I loved the Leicester City story as much as any of you. Well, maybe not just as much. Leicester’s title win was astonishing, but it was no fairy story. They outperformed far wealthier clubs, sure, but this was achieved by spending the kind of money Celtic couldn’t dream of parting with.
Apart from their league win, Project Leicester was typical of the financial chicanery which has been prevalent in English football for so long, and which Financial Fair Play seeks to end.
Right now they are in freefall. If they go down, loaded with an underperforming squad on eye-wateringly high salaries, they will find it impossible to downsize sufficiently to give anyone sitting around the King Power Stadium boardroom table that they will be able to achieve stability in the Championship.
Once you drop out of the Enland and Wales Premier League, the biggest parachute in the world simply isn’t big enough. Two of the three Championship relegation places are currently occupied by recent Premier League clubs. Aston Villa, twice the size of Leicester but with a far smaller wage bill, are currently 17th. Leicester will look ominously at Blackpool, 14th in League Two, and appreciate how rapidly a Premier League relegation fight can turn into something altogether more serious.
Claudio Ranieri is a football hero, but even from the outside it has been plain to see that something has been seriously wrong under his control in recent months. His comments before the Sevilla game, “we know they are the better team”, spoke of a man who didn’t believe in himself or his players anymore.
It is never easy to spot when a managerial hero should move on from a club where he’s loved, exect in hindsight. Clough was the greatest English manager, but stayed on far too long at Nottingham Forest. Relegation was his reward.
Jock Stein’s sacking as Celtic manager in 1978 was shabbily handled, as was the way at the club back then. I was too young to know the best of Jock’s years at Celtic, but I remember the grief he got from the terraces during his last four seasons, when Rangers (remember them?) won three titles and two trebles.
No one will tell you they got on Jock’s case back then, but it happened. Football fans in the 1970s took no prisoners.
Looking back, Jock stayed too long at Celtic. He produced miracles for five years then managed decline for eight. He should have taken the Manchester United job when offered. Clough squeezed two League Cups out of his squad in 1989 and 1990 and should have headed for this hills right then.
As for Claudio, he should have bowed out a champion in May. He didn’t have managerial alchemy after all, it was inevitable that performances would return to his normal trend this season. Someone at Leicester had to take responsibility. That’s football – and it’s not even a modern aspect of it.
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MARRAKESH EXPRESS on 24TH FEBRUARY 2017 9:45 PM
I’d be in the same bin as Kit and Awe Naw!
KTF
WITS …. do what I do when I”m out late, and in trouble when I get home … just blame it on Torontony! always works for me! (I hope he’s not lurking! ) :)
7/2 was a give away price tonight!! Isn’t that right Smashing Milk Bottles?
C’mon the Nessies!
HH
CRC
Best comment I have seen over on http://WWW.Orc.com has to be the realisation that a Celtic win tomorrow makes it mathematically impossible for them to win the league…
taking delusional to a whole new level
Murty sounds like Warburton in his interview. Couldn’t ask for any more? They were gash!
KTF
So tinight, not only do I for feel almost sorry for Kenny Miller, I also feel for Mr Murty. he was close to bubbling there….
Heh! Heh! The warm-up was better than last week. Wtf!
VFR
Has Drumroyal got Tourettes?
GeordieM
Yip, but it’s magic all the same :-)
HH
SOS – was looking at that earlier and actually they’re wrong. If Sevco win their last 12 games (I know!) they’d reach 79 points. We are currently on 73.
I think they should stick with their original target of 12 from the remaining 12….
Listening to BT pundits about shambles fc losing tonight. How many people on cqn actually fancied the highlanders. It was the same last week v Dundee. The taysiders were the better side. So beating shamble fc is no big deal. Richie Foran talking ba++s.
Used to drink rough cider in Devon, where I now live, 17p a pint back in the day, cloudy and sharp, loopy juice, happy days.
Ha ha ha to Der hun
Jobo- don’t feel for miller. He’s got more Hunnish over the last few years.
I heard the commentator mention he shook his head at murty instructing a new shape after a substitution. Great leadership from the skipper eh? He’s a tube
VFR800 IS NOW A MONSTER 821 on 24TH FEBRUARY 2017 9:37 PM
You’re not wrong. I’ve got singed eye brows after spending 2 minutes in there
JOBO BALDIE on 24TH FEBRUARY 2017 9:55 PM
So tinight, not only do I for feel almost sorry for Kenny Miller, I also feel for Mr Murty. he was close to bubbling there….
Don’t feel sorry for Murty he resigned on Tuesday
Soz
I think we need 7 more pts to ensure that the zombies do not overtake us :-)
Oh the worry, Just 30 pts ahead of them :-)
HH
CRC
Hee, hee hee:
Swagger
Key Player
Swagger
First Team
260
1,451 posts
Posted 6 minutes ago · Report post
9 minutes ago, Don54 said:
6 points from last 8 games, 2nd place, if this keeps up we’ll be lucky to finish 5th ffs, Hope there’s a power cut here on 12th of March.
There is every chance of a record score against them. This shower of shite will crumble again
KTF
https://twitter.com/paulc9305/status/835247224519069696
Very good
Is it beyond believe that sevco will limp into top 6 at split then enter administration?
Would it save them in the top league. Bottom 6 you have been warned.
And jobo- I do have some sympathy for Murty but he took the coin and he wears the club gear. He should have known better.
Anyone stupid enough to be involved with them just now, anyone who can’t use google and check out the state of the club or who has an agent who is negligent enough to let a client sign up to them really deserves what they get.
Got to feel for Murty, what a way to treat an employee
EBThompson almost in tears on RS.
Wondering why they took on Garner with only 30 seconds left. Well – remember there’s usually about eight minutes of injury time when Sevco are losing!
CELTIC40ME on 24TH FEBRUARY 2017 9:38 PM
Feels like they aren’t close to bottoming out yet
I hope they bottom out about 6 feet down.
Graeme Murty set to rival Jack Nicholson for the worst Caretaker manager………….ever.
TheShining CSC
Is the penny ( arcade) dropping
From HunMedia
You have got to wonder what the actual f**k is happening behind closed doors.
Im starting to think we are in financial trouble.
Mods- Someone has hacked Jobo’s account….:)
Drinking bad cider in excessive quantities has ruined my possible enjoyment of some really good ciders I’ve tasted recently. It has left me scared for my stomach lining….
I woke up on a sofa one morning many years ago after several litres of some rocket fuel or other, unable to do much for the next 24 hours other than vomit and pebble dash the bog….. happy memories
WITS … did you notice the name of that poster? Captain Edward Smith perhaps?
Wits- that has to be a p1ss take!!
Anyone see the game? How did McCart do?
MARAKESH, Drum Loyal isnae the worst!
KTF
“vomit and PEBBLE DASH the bog” … classic!
:)
I can’t feel sorry for anyone who would take the hun shilling, but when I see Murty’s bewildered wee face I almost do.
These clowns will be hoping for the Queen or Phil the Greek to croak it next couple of weeks to get game at CP cancelled…:))
A classic post on Hun Media….
im_a_good_bluenose.
I’ll refrain from having a go at Dave king but what the club needs is a CEO or a main man running the club who is an absolute ruthless b**tard of a man. A man who would sell his mum to make his club winners.
Says it all really
Floatin’
Could they possibly miss out on top 6?
Could they do even better and die before then?
MIT/RT
No its serious,they are so out of touch with reality
The admin thing for them is only going to happen if they start owing wages or can’t pay employers or costs for court cases or tribunals that they don’t win.
If the directors bail them out there’s no advantage to admin.
But can they bail them for the money Ashley might be owed? The football debt represented by the 3 ‘resigned’ employees wages and costs??
I haven’t a scooby but they are fubared any which way.