Both Celtic and Man United will want to forget the events of 26/08/14

[SerenityNigh]

It didn't work because they didn't adapt their approach

Had they adapted, it would have been fine

Don't see LVG as one who will adopt his approach. Maybe his methods are more flexible than Benitez or Mourinho, but I'm not sure his success should be considered a given.

 

[SerenityNigh]

The Fergie era was a freak, a one off and won't be repeated.

Time will revise history appropriately, but it looks like this can't be stated often enough

These are worrying times for United fans.

I'm not sure they should be worried, but if they think 13 titles in 23 years is in their future, time to get the meds checked. The United brand is huge, but their success was a product of Ferguson. He was bigger than United.

 

[Khalekan]

but their success was a product of Ferguson. He was bigger than United.

Absolutely.

Manchester United's history has been the history of two Scottish football managers.

Both became bigger than the club and both cast such a long shadow that their successor's buckled under the pressure.

It took two decades and half a dozen managerial changes before some kind hind of equilibrium was restored.

I'd we worried happen I were a Manc.

They won't see the likes of a Busby and Ferguson again.

 

[Mikey_Fitzgerald]

Celtic will win the Scottish League this year, they just will. Over the course of a full season, none of the other teams will be able to amass enough points to topple them. Celtic may have lost to Caley Thistle at the weekend, but that was an aberration. They fielded a weakened squad who still could have won the game by 3 or 4 goals had the rub of the green gone their way. Over the course of a domestic league season, they will have enough to win the title.

Maybe I should rethink that statement?

 

[Allezfan]

Maybe I should rethink that statement?

No, you shouldn't.

 

[Mikey_Fitzgerald]

No, you shouldn't.

Struggled to get a point against Dundee and lost away at Caley

Seasons still young of course

 

[Allezfan]

Struggled to get a point against Dundee and lost away at Caley

Seasons still young of course

You can drop 5 points and still win the title.

 

[The Cowboy]

Maybe I should rethink that statement?

Always found it mad that some sensible millionaire (unlike that crackpot at Hearts) didn't try and take advantage of Rangers' demise and invest in one of the other Scots Prem sides. Wouldn't take much to topple Celtic, and the worst case scenario would be 2nd and an EL spot.

 

[Mikey_Fitzgerald]

You can drop 5 points and still win the title.

Of course you can

But they have not played well at all, aside from the win over United

The 3-0 win over St Johnstone flattered them I feel

It doesn't look like they're going to strengthen that much either, if at all

There's enough warning signs there that I'd be worried if I was a Celtic fan

Chances are they'll be fine and will still win it easily, but they don't look steady at all at the moment

 

[Mikey_Fitzgerald]

Always found it mad that some sensible millionaire (unlike that crackpot at Hearts) didn't try and take advantage of Rangers' demise and invest in one of the other Scots Prem sides. Wouldn't take much to topple Celtic, and the worst case scenario would be 2nd and an EL spot.

Not much glamour in winning the Scottish League at the end of the day I suppose

Not much money in the game either unless you're one of The Old Firm (re TV rights etc)

 

[The Cowboy]

Not much glamour in winning the Scottish League at the end of the day I suppose

Not much money in the game either unless you're one of The Old Firm (re TV rights etc)

A couple of seasons winning the league could change all that. Agree on the glamour but if you can get into the CL groups then that's something.

 

[Mikey_Fitzgerald]

Celtic look to be doing better now. Looks like my original statement could be the correct one

 

[degsy]

Oh Celtic, what a chance blown!

And Man United, what a bad time to lose to a cup game!

Celtic and Manchester United’s defeats to Maribor and Milton Keynes last evening are both important watermarks for the clubs in question and they have brought up harsh lessons that both clubs need to heed.

For Celtic, the lesson to be learned is that scraping by on a bare minimum of spending and constantly selling their best players is a business model no longer compatible with any success outside of their domestic league.

Celtic were handed an amazing second chance after Legia Warsaw made a mess of some simple paperwork. They had a chance to secure a place in the Champions League Group Stages for the third season in a row. However, their performance against Maribor was simply awful. They showed no character, no heart and looked just plain toothless against a side that they should have been able to eliminate.

Not only did Celtic have the luxury of an away goal to rest on, but they were also playing the game at Celtic Park, something they hadn’t been able to do in the home leg against Legia as a result of the commonwealth games. All evidence pointed to them getting a 1-0 or 2-0 win on the night, while an animated home crowd cheered them on with vociferous zeal. But in fact, it was the exact opposite.

The Celtic home support, so often their secret weapon on big European nights, seemed nervy and flat. They tried at points in the match, but they just couldn’t get any real sustained pressure on the Maribor team. Once Maribor got their winning goal, the crowd practically fell silent. They weren’t angry, they weren’t defiant, they were simply broken by the experience. Their team had played a sloppy game that had lacked any bite or insistence. Celtic never looked like getting the goal that would have really put Maribor’s backs to the wall. The Celtic support, usually so loud and so reliable in such a circumstance, were simply not a factor in this contest.

You could argue they must shoulder some of the blame, but I mostly feel sympathy for them. Football crowds in most cases are reactive organisms. I have often said that the crowd at Goodison Park is a reactive one not a proactive one. Many other crowds are similar. No matter how jazzed you are for a game, no matter how “up for it” you feel, if your team then goes out and enters a limp and uninspiring performance, it’s going to be hard to get yourself into it.

Celtic will win the Scottish League this year, they just will. Over the course of a full season, none of the other teams will be able to amass enough points to topple them. Celtic may have lost to Caley Thistle at the weekend, but that was an aberration. They fielded a weakened squad who still could have won the game by 3 or 4 goals had the rub of the green gone their way. Over the course of a domestic league season, they will have enough to win the title.

That will be all they win with the current squad though. I don’t expect Celtic to win either of the domestic cups and I don’t expect them to advance very far in The Europa League. The squad they have is strong enough to win a League because Leagues allow for margin of error. You can lose a few games here or there and still lift the League Title in May. Cups though are one off events and I can easily seeing Celtic slip up in the Cup Competitions, just as they have in previous seasons.

This may be one of the worst Celtic sides since the early 90’s, and at least those squads had some heart and fire to them. This Celtic team are a bunch of emotional damp squibs who seem to find it impossible to rise to the big occasions. Two seasons ago under Neil Lennon, that simply wasn’t the case. This Celtic team is a long way from the one that valiantly reached the Champions League knock out round on route to a League and Cup Double.

Yes, players have left but something else has left this Celtic side and that is their fighting spirit. They seem to crumple under any pressure. They might be able to sink teams in their domestic league most weeks, but how much pressure is on them to really do so? Teams go to Celtic Park now and treat the game as an act of damage control. They know that the real important games are against the other ten sides in the league. Draw them in a Cup though, and to the opposing team the match essentially becomes the Final, and this Celtic side have proven that they just don’t have the minerals to withstand that sort of environment.

What do the club do from here? Having no Champions League football, and also none of the 20 Million windfall that further advance in that tournament would have provided, will no doubt force Celtic even deeper into their current state of relative stagnation.

The board need to spend, that much is clear. They need to bring in one or two name players with experience of winning more than just the domestic league. They need players who can perform in the big games. They need to strengthen the squad so that it can compete in Europe and has some steel to it. This is nothing that hardcore Celtic fans haven’t been saying for years.

Yes, financial stability is important. But there is a difference between conservative spending and being downright stingy. The Celtic Board have crossed that line. They have refused to spend to the point that it has now been to clubs detriment. Celtic could have netted a sizeable chunk of much needed change if they’d spent BEFORE they started the qualifying matches. Now that they are out, more players will probably leave and it’ll be harder to get decent replacements to fill the holes in the squad. The Celtic Board have essentially gone to sea in a sieve. They’ve not so much rested on their laurels as grounded them to paste with their buttocks. They shoulder the majority of the blame here, even more so than the players or the supporters. They have fallen asleep at the wheel and have now tasted the bitter consequences.

What of Ronny Deila? I hope that he isn’t scapegoated for this result, though it would be churlish to decry him to be blameless, especially after pointing the finger at the players, supporters and board. He did his best to make Chicken Salad from you know what, but his tactics have hardly enthused, a spectacular destruction of Dundee United aside. He is still new to the job and he clearly has his hands tied in regards to finance. That being said, he must surely have known this when he signed his contract? People will now claim that he is not big enough for the job, but I think anyone would have struggled to get into the Group Stages with this Celtic team. It would have taken a Herculean Effort for even Neil Lennon to get this side through, and that’s probably why he decided it was time to go while he still had somewhat of a legacy to protect.

Deila should keep his job. To sack him over this would be terribly unfair. The full blame for this does not rest solely on his shoulders. I can’t really even blame the supporters. Yes, the atmosphere wasn’t the best I’ve ever seen for a European Night at Celtic Park, but can you really blame them? It’s hard to be enthused when what you’re subjected to is so dour and miserable.

I was going to talk about Man United now, but this Celtic section has gone on far longer than I expected, so I'll give it time to breath and post the United section later on today

Peace Out

Not improved since then has it

 

[Mikey_Fitzgerald]

Not improved since then has it

They're through to the last 32 of the Europa at least

Awful draw for them though

 

[and_solskjaers_won_it]

Oh Celtic, what a chance blown!

And Man United, what a bad time to lose to a cup game!

Celtic and Manchester United’s defeats to Maribor and Milton Keynes last evening are both important watermarks for the clubs in question and they have brought up harsh lessons that both clubs need to heed.

For Celtic, the lesson to be learned is that scraping by on a bare minimum of spending and constantly selling their best players is a business model no longer compatible with any success outside of their domestic league.

Celtic were handed an amazing second chance after Legia Warsaw made a mess of some simple paperwork. They had a chance to secure a place in the Champions League Group Stages for the third season in a row. However, their performance against Maribor was simply awful. They showed no character, no heart and looked just plain toothless against a side that they should have been able to eliminate.

Not only did Celtic have the luxury of an away goal to rest on, but they were also playing the game at Celtic Park, something they hadn’t been able to do in the home leg against Legia as a result of the commonwealth games. All evidence pointed to them getting a 1-0 or 2-0 win on the night, while an animated home crowd cheered them on with vociferous zeal. But in fact, it was the exact opposite.

The Celtic home support, so often their secret weapon on big European nights, seemed nervy and flat. They tried at points in the match, but they just couldn’t get any real sustained pressure on the Maribor team. Once Maribor got their winning goal, the crowd practically fell silent. They weren’t angry, they weren’t defiant, they were simply broken by the experience. Their team had played a sloppy game that had lacked any bite or insistence. Celtic never looked like getting the goal that would have really put Maribor’s backs to the wall. The Celtic support, usually so loud and so reliable in such a circumstance, were simply not a factor in this contest.

You could argue they must shoulder some of the blame, but I mostly feel sympathy for them. Football crowds in most cases are reactive organisms. I have often said that the crowd at Goodison Park is a reactive one and not a proactive one. Many other crowds are similar. No matter how jazzed you are for a game, no matter how “up for it” you feel, if your team then goes out and enters a limp and uninspiring performance, it’s going to be hard to get yourself into it.

Celtic will win the Scottish League this year, they just will. Over the course of a full season, none of the other teams will be able to amass enough points to topple them. Celtic may have lost to Caley Thistle at the weekend, but that was an aberration. They fielded a weakened squad who still could have won the game by 3 or 4 goals had the rub of the green gone their way. Over the course of a domestic league season, they will have enough to win the title.

That will be all they win with the current squad though. I don’t expect Celtic to win either of the domestic cups and I don’t expect them to advance very far in The Europa League. The squad they have is strong enough to win a League because Leagues allow for margin of error. You can lose a few games here or there and still lift the League Title in May. Cups though are one off events and I can easily seeing Celtic slip up in the Cup Competitions, just as they have in previous seasons.

This may be one of the worst Celtic sides since the early 90’s, and at least those squads had some heart and fire to them. This Celtic team are a bunch of emotional damp squibs who seem to find it impossible to rise to the big occasions. Two seasons ago under Neil Lennon, that simply wasn’t the case. This Celtic team is a long way from the one that valiantly reached the Champions League knock out round on route to a League and Cup Double.

Yes, players have left but something else has left this Celtic side and that is their fighting spirit. They seem to crumple under any pressure. They might be able to sink teams in their domestic league most weeks, but how much pressure is on them to really do so? Teams go to Celtic Park now and treat the game as an act of damage control. They know that the real important games are against the other ten sides in the league. Draw them in a Cup though, and to the opposing team the match essentially becomes the Final, and this Celtic side have proven that they just don’t have the minerals to withstand that sort of environment.

What do the club do from here? Having no Champions League football, and also none of the 20 Million windfall that further advance in that tournament would have provided, will no doubt force Celtic even deeper into their current state of relative stagnation.

The board need to spend, that much is clear. They need to bring in one or two name players with experience of winning more than just the domestic league. They need players who can perform in the big games. They need to strengthen the squad so that it can compete in Europe and has some steel to it. This is nothing that hardcore Celtic fans haven’t been saying for years.

Yes, financial stability is important. But there is a difference between conservative spending and being downright stingy. The Celtic Board have crossed that line. They have refused to spend to the point that it has now been to clubs detriment. Celtic could have netted a sizeable chunk of much needed change if they’d spent BEFORE they started the qualifying matches. Now that they are out, more players will probably leave and it’ll be harder to get decent replacements to fill the holes in the squad. The Celtic Board have essentially gone to sea in a sieve. They’ve not so much rested on their laurels as grounded them to paste with their buttocks. They shoulder the majority of the blame here, even more so than the players or the supporters. They have fallen asleep at the wheel and have now tasted the bitter consequences.

What of Ronny Deila? I hope that he isn’t scapegoated for this result, though it would be churlish to decry him to be blameless, especially after pointing the finger at the players, supporters and board. He did his best to make Chicken Salad from you know what, but his tactics have hardly enthused, a spectacular destruction of Dundee United aside. He is still new to the job and he clearly has his hands tied in regards to finance. That being said, he must surely have known this when he signed his contract? People will now claim that he is not big enough for the job, but I think anyone would have struggled to get into the Group Stages with this Celtic team. It would have taken a Herculean Effort for even Neil Lennon to get this side through, and that’s probably why he decided it was time to go while he still had somewhat of a legacy to protect.

Deila should keep his job. To sack him over this would be terribly unfair. The full blame for this does not rest solely on his shoulders. I can’t really even blame the supporters. Yes, the atmosphere wasn’t the best I’ve ever seen for a European Night at Celtic Park, but can you really blame them? It’s hard to be enthused when what you’re subjected to is so dour and miserable.

I was going to talk about Man United now, but this Celtic section has gone on far longer than I expected, so I'll give it time to breath and post the United section later on today

Peace Out

Honestly, I don't think we fans were 1 millionth as bothered as the media made it look like when we lost to MK Dons. I know why the media is obsessed with it. After all, United is their money making machine, and making a fuss about it would enhance their income. I know why oppositions were obsessed, because they love to hate United and wouldn't mind them getting extinct, and MK Dons gave them a golden sunshine. But I wasn't bothered at all. It was game where we played the kids along with the players who were told they could leave and had zero confidence or motivation to play for.

So, I wasn't worried, but I had fun listening to morons like Steve Claridge. He is a guy who proves me how human race will go extinct one day by its wrong decisions. How on earth that guy keeps earning precious money in the BBC by using his nonsensical rants without any logical basis, I will never know. No wonder UK's economy is going down. In reality, BBC should be shut down and people like Claridge should be working at Mcdonalds.