
As was the opportunity to meet up with the regular shipwrecks and ShuggyBhoy 67.
I hope to see you all again soon.
I hope everyone on the blog has a happy day tomorrow (excluding any lurking Huns of course).
HH
And a first as well.Looking like a good weekend !
Third as well?
Aipple must have overslept.
The window is over, the supporters did win.
Tier one Rodgers prized open the purse strings and filled the Parkhead revolving door. I’m glad he persevered throughout summer, he got the quality he wanted and strengthened where most supporters, could see we needed.
Outs – Tilio, McCarthy, Bernabei, Turnbull Abada, Haksabanovic, Oh, Lawal, Vata, Kelly, Lagerbielke, Kobayashi, M Johnston, Siegrist Iwata – a few loaned loaned youngsters
All through Parkhead’s proverbial ‘gates’, with some brain farting in the boardroom it has taken BR a calendar year, and three windows to mend, with a major ‘review’ planned for Celtic’s recruitment process. A process that will serve Celtic as it opens the new CL format and maybe into the next decade, setting a tone for beyond Brendan. A minor miracle saw the same side as it was, under Ange, barring two January 24 signings, lift the double. Hampered by the same shackles Brendan has decimated the squad and supporters are seeing a spend equivalent to a reasonable proportion of profit crucially on ready to play first teamers.
If there was better community PR between the board and the Celtic supporters, broadband wouldn’t be so stretched, self generated football ‘stress’ could have been avoided. Brendan Rodgers ain’t no Tony Mowbray, Rony Deila or Neil Lennon no puppet on a string, he knows Celtic are Scottish football, now along with legitimate earnings and unique wealth, that should be continually returned from a bank, to the club – Celtic supporters are the club.
Rivals that tow an open goal spectre around from rebuild to rebuild from 2012 won’t cancel our direct debits which coincided on Friday, with the slamming shut. Timing is everything and Celtic need more invincibles, no invisibles, for Parkhead Zadoc nights and where Engels and Co,now dare, as the Brendan voyage continues.
Ins – Schmeichel ,Sinasalo, Valle, Bernardo Idah, Valle, Trusty, Engels, McCowan.
Adidas Friday for sure 30/08/2024
My thoughts on the transfer window are…
It was worth the wait! Excited see the new players get bedded in over the next few months, into an already strong squad.
Can’t wait for the CL either. Went through the full draw on the UEFA website earlier and we’re in with a great chance. Especially when you see who the other teams you’d expect to finish around us have drawn. Some of them have 4 top clubs from pots 1 & 2, then teams like PSV etc.
Link to UEFA draw page:
https://www.uefa.com/uefachampionsleague/draws/
If we can take 9 points from 12 at home, we should qualify for the Play-off round.
I suspect our Tier 1 manager contributed much to our Tier 1 window (even if some blogs can’t help but have the occasional dig)
Hopefully, we can now dispense with the cult of personalities and unite behind our team.
Huge game tomorrow.
@Marspapa ..Your prob out and about on this lovely Greenock Saturday..
If You see this,…Invitation still stands From previous blog…
And if you need somwhere to watch the game tomorrow Your welcome to my humble abode .
AFF OOT Tae cut a big plot of land just now .Gonnae fire up Bobo The petrol mower…
Getting excited about the game tomorrow. Hopefully squeeze in two pints in the Drover pre match.
My only concern having watched a couple of the huns games is Desser appears to have improved his hold up play and can be quite physical. CCV will need to be on it.
An early goal to settle the nerves then a straightforward victory please Celtic.
Celtic MAY well have qualified for the next stage of the CL BEFORE travelling to VILLA for the final game ?
Whit dae I know ?
LOL
HH.
Of course our tier 1 manager was involved in the process. Nonsense to suggest otherwise. Unless it goes wrong when the naughty children can always blame their favourite bogeyman.
I know it’s childish…bit couldn’t help laughing at the name of “ Young boys” stadium……really !🤪🤨😂
I really hope every single supporter goes along tomorrow and really gets behind our team for 100 minutes or more.
Whatever it takes.
Seeing the absolute joy on young McCowans face when he walked ‘through parkheads mythical gates’ and out onto the pitch last night was a sight to behold.
I reckon he will score the final goal tomorrow to cap it all off.
was in the old one all those decades ago. what a shit hole it was then.
but a name worthy of a chortle in my teenage years 😄
Eratic
😂
I wonder if has a section of the ground designated for “staunners”?
Lot of pressure on us in the opening game v Bratislava
I don’t see why our players will be less valued.
‘Value the player, not the league’ should be our new mantra. If the value isn’t met, the player doesn’t move.
GENE – save me the scrolling back. What was name of the charity ? I’ll get it done 🍀
Yes, it was a special window, the mix of players was key
Schmeichel – Sinisalo
McCowan – Engels
Trusty – Valle
The whittling of the squad, is key.
We are in a really great place and the challenge of the UCL will see how much progress we have made
Well done to all involved
Hail Hail
Mission or Celtic foundation if you prefer
Missio
Not over confident or arrogant, but when we go 4 up tomorrow, bring on the new bhoyz.
KINGLuBO
declan rice.
what a fud!
Good article Paul, many important points made.
BSR wants better “PR between the board and supporters” – a perfectly reasonable enough request, however no matter how good the “PR”, some will just not get it because:
1) They don’t want to get it.
2) They want to remain producing noises-off because hilariously they think they know better.
3) They listen to tripe on some Celtic blogs and on X, believe it and parrot it because it reinforces their entrenched bias.
4) Most importantly, they haven’t a glimmer of a clue how a hugely succesful multi-million pound world renowned football club existing in a small league set-up operates.
Talk is cheap – ignorance is bliss, creating aggro is a pastime – advice “CALM DOWN” HH
I predicted all along- there would be 3-4 players coming in during the final week and a couple of them would be last day. That prediction is more than 3 weeks old on here.
I have no insider knowledge; it was based only on what has happened in every recent previous transfer window i.e 1 or 2 come early, 1 or 2 in the middle and the bulk at the end. The balance was disturbed only once when Ange was able to sneak in Japanese stars that no one else was then interested in but, even then we got Jota and CCV on the last day to make it a great window.
So we got Kaspar & Sinisalo early, Idah & Bernardo middling to late, and a final haul of Valle, McCowan, Engels & Trusty on the last day. And so did many other clubs too get a significant last day haul.
I can’t escape the feeling that some of us are addicted to the Soap Opera of the Transfer Window and traumatised by Willo Flood who did nothing to help us win or lose the 2008/9 league – over 15 years ago, in a winter window.
Confident assertions are made every year-
“That’s our transfer business over”
“There’ll be no more coming in”
“Just waiting on the excuses why all the deals fell through at the last minute”
“No clubs will do business with us because we’re a notorious low-ball outfit”
And every year, bar the Willo window, they are relentlessly disproved but like Japanese Knotweed, they return with caustic resilience- 3 weeks before the next window opens.
So- to save you the bother- My prediction is we’ll get 1 or 2 more in January if we’re still in European competition or contention, we might get 3-4 otherwise as we may lose stars like Kuhn or Hatate if they perform as Matt did against the big teams.
That’s our life. That’s our position in the food chain. Take what pleasure you can in it and just enjoy the wins when they come.
Starting tomorrow
Drambowiecelt on 31st August 2024 11:51 am
@Marspapa.. you picked a rare weekend for a visit…
Get youself up to the Cross of Lorraine and enjoy the view…
If you need anything i’m 5 mins away frome the Tontine
H.H
———————-
DBC
It was just an overnight then back up the road with my daughter , she heading out with her sisters and pals “a wumminz dayoot “…..carnage 🤣🙈.
If I’m back down your way I’ll be sure to have a look from said view and get a blether pal .
I’m expecting the Hun to go all out defence same as the Cup Final.
Big difference though start of the season game we’ll be fresh knocking the ball about for fun.
Expect Maeda and Kuhn to be the wide bhoys and for Kuhn to give Hun Brazilian LB a torrid time , wouldn’t be surprised if Hun LB had the bath to himself tomorrow afternoon.
Comfortable 4-0 win , to setup a good start to the season. If the sheep and dark blues win Huns down to 5th ( I think ?)
Youdbeanidiottopredictresultcfc
Transfer window – Should have moved earlier and saved cash, clubs were willing to do business just need to flash cash, money talks and well you know the rest.
Anyone who thinks our board and especialy you know who do not have a say on financial outlay ought to take their head out of the sand.
No one is questioning money spent its the process of buying that fans are questioning, too slow and laborious.
Now can we stop all the sniping at each other no one is r8ght and no one is wrong only our differing opinions.
we have a game tomorrow.
D
Anyone know how much we’ve raised in transfer fees across the two transfer windows in 2024?
im not convinced players of the cost that we have signed in this transfer window are keen on committing themselves to coming to scotland early in the transfer window hence all the last minute stuff.
i think players and their agents like to have that safety blanket but would rather go to a different league.
thats my theory anyway.
Let’s all do … 2.27pm
I don’t think it’s even just Scotland … agents playing teams off against each other and obviously doing their job getting their player the best deal available from whoever offers the best
Back to Basics 2.19pm
By all “accounts” approx £50m in and £30m out, those pesky bored (sic) probably hiding the other £20m under a mattress somewhere :-)
I don’t think it’s even just Scotland … agents playing teams off against each other and obviously doing their job getting their player the best deal available from whoever offers the best
—
yeah i guess thats what the agents get paid for.
i just think theres the added dimension of comimg to scotland. especially if they are looking to enhance their chances of getting into their national team. it doesnt always help that situation playing up here, even if they do well in big games, europe etc
Let’s all do …
Totally agree, although I think of that CL draw was a week ago a few players might have been in quicker
Good afternoon all from the Victoria Bar. A fine sunny day in old Govanhill. Allison Street looking tropical in the heat haze.
HRVATSKI JIM on 31ST AUGUST 2024 10:13 AM
🤣🤣🤣
T
Well of course without a Tier 1 manager like Brendan at the helm, galvanising both the team and the club, after a rocky patch in an earlier part of last season, overhauling Rangers*, winning the SPL and gaining automatic access to the newly formatted CL most of the new players duly signed would not have arrived through Parkhead’s gates. Matt O’Reilly would still have been sold though.
See the thing is, while transfer ins and outs can, as has been shown over the years, be a hit and miss affair, the CL has also shown that, as Willy Sutton used to say, is where the money is.
Ergo a down payment of 18 Million Euros coming our way from UEFA on September 19, and that will be on top of an Oasis style Euro package of £50x4x60000 (which even Hugh Keevins could work out) courtesy of our initial 4 home CL matches. More than one way to skin a cat……
Drambowiecelt on 31st August 2024 12:51 pm
@Marspapa ..Your prob out and about on this lovely Greenock Saturday..
If You see this,…Invitation still stands From previous blog…
And if you need somwhere to watch the game tomorrow Your welcome to my humble abode .
AFF OOT Tae cut a big plot of land just now .Gonnae fire up Bobo The petrol mower…
——————-
DRAMBOWIECELT
What a lovely gesture ,the true spirit of being a Tim ❤️
If I’m ever back down your way I’ll definitely look you up and catch a beer or two with you and blether all things Celtic and MUSIC!!
Take care 🤗
Ps…lovin the name of the mower🤣