There’s a remarkable lack of nerves ahead of tonight’s game against Inter Milan in the San Siro. Perhaps, for many of us, all we expected from this tie was a sign that the progress we believe has taken place in recent months, would stand up to the scrutiny of European examination. Last week, it did.
So with a Key Performance Indicator delivered, thoughts turn to knocking Inter out of Europe. My expectations are wide open, literally, anything could happen tonight, from an historic win to a painful lesson, but we know enough about Ronny Deila to know that this afternoon he will explain to the players the plan to win the game. We will not pack our 18 yard box, nor bring catenaccio home.
Celtic will play with the freedom enjoyed by a team with nothing to lose. Inter have home advantage and three away goals on the board, but they also have the weight of expectation. No one in Italy expects Celtic to progress.
The key Inter expectation is that they will score enough against a weak Celtic back line. Based on last week’s 90 minutes, this is not unreasonable. What Inter don’t know, is if Celtic’s back four and Craig Gordon had a one-off exceptionally bad day.
The greatest football stories are made when triumph is grasped from failure. Celtic can score tonight, but if they win, it will be because Craig Gordon and his defenders have decided: None shall pass.
Our good friends at Magners have offered a pair of premium tickets in the Jock Stein Stand for Sunday’s SPFL game. To win the tickets, answer this question:
Who do Celtic play on Sunday?
Put your answer IN THS SUBJECT LINE of an email to me at celticquicknews@gmail.com. Competition closes at 5pm tonight. Winner will be notified tomorrow, so check your inbox.
While entering, if you would like to donate a £1 – a single pound – to the campaign to build a kitchen at Chibwata Primary School in Malawi for Mary’s Meals, you can do so here. £1 – that’s all, and for that pound, you get the warm glow of the knowledge that when you see the photos of that kitchen in a few months, you paid for some of it.
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That time again folks, I have my begging bowl out (AGAIN) for NCCA UK (Neuroblastoma charity)
I’m doing a 10 mile run in Edinburgh on April 19th in memory of my wee pal Oscar & to raise money for other kids and their families,
Plz donate if you can and thanks to all who have donated so far
https://www.justgiving.com/TommyMelly-Edinburgh-Run
Thanks HH
Tom McLaughlin
14:31 on
26 February, 2015
I don’t understand the bitterness being shown towards Derk Boerrigter. Of course he has sustained a lot of injuries but that is hardly his fault.
_______________________________________________________________________
Quite right. Our ire should be directed towards whoever it was at Celtic who decided to pay good money for a player with a terrible injury history. Especially in our sometimes agricultural league.
I wouldn’t be too critical of the defense last week – I thought overall they played well. However, I expect them to be better tonight. Jason took a while to settle down last week – I think the occasion got to him a bit. Tonight they know what to expect and they will be ready. Hopefully Craigy gets a couple of good early touches and settles into the game quickly. It’s time for Virgil to shine on the big stage. We know he is capable.
Tom
We went all round the world and picked up some stinkers for around 6/7 million. Went 40 mile up the road and 2 class player for half of that!!!
Anything can happen tonight, if we remain positive (which I always am) I think Celtic will win the game late on, Inter will wilt under the tempo, they have had less time to prepare and Mancini was in the press reminding fans they have just won three games in a row, it’s to take the sting out of the defeat we are about to hand them in their own backyard. I expect Inter to play a very Italian game, (rolling around, diving for free kicks, trying to get players booked, wasting time, holding at corners) the will make the ref work for his money. Celtic just get on the baw, G,E,T, the Baw. Ignore the italian soap opera’s around you, and work for each other, show your team mates what your made of.
Hail Hail.
Derk scores.
Ben ye’s!!
Ktf
Siesta time zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
‘Ben ye’ is the east coat equivalent of ‘roond ye’
;p
Tom McLaughlin
I’m not saying he shouldn’t get his salarly. Clearly he should or we will be in hot water.
My point is giving him game time at any level is counter productive. It is clear he is not at CP for the long run and will be punted as soon as a buyer is found or a settlement is reached. Frankly we can forget finding a buyer now too so…
Giving him a game for the ‘development’ squad is risible. How deflated would you be if you are a promising youngster itching for a game and he is put in your place?
What is it supposed to achieve?
Not Boerrigters fault obviously but the management need to reconsider this and just cut their losses.
At least if he’s just sitting twiddling his thumbs theres less chance he’ll get injured(in theory) and we may find someone stupid enough to buy him before he runs his contract down.
And the development squad may help develop someone who CAN contribute to the first team.
“bhigowen
13:31 on
26 February, 2015
£87,100 is the total so far, that the green brigade have cost us.
Thats our money that we scrimp and save each year to purchase our season tickets,and this band of Irish political supporters are costing us dear.
In my opinion its time to rid ourselves of this problem.”
I totally agree with all of that……except that it wasn`t the Green Brigade.
Oh, and also except that I don`t `scrimp and save`, I just save, kind of.
Oops, another one. They are not Irish political supporters.
So, I suppose I meant that I agreed that if we have a problem we should try to sort it.The rest was pretty stupid.
JJ
Geordie
Is that also what you shout at Pantomimes?
JJ
I think the problem with Derk is that when he does play he doesnt look like he’s interested and/or passionate enough to play for us
I like to be possitive, I’m a glass half full guy most of the time, reason being, I’d rather say a celtic win and then say when it happens “see a told yi” than a loss and say “see a told yi” just wouldent sound right.
Sargassosea –
A couple of guys from my street in Motherwell hitch-hiked to Milan in 1970. I remember half the street were out to wish them bon voyage. It was about 4 days before the game.
A couple of days later it was reported in the Daily Record that the hapless pair had been mugged in London and the Record paid their train fare back to Motherwell and the bosom of their welcoming and fearful families.
At least they enjoyed celebrity status for a while.
A couple of years later, I was with one of them on a trip to Aberdeen for a Celtic game. In those days we were able to spend the weekend in Aberdeen. It was during an after-pub Saturday night bevvy session in my hotel room that Danny, for that was his name, confessed to me and my brother that the London mugging was a complete fabrication.
Apparently they simply ran out of cash after a day of drinking and gambling in the Big Smoke and hatched the plot by hitting each other with bricks and calling the cops to report their mugging. They got their family to phone the Daily Record who were happy to buy the exclusive by getting them home quickly and safely.
I’m sure I laughed myself to sleep that night in the Granite City.
2-1 to the Good Ghuys tonight BTW
B-)
https://twitter.com/bhoymichael1888/status/570714150030213120
Jude2005 13.52- what do you mean Gordon Dalziel talks nonsense? Here’s a wee GD verbatim snippet from a couple of weeks ago, talkinabout Ronny Delia, he makes perfect sense to me :-)
“Yeah but you you you remember away back to the beginning this is what I’m saying at the time we could we were ah could get asked opinions you know he was bringing in loan players eh he was playing guys like Pukki and stuff like that up front he’s leaving out the Scottish player of the year Kris Commons listen- he’s been he’s been open enough to come in and say it’s taken me you know I doubted myself the first few months and that’s fine that’s listen- you can’t critisise him just now he’s on every front he’s he’s eh winning games eh the only the only thing that I think if you’re a Celtic fan is you’re saying listen- we need to put the ball in the back of the net a wee bit more cause we are creating that much many chances and ye seen it today ehm I thought Dundee were lucky to get just 2 I thought Celtic if they had their shooting boots on could have been a 4 or 5 easily this afternoon.”
I suppose it is just a difference in personality but I remain astounded of forehead at the manner in which some people express their views.
They give opinions ( usually with very little evidence) expressed as though there are no other possibilities.
Maybe one day I will post a list of examples…..
JJ
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3zIUYyC60OA&feature=youtu.be
jungle jim hot smoked
jungle jim hot smoked
14:53 on 26 February, 2015
I suppose it is just a difference in personality but I remain astounded of forehead at the manner in which some people express their views.
They give opinions ( usually with very little evidence) expressed as though there are no other possibilities.
Maybe one day I will post a list of examples…..
JJ
Go on, do it todayyyyyy, yi know you want to :))
https://twitter.com/rachelb1888/status/570931972874346496
Oor Phil
http://www.philmacgiollabhain.ie/noisy-losers-and-quiet-winners/#more-5933
Alfie @ 13.01
What you doing ? No politics but you choose to remind me of the Feyenoord game in Milan. I still remember my mum having to sedate me into bed that night and have been a glass half empty guy ever since.
More seriously I mind though that without Evan Williams we’d have lost 5-1. And jeez they Klaxon horns. They’d have drowned out Motorhead.
Enjoy the game everyone. Wont make up for 45 years ago but might get rid of some of the ghosts
Jimbo67
Sargassosea
14:31 on 26 February, 2015
Hail Hail CQNers
I just couldn’t resist posting when I read the contents of your post my friend.
We lived in the same neck of the woods at the time of the 1970 Euro Cup Final so it’s likely I’ve bumped into you and/or your pals at some time over the years.
However after the victory over Leeds me and half a dozen of my pals (from Pollok/Priesthill/Househillwood) went to the Bonnington Bar to celebrate. Fantastic night. The following morning I asked my auld man if it was ok to get a Provy Check so I could go to Milan. £100 I think it was but that got me a ticket and a hotel for 4 nights in a wee town called Baveno near the Swiss border.
I was only 19 at the time and sat down after the match with the great and the good of Scottish football discussing Celtic’s defeat.
At the lounge bar table was Willie McFarlane Hibs manager, Davie McParland Partick Thistle manager, Ally McLeod Ayr Utd manager and a young Alex Ferguson. I can’t remember if he was at East Stirling or Falkirk at the time. Also there was a former boxing champion of that time Peter Keenan.
It was just great. But the thing I remember most of all was Ally McLeod saying in his own most imitated style: “Davie and I both agree we would take the centre forward”.
Feyenoord’s centre forward and match winner that night was one Ove Kindvall Captain of Sweden. The Henrik Larssen of his day! And here we have 2 Scottish Second Division managers say they would take him for Partick Thistle and Ayr Utd.
My memory might be playing tricks on the divisions those teams played in at the time but I don’t think so.
What an entertaining end to one of the most disappointing days I ever had supporting the Celts.
So here’s hoping the fans who have made the journey today get some entertainment and none of the disappointment I had in 1970.
Hail Hail
TonyD67
You might be right but I will save it for a day when we don`t have a match. A big one at that. Was it you who said earlier that you , as well as the Inter game, you are also looking forward to the Aberdeen match?
I was like that last week. I was hardly out of the ground after a pulsating 3-3 and I was looking forward to the Hamilton game !
Right, cheerio for now.I hope we can remain relatively free from mistakes tonight. The rest will take care of itself.
JJ
The bestest (and funniest) wee 88 year old in castlemilk
I give you wee annie donnelly.
Tonight will mirror Lisbon 67.
Early goal for them.
Then after a period of sustained and progressively threatening Celtic pressure the energy will drain from Inter and we will win 2-1 with our goals coming in the final quarter.
Sadly for me I won’t be there. This is only the 2nd post Xmas Celtic European game I have missed since 1974. The other when we were robbed in Milan in the CL last 16 under GS.
Many months ago my wife bought VIP tickets to hear a classical welsh woman singer at the Usher Hall and there is an obligation which I cannot get out of. Fortunately the singer is not a fat woman so hopefully our European show won’t be over tonight.
Genuinely concerned as to how I respond in such a posh environment when John G knocks in our winner with 5 to go as the concert starts at 7.30 !!!!
We are on the verge of something very special at Celtic right now !
Derk scores and then leaves the field injured! Jeez!
LB
I’d probably change a couple of the players from last week and certainly would look at a less expansive game to limit the possibility of Inter finding themselves outnumbering our defenders, which there is a high likelihood of happening.
However, it’s safe to say that there ain’t a chance of Ronny doing that!!!
Soooooo, I’d probably start with the same 11 as last week with the exception of Griffiths who I’d replace with Guedetti, only because I think that he’ll hold the ball up better.
Almost 9pm in Goa … No tv where I stay up north. So I will get my head down and sleep well .. Waking at 6am to check the score .
Mon the hoops ( ps they do well when I’m away from home )
masty
She is something else, lol.
The Compliance Officer has issued the following Notice of Complaint:
Alleged Party in Breach: Nadir Ciftci (Dundee United)
Match: Dundee United v Inverness Caledonian Thistle – Tuesday, 24th February, 2015
Disciplinary Rule(s) allegedly breached:
Disciplinary Rule 200: In that at the above match you committed an act of Violent Conduct and deliberately struck an opposing player upon his neck or head with your arm.
Fixed Suspension offer: Yes – two matches, irrespective of competition, immediately on acceptance.
Principal Hearing date: Thursday, 5th March 2015
Mr Ciftci has until 3pm on Friday, 27th February 2015 to respond to the complaint.
LB
I’m never confident in Europe ( Too many Wednesday nights watching a team with a name worth 187 in scrabble hit us with a sucker punch). I hope we don’t lose an early goal, I hope we play to our potential and if we win I’ll be grinning for weeks. If we get put out I’ll be dissapointed but happy that we are making progress.
Lots of goals tonight – I suspect 1 goal will win it… Could easily go either way. Our defence can only play better than last time.
I expect Craig Gordon to play a stormer.
Ciftci out of the cup quarter final then…
Utd have a match scheduled against Thistle then it’s us in the Scottish cup QF
Some Human Rights dude on TV, complaining that ‘Jihadi John’,was harassed by UK security, don’t think he has worked out why.
JJ said……I was hardly out of the ground after a pulsating 3-3 and I was looking forward to the Hamilton game!
——-
Mhate I felt exactly the same. Having been jogging to get to the ground in my excitement for the Inter match I immediately went into ‘how many sleeps’ mode in anticipation of the Hamilton match.
Roll on Sunday! And tonight.
HH jamesgang
Capt Haddock (formerly known as tomcourtney)
Probably depends on whether they appeal. A blow for Utd though.
LB