That was the latest instalment in a long running series of Behind the Couch Celtic away performances in Europe, with the wonderful exception that after Hapoel Be’er Shiva had us on the rack in the opening period of the second half, Celtic put five at the back and closed the game out without any stressful incidents in the final 15 minutes.
There are a few moments worthy of comment:
Hapoel’s penalty came as a consequence of Celtic pressing high up the field for the first time in the game. The home team dropped deep as they were temporarily reduced to 10 men, but when Celtic pressed high to take advantage of an opponent receiving treatment, they easily passed through us, switched the ball left and gave Saidy Janko his first difficult moment of the night.
More on Saidy in a moment, but we cannot allow teams to pass through us so easily. We should never have been caught so high up field. Our alertness, interceptions and tackling were not good enough. Craig Gordon’s block at the penalty was priceless (or at a price of circa £26m, if you’re being picky).
There’s a reason teams who mark zonally at corner kicks don’t mark the penalty spot. It’s because headers from the penalty spot need to be exceptional in order to beat the keeper. Sahar’s goal wasn’t an exceptional header. It bounced before passing Craig Gordon three feet inside the post. It should never have been a goal, and although Craig’s mistake for the second was more evident, the first was as worrying a goal to concede.
We’re fond of talking about “schoolboy errors” in football but Saidy’s lack of awareness of his direct opponent and goalkeeper at the second goal was a classic error from the 9-year-old’s game. I’ll be generous and say he’s not ready for a game at this level. Craig Gordon doesn’t have a let off for this one, either. While his fullback made a mistake, an alert keeper would have prevented the goal and knocked Saidy into next week. Awareness concerns exist for him too.
Whether it’s Craig’s self-confidence, or that the defence don’t have confidence in him, goalkeeping mistakes came perilously close to seeing us drop out of the Champions League last night.
Not that Craig shoulders all responsibility for what was a weak performance. The middle of the park was experimental and looked it. On the back of one of his best games for Celtic a week ago, Scott Brown’s passing, control and influence was miles off the pace.
Scott, Callum McGregor and Nir Bitton were swamped in midfield. Too few Celtic players were showing for the ball, which was thrown forward aimlessly whenever a Hapoel player closed us down. If central midfield is right, your defensive and goalkeeping frailties are less evident, but we were exposed too often at the back last night. There was a period in the second half when watching on TV made it impossible to know where we were going wrong. After a Hapoel chance, we would see a replay, and before it cut back to live pictures, Celtic had lost possession and were again under pressure. This happened repeatedly. Central midfield was the major problem with the performance, if not the result.
Don’t let any of this dampen your spirits. We’re into the Champions League group stage, a fact which will see us break through the £80m turnover mark for the first time. By comparison, turnover was £51m for 2014-15, the most recent season accounts are available for.
Despite the increase in expenditure this season, we’ll pay our bills without increasing borrowing or selling players. We’re on the circuit again, which means we’ll find it easier to attract talent going forward, it means we’ll find it easier to attract commercial deals and pretty much every KPI at the club will become that bit more attainable.
Last night was a transformational day in the life of your football club. We’re back, enjoy it!
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Natknow/davidopolous
Burkini chat on radio scotland
!!:-)
HH
BK
Thanks for that information.
I would like to see some kind of Tims Fans /Dons Fans union reflecting the fact that Celtic V Aberdeen is THE big game in Scotland as far as supporters are concerned.
Cheerio for now,
JJ
Morning troops
Just finished 2 mad weeks night shift , back to normal Monday
SAOR ULADH
Who are these Huns your on about?
Think the blog needs some herbal infusion this morning. ;))
Calling Celtic fans ‘parasites’ and a ‘cancer’ is not on,though,regardless of what you think of them.And I don’t believe genuine Celtic supporter would label fellow fans in that way.He should be ignored.
We’re in the draw for CL group stages later,this should be a rancour-free day.
I reckon Real,Man C and A N Other is what we’ll get.But I really don’t mind who it is,WE ARE THERE.
HERBALISMcsc
GARY67@9:21 AM
The GB are GB supporters – their demo last week proved that beyond doubt – Celtic supporters don’t deliberately damage their club and it’s supporters for their own selfish reasons.
The Truss are Truss supporters – who would undermine a board, CEO and major shareholder who have made Celtic FC one of the best run clubs in Europe – add EPL-like TV money and we would be challenging the best in Europe.
Celtic SUPPORTERS are the 99.75% who did not break the rules and the terms and conditions of their season card,
All the “quick let’s get a Just Giving page up fast to cover our tracks” – changes nothing. It was a cynical ploy that may in the long run benefit a good cause,
So there you have it – I NEVER called Celtic supporters any derogatory name – I just labelled the GB/TRUSS correctly.
Only 9/32 clubs who qualified for 2016-17 Champions League have won the trophy.
Morning Bhoys well I have no preferance in todays draw I am just happy that Celtic are in it.James McCarthy I cant say I have seen him play I know he is a big Celtic fan but would he improve our midfield ? H.H.
Saor Uladh on 25th August 2016 10:27 am
Only 9/32 clubs who qualified for 2016-17 Champions League have won the trophy
I looked at it last night and counted 8, need to have another look I must have missed one
AN TEARMANN on 25TH AUGUST 2016 10:24 AM
Natknow/davidopolous
Burkini chat on radio scotland
!!:-)
————————————————————–
:-)) The punning moved on from bathing fashion to urology yesterday…!!
Masty
I’ll let you figure it out.
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I would have difficulty calling Sevco supporters a Cancer – but hey, that’s just me.
I guess it all reverts to how you were raised and your upbringing in general.
Seems i was lucky.
JFH
McCarthy is a decent player, although has had a dip in form and a poor euros
Cowiebhoy on 25th August 2016 10:10 am
VFR800A8 on 25TH AUGUST 2016 10:06 AM
From memory £275 I paid for a large print of that image, in the Celtic shop
Hail Hail
_____________________________________
Thanks for the info; I couldn’t remember the cost but I knew it wasn’t insignificant.
KTF
BMCUWP
In one of them big books….under the letter D.
There is a word of interest…..Discourse.
Some people have forgotten what your ‘Discourse’ says about your views.
As we know, it aint rocket science:)
Now…..let me get back to that 800 page tome by Jonathan Israel….which is entitled ‘Revolutionary Ideas’,…..the origins of political rhetoric….stripped bare.
Im doing well for a ‘Cabbage’ am i not:)
HH
Anyone else think that those who slag off the GB are a little…… jealous?
Looking forward to the draw this afternoon, irrespective of which, we’re in for a tough old series of matches.
I reckon many of us (well me anyway) will have 2 hopes from the campaign:
1) That we gain (rather than lose) respect on the pitch over the course of the group.
2) That we’re still in Europe after Christmas.
On the second point, it strikes me that 3rd place (and the Europa League) is going to be a heck of a challenge.
Consider the following hypothetical ‘group’, comprising Celtic, Astana, Hapoel and Red Imps.
Drawing on our results in the Qualifiers, we won the 3 homes games, and got an away point v Astana.
Now add reasonable results in the other group’ games: Astana and Hapoel each won home and away against Red Imps, and each won their respective home tie against the other.
Final standings see Hapoel win the group on 12 points, with Celtic and Astana tied for second on 10 points.
Celtic qualify on the head-to-head results v Astana.
That’s Hapoel, Astana and Red Imps. Now imagine an “easy” group comprising Benfica, Leverkusen and Basel with Celtic.
Looking at that, I’m immediately defaulting to hope number 1.
And I haven’t factored the possibility of a group comprising Real, Dortmund and Spurs.
Saor Uladh on 25th August 2016 10:08 am
I think you’re correct to describe this initiative from the Green Brigade as magnificent. It’s struck a chord with the community far beyond Celtic fans and will be remembered in history.
I don’t get the stand-up thing at all. Fund-raisers don’t require applause from anyone, they want money sent to the fund. Ask Bob Geldof. 50,000 season-ticket holders sending £5 raises £250k.
I bet I know the choice the young fenian piper by the Emirates would make between receiving a round of applause from those who skirt the pavement past him or two pound coins dropped into his music-case.
It will remain a bizarre idea to me.
ahh, I missed PSV
Hard to tell what’s worse, the trolls ( which we’ve always had) or the troll hunters…
Oh ah know let’s hijack the ChampionsLeague draw from Timmy, it’s no rocket science is it..
Bhoylo83 on 25th August 2016 10:31 am
A little!!!
They’re trying to eat the skin off their elbows.
Bhoylo
Jealous of what?
The people who make up the membership of the Green Brigade and Celtic Trust are all Celtic supporters. You may disagree with their objectives and/or methods, but that doesn’t mean they can’t also be Celtic supporters. Illogical reasoning to say otherwise.
Bobby: I wasn’t being entirely serious:-)
Magnificentseven on 25th August 2016 10:33 am
I long for the days when all the champions of their respective leagues were dropped into bowl and two legged ties were drawn, if you didn’t win over two legs you were out.
Don’t watch English football so don’t know MacCarthy, who/what position would he replace/play in the team?
Natknow
Ta:-)
THEGREENMAN
Do you hate University Challenge?
GuyFawkesaforeverhero on 25th August 2016 10:33 am
Nothing to do with m, only passing on what i read on here.
Bob Geldof is a horrible man, he said the heroes of 1916 were akin to the suicide bombers of ISIS.
Never liked him anyway – and that money he raised, very little of it went to Ethiopia.
Saor Uladh on 25th August 2016 10:36 am
Magnificentseven on 25th August 2016 10:33 am
I long for the days when all the champions of their respective leagues were dropped into bowl and two legged ties were drawn, if you didn’t win over two legs you were out.
if only, but unfortunately money is king
25TH AUGUST 2016 10:16 AM
Fair play to The Green Man he’s got the balls to stand up to these huns. Who incidentally were all missing from 9.30pm onwards on Tuesday night.
Perhaps they decided not to log on to comment as their seethe would be there for all the world to see and thus the cat would be out of the bag.
There are posters on here that have an agenda and that agenda has nothing to do with furthering the cause of Celtic FC.
Ray Charles could figure out who they are, and he’s blind, and dead.
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There were many posters missing on Tuesday night. So what, maybe they were out in the pub watching the game.
Supporters differ what constitutes furthering the cause of Celtic FC. Nobody or group speaks for us all.
I have no doubt that you are a great Celtic man/ woman , but for someone who in their own words ” was lurking for years ” to suddenly appear and dominate the blog with a single issue constitutes an agenda in my opinion.. So I agree with you.
The GB may well come out of this credibly, but that remains to be seen what the actual consequences are.
Hail, Hail to you.
The GB are one of the best things to happen At CP in the last ten years,
But when they bring the politics into it people ask questions of them, they have been ASKED then TOLD and then finally BANNED for it, yet constantly repeat offend,
Their left wing policies are exactly mine, but time and a place, don’t particularly have an opinion on the CT, but I do know a couple of members and fine celts they are.
BMCUWP
Yes i do.
Im not keen of Universities either…..especially Scoddish wans:)
HH
Bhoylo , I personally think the Green Brigade are awesome, they have soul, they are also narcissists. I am absolutely positive that they would think others are jealous. It would fit.
Mats
You repeatedly referred to the GB and CT as parasites,and as a cancer.
Those are a matter of record. You can continue to deny and deflect but really comments like those are well in line with your previous contempt for Celtic supporters.
Magnificentseven on 25th August 2016 10:39 am
The group stages of any competition are usually a bore, the World Cup, Euro’s. It only becomes interesting when the knockout phase start. Shi* or get off the pot time.
Interesting to note that the Hootsmon has us in the ”Bottom Pot” and not Pot 4.
The hatred is strong in that headline writer.
Aye the quandaries Champions League brings……4 or 5 days in Majorky next week or pay the same price for a 1 day swally fest in bloody Barcelona again
Ps I thought that the Beerys penalty was badly taken rather than a brilliant save by the keeper…..Let’s see what Doris can do on Saturday please
Almore, I would be happy with a bar where you can buy coffee, or beer, beside the Superstore, it would save us getting wet at the Corner:-)
Greenpinata on 25th August 2016 10:39 am
Someone had to come on and challenge the pro israel / zionist rhetoric that was being bandied on here.
Saor aladh
If I could work it out I would not have asked, are they Huns because you said they were? Or do you know for a fact they are Huns?