2012 is a recent high watermark for Celtic and AIK in European football. Celtic collected 10 points in the Champions League group stage that season, while that was the first and last time AIK reach the group stage of the Europa League; they finished bottom with four points. Today will see the Swedes compete in a playoff round for the first time since then, so this is nosebleed territory for tonight’s visitors.
Their most impressive result this season was a 1-2 win in Moldova against Sheriff. An early own-goal was enough to give them the edge for an aggregate win. They travel without suspended top scorer Tarik Elyounoussi, who handed Neil Lennon his pre-match team talk by telling the media “When you hear the name Celtic, you think they are a big team. But they lost four goals at home to Cluj and the Scottish league is not so good.”
It is helpful to hear a bit of disrespect from opponents before a game. I trust we will reserve comment on the standard of the Swedish league until after this tie.
There will be plenty of hurt in the Celtic dressing room before kick-off tonight. Hurt that three times they let Cluj back into the last tie and the manner of some of the defending. Hurt too, at what has been said and written since. Defeat is not a pleasant business at Celtic.
What matters is whether the manager and players can use this pain as fuel to destroy AIK at Celtic Park tonight. We will know soon enough.
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Goldie
#lawwellout
Achht!
Bring on the Swedes !! HH !!
yup
Hammer them Celts……
Paul67
Aye, but what about the hurt the fans feel in their present ‘hysterical’ state?
get in to thems
last week’s gone
get some more in now bored
tonight, though, leather them
Hurt is no substitute for ability or tactical nous which Lenny lacks in abundance
They’ve only scored 29 goals in 20 domestic matches and are without their top scorer. Defense is their strong point.
I doubt they’ll be able to cope with an onslaught tonight with everybody in their correct positions…
HH
I hurt myself todaaaay
To see if i still feeeeeeel 🎵🎶
….. get the Jonny Cash spent Lawell
Massive game tonight.
In Europe, 2-0 at home is the break even. Would love more.
Domestics to sort, before settling down with a can or two later.
Lawwell Out !
“I’m delighted with the amount of chances we’re creating and scoring. Scott Brown will be back tomorrow night and he’ll play a pivotal role in making sure he patrols in front of the back four.”
http://www.celticfc.net/news/16682
Never mind hurting before the match, hopefully we are not hurting after it !
2-0 Good guys, obviously hoping for more in the first column and the second column to stay the same.
Its not the opposition that generally worries me its our own implosion and self inflicted catastrophes.
GO TELL THE SPARTIM on 22ND AUGUST 2019 12:41 PM
Exactly. Lets give them no encouragement. Griffiths on last 20 to add a couple more.
HH
it will be a tough game i think they set up 3 5 2 . dont give many goals away.
welcome back fraser.
TIMHORTON on 22ND AUGUST 2019 12:52 PM
it will be a tough game i think they set up 3 5 2 . dont give many goals away.
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They don’t, but it appears to be a characteristic of their league, its pretty low scoring throughout. So hard to say if they are actually defensively all that good.
We’ll find out very soon.
HH
They’ve conceded 8 goals in their last 5 games (all competitions)
HH
A timely reminder of what our present manager, with his apparent lack of ability and tactical nous is actually capable of.
Going by the comments on CQN on the day Neil Lennon announced he was going we seem to have suffered collective amnesia to the point where his entire time in charge before has been wiped from our memories
…but in the league, 15 goals conceded in 20 games
HH
I’m hoping, guessing, that last week was one of those mistakes that the great managers of our time – Mourinho, Guardiola, and Brendan Rodgers (copyright “the hands”) all make occasionally
The biggest worry tonight will be our support and how the team are backed.
Adi
About 10mins after signing YNWA it will be Boli (or another player of your choice) you’re crap
Anyway I’m confident of a good result tonight 2-0 minimum
GreentintedglassesCSC
CELTIC40ME on 22ND AUGUST 2019 1:01 PM
I’m hoping, guessing, that last week was one of those mistakes that the great managers of our time – Mourinho, Guardiola, and Brendan Rodgers (copyright “the hands”) all make occasionally
____
I think it was a combination of managers error and an insane individual error from Scott Brown.
At 2-1 we looked well on top.
I would be delighted if we manage to get big Fraser on loan for the the following reasons
…
It shows Lenny knows the fine margins in the game mean that Celtic need better than SPFL standard of of goalkeepers
It will give the other players a massive boost particularly the defenders
It can’t do any harm in attracting a player like Wanyama
FF is my favourite ever short-term Celtic player and the article by Paul67 on how he trained and lived is brilliant if any one could re-post it.
the hurt has come from the board…. destroying the team…complete lack of ambition.. and Neil Lennon’s comment this week are ludicrous.. Does he watch the games? He talks about players not being up for it at the start of games.. that is his fault! It’s his job! No one knows where they are meant to be playing at the back.. AIK just need to lump ball forward and we have 3 players marking no one waiting on someone else going for the ball. football is a team game you need to play as a team so for all the good work attacking fro RV OE JF when we lose it its” What do we do now? Should at least have tried to get Stevie Clarke someone who can organize a team… I hope FF comes good nut last I saw him at Southampton he seems to have lost it…not sure if its psychological from injury
ps I won’t be surprised to see Calmac at LB again. NL said he did well and no goals were lost because of him.. Also said team formation has nothing to do with result… that’s good to know!
Maradominic
I know I’ve lost my funk fella but you’re making me look a delirious happy clapper….. :)
Boli is fit apparently. Should play.
Neil wouldn’t run with Calmac at LB again. Would he??????
Gulp…..
4-1 to the Tic….after going 1-0 down.
NL said both Boli and Jullien will start tonight
RE the recruitment of FF, I am quite ambivalent re goalkeepers. All goalkeepers are capable of making point blank saves but give me one who commands his box, distributes the ball to team mates without putting the latter under pressure and finally isnt prone to letting in blunders then Im happy. In my opinion FF fits the bill in all thee respects.
AN TEARMANN on 22ND AUGUST 2019 1:15 PM
Natknow
Craig Gordon,well remembered bout his signing.though I seem to recall he came up for a corner against us was the bigger debate haha.
;-)
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Aye you’re right! LOL! At the time he was too much of a hun to play for us apparently. Mind you, Kev J used to have Callum down as a hun too…
Think Boli might score tonight. 4-1 to the good ghuys
If,as seems likely,Mikey plays tonight,please kid,lift your head up.You can be a legend sooner.
3-0,my bet tonight.
welcome back Fraser Foster
HH