Signing players is easy, just ask anyone who has never done it. The selling club invariably wants to wait until the last moment, when they are sure no one else will bid up the price. The player occasionally wants to wait and see if you have Champions League football that season. This deal might be the only income the agent will get that year, so he needs to make the most of it.
Then you have the really complicated ones. Players have pitched up at Celtic Park from a far-flung part of Europe, terrified to sign because some shady character thinks he owns a part of him and has not been paid off.
There has been a time recently when everything was agreed, then the selling club told the player he would not receive his final salary. The player, not unreasonably, said, “This is not right, on a point of principle, they need to pay or we try again in January.”
You want to sign all your top targets, but to do that, you need to pay the top price the club, player and agent can imagine you will pay, even then, it’s not always going to happen.
It is only right to pay the top price you can afford on exceptional occasions. Your strategy should involve being prepared to fail in a negotiation, because to succeed at the prevailing price does not fit your overall budget.
In Scotland, we are still conditioned to some extent, by the bombast of David Murray. Old Zsa Zsa rattled his jewellery and boasted that he never allowed price to stop him buying a player he really wanted. I hear the echoes today, “Just pay the money!”
Murray made it sound like a virtue. It wasn’t. It was one of several vices that led to liquidation.
You have to lose some. Players will not come and some existing players, who are out of contract, will leave. Both will be painful, fans will accuse you of motives which have no internal consistency, but if you get a reputation for not letting players walk away due to money, you are dead in the water.
You need a bucket full of tactics, not cash, to sign players. Experience helps too, and not the good type, you will mostly learn from bad experiences. There will be times you phone the player’s grandfather, who is on your side, but you will still not be able to convince the player Celtic Park is the right move.
Then you will publicly turn your face to stone. “This is our line and not an inch more”, was the subtext of a recent Celtic Tweet. “Curious”, I thought, “What’s the chances this will work?”
The football business is mad, there is no other word for it. It is full of dafties, alpha males who are still trying to impress their decades-dead fathers, the occasional warlord and some fine young athletes. Try to understand it through the prism of normal life and you will misinterpret everything.
Oh, and if at least 50% of your transfers are not justifiably described as a “saga” you’re not working hard enough. Transfers, like sausages, are not meant to look good when they are being made.
Let’s hope David Turnbull passes his medical…..
I’m off to the CQN Charity Golf Day in Aberdour this afternoon, not to play golf, of course, but to hear Danny McGrain and Willie McStay.
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Big Joe
He will and he will do as he pleases within that budget.
Mick
That’s not what I said.
Happy 79th Birthday to Willie Wallace in Oz.
He was a major part of a genuine world class Celtic team.
FATHER JACK on 23RD JUNE 2019 12:03 PM
‘Celtic are an emotional investment’
****
Only in the sense that the prospect of a huge gain on his investment if Celtic were ever to get into the EPL would arouse his emotions.
Does anyone know when The Great Desmondo first attended CP?
GER57 on 23RD JUNE 2019 12:35 PM
To answer your question……
I thought our defence was better without him towards the end of the season.!
I do not believe he gave 100% last season even after he threw his toys out of the cot around Athens time.
He did come back onto a decent game but that was all about securing his next deal.
I liked him as a player and defended him on here.But when I look back he should have been punted .PL should have stood up to BR at the time.
SYDNEY TIM
It was obvious to everyone Virgil wanted to go, now the stands were
obviously not full but why was that? it wasn’t designed to get Peter a
big bonus, was the football so dire? were the support becoming
complacent? who knows but suddenly we have a waiting list again
with a manager who i think should be eulogised for his service to
our club but some people shamefully are not happy.
It feckin puzzles the life out of me, but thats the Celtic family and i’ll
always defend them to the best of my ability.
H.H Mick
Sydney Tim
Peter Lawwell.
Two `w`s and two `l`s .
JJ
ERNIE LYNCH
True, till then he will give very little thought to Celtic
ST you are so far off the mark regarding my view of the board but hey when does that ever stop you? Be good if you could show me some evidence of my alleged “love in ” with PL. If not a simple sorry would suffice but I suspect as Sevco do,nt do walking away you do,nt do sorry. Let,s just end it there
FATHER JACK on 23RD JUNE 2019 12:35 PM
Big Joe
He will and he will do as he pleases within that budget.
Exactly…………………………
For those who think we can just buy anyone and PL doesn’t work to a strict budget then they live in a parallel universe
Also, we have a strict wages policy and are competing with the MAD english overpriced market
BigJoebobbingaboutinAboat
I’m almost certain that Dermot Desmond is a tax exile.
HH. ?
Melbourne Mick
Your Capo is having a ball, she was in St Vincent’s bar on Friday belting out the Rebs on her her birthday. One of the bands at the end of their session thanked the crowd and also said it was a pleasure to accompany Emma ???
They are both off to Lisbon tomorrow, I’m sure there is a venue there I should tell her about.
FATHER JACK
Maybe i’m reading it wrong and thats not unusual.
” going by whats posted on some of the forums it seems that
some of the people have no clue how they operate, they are
not supporters ”
Now maybe i’m reading that wrong and i hope to be corrected.
H.H Mick
EDDIEINKIRKMICHAEL
As you know we have a lot of characters here in the rebel town
but there’s a lovely ghirl who gets us all going when she’s here.
Tell her we all miss her and to get back soon.
And hopefully you and your good lady as well.
H.H Mick
Some people have a brain. Some dont.
Supporter differs from a fan.
Easy peasy
ADI DASSLER
I suppose thats in the eye of the beholder.
Personally i think a lot of it is about common sense.
usually your aul Mammy would some it up.
He/ she is a heidcase !
H.H Mick
maybe that should be SUM it up lol.
H.H Mick
So it’s looking more like a brand ‘new’ team to play for in 19/20.
All those decisions from guys at the top of their game who don’t share the same desire for local squabbles such as 10IAR as we do and see our drift from Europe as offering ligttle development.
KT to London, Calmac back with his mentor Brendan and Ntcham to just anywhere in France to cheer himself up. Their fault it’s a short career and they have an avenue to earn more and play at a higher level. – fraid not. Andy Robertson has given the english a wee problem on their biases for scottish talent and with a chamopns league medal in hand this is probably the summer to strike it hot.
None of us would prefer this but glad it’s early and they don’t do a deadline-day Dembele.
Can we spend wisely with no head of recruitment and a penchant for the local talent of Motherwell and Aberdeen?
Interesting times for it’s a grand old team to see still…..
When was the last time DD was at CP?
Melbourne Mick.
Neil is the manager and he will be backed by all celtic supporters.
Some supporters were unhappy with his appointment, me included.
If not offered the Celtic job where would he be working today?
HEBCELT
I gave up reading his drivel years ago now. I don’t know, therefore, what he ACTUALLY said to/about you, but I do know what he is likely to have said as he always said the same stuff. Better to just scroll on by.
On another, lighter subject, Mrs Emeraldbee and I might end up in Stornoway sometime this summer as we intend to visit the Hebrides; if we do I will give you a head’s up and we could possibly meet for a pint?
WESTCRAIGS
Bit of dubiety about your question.
Where would the moonlighter be working today if Celtic hadn’t
given him a chance again?
H.H Mick
Well here we are at another transfer window when this blog is filled with people fretting over made up pish from Celtic sites and other sites on Celtic News Now who get their made up pish from The Hun and The Daily Rangers.
Roll on September then we won’t have to read any more of this drivel until January 2020.
* News just in
Reports are coming in that Extinction Rebellion have organised a mass protest on Peter Lawwells driveway demanding that he switches the feckin thing off. A spokesman has been quoted as saying “Peter Lawwell is more dangerous to the planet than the meteor that wiped out the dinosaurs, ? ? the man knows no shame!”
POGMATHONYAHUN AKA LAIRD OF THE SMILES on 23RD JUNE 2019 2:03 PM
:-))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
Mick
The PLC are not supporters.
There was a full stop then a new sentence was started.
F1 about 2 start
BigJoeisooooooooooooooooooooootofhere
As seen on Celtic News Now?
The Sun – “Most hated man in human history revealed.” “Today we reveal the top 5 most hated men in the history of the planet.”
1. Peter Lawwell
2. Adolf Hitler
3.Pol Pot (no not the tenor)
4. Joseph Stalin
5.Robert Mugabe
POG
Lot of shoite
Lennon must be No1.
H.H Mick
Mullet and Co 9.55
These players integrate more with our own British players and get it. We had a massive issue with a split in the squad between French based players and the rest
Hi mate.strange.heard opposite bout french bhoys.hope your good:-)
HH
—————————————-
Sydney Tim
Celtic football fan
Celtic plc fan
Celtic fan?
Help me out here ST.am asking as a fan of it all,love it,so i do.all things Celtic,and most of
all i like the dissent,even the well structured essays and critiques about our board.i am a supporter of res12 its all Celtic to me.all that is part of the dynamism,all that energy.its all Celtic.because it all comes from Celtic fans who want a better Celtic,not the duality of plc bad fitba team good.
Anyway is that club/company thing not part of liquidated fc’s identity.
Hope all is good down under,:-))
ps am sure like in 1994 we were not defined by our board and they certainly didnae define Celtic.
HH
Emerald be delighted to meet up , you’ll be able to check if I’m a PLC mhan or just a plain old fan/supporter!!!! Let me know when you are coming up. Hail Hail Hebcelt
FATHER JACK
I’m so glad you explained that to this aul dullard.
Maybe we could go 50/50 on the plc and anyway i’m happy you’re
keeping an eye on who is a fan, who is a speculator/accumulator
and who is a supporter.
H.H Mick
Celtic has been run as a Company since the late 1880’s.
Jeez oh that’s some amount of time to be disliking something. Think I would have chucked it by now and started following Andy Murray, no wait, he’s made over $60 million and hasn’t bought anyone por cierto!
Big wavy.
Spot regards Robertson.
The club should tell prospective suitors of Tierney to contact klopp and ask him what he thinks Robertsons value is!.
And then say that’s where the bidding starts.
Donegal well ahead of Cavan at HT in the Ulster Football final.
Dublin to play Meath in the Leinster final later.
Several attempts to post this. I wonder if anyone discussed the poor state of the site with Paul67 at the golf on Friday.
Right bhoys and ghirls, time for my bed, i’d like to think it’s my
decision but the princess has spoken.
Now there’s been a lot of debate today about plc’s and everybody
is entitled to their view and at the end of the day i’d like to think
it’s all in Celtic’s interests.
But my wee question to each and everyone of you is.
What will happen to our club when us aul yins are gone?
I’ve discussed this with PADDYMACOZ many times here in Oz, would
the young bhoys have the same committment to organise events?
Well why would they? Celtic don’t show any interest in fostering
overseas relationships or retail avenues.
I can tell you now we are fighting a losing battle unless we get our act
together .
So much for a happy clapper eh?
Bedtime.
I wish you all a great Celtic day or night wherever you are in this big
Celtic kingdom.
H.H Mick
Ulster Final HT
Cavan 0-05
Donegal 0-13
Kieran Tierney has moved to Arsenal on a £22 million pound swap deal that involves Arsenals highly rated head cleaner going on loan to Lennoxtown.
Neil Lennon set to make statement after the cleaner has completed her medical.
HH
We have to do the 10
We simply have to
Nothing else matters
And we will
???
Sean Thornton
Robertson has come on leaps and bounds these last few years surrounded by a very good Liverpool team. I susepct KT looks enviously at this. Typical for Scotland that it’s 2 best players occupy the same slot.
£25m is a big chuck of Arsena;’s reported £40m for transfers – god knows where their money is going.