Donât be disrespecting the League of Ireland
Milan Misun and Lukasz Zaluska have come on board. The latterâs signed on a Bosman so will officially become a Celtic player in the summer. I think heâs going to provide competition to Boruc and Mark Brown will be sold. Misunâs hopefully a long term solution to the left back problem but I doubt at 18 years old heâll play immediately.
Marc Crosas played a full ninety minutes for the reserves on Monday night so should be available for the derby on Saturday. It looks like Stephen McManus is going to miss out with a knee injury.
Scrub that. McManus trained on Christmas Eve and will play. To be honest, I donât know if thatâs a good thing. There was a big batch of players that returned to training - Hartley after his virus, Big Jan after his groin injury, Robson after his thigh strain and Donati after his broken toe. Crosas also stepped it up after playing with the reserves on Monday.
I donât have a clue how weâll play tomorrow and the teamâs almost impossible to predict. I donât Jan will be anywhere near ready after missing 3 months and Robsonâs less likely than the other returning players to feature, but we may need his dig.
Iâd expect Mizuno and OâDea to drop down to the bench and Iâd prefer to see Caldwell play at the back. Our record there is poor in the last couple of seasons and I think we should go and have a go rather than play conservatively.
dont think mcgeady is a big loss as he hasnt played well at ibrox for a while although Celtic havent played well there for a while
JVOH might be a deent option for 10 mins at the end if we need a goal
delighted cousin isnt playing as he bullied the Celtic back 4 in the past - id take a draw now but last weeks win was significant as it means whatever happens Celtic will be top of the league on saturday
unfortunatley a lot of this is true
Peter Martin - Celtic will be very lucky to get a draw tomorrow.
http://www.eveningtimes.co.uk/sport/âŚ477854.0.0.php
I Expect Celtic to lose tomorrowâs Old Firm derby at Ibrox - but it wonât affect their grip on the Clydesdale Bank Premier League title and the march towards four-in-a-row.
The outcome of this Glasgow derby and the two to follow will not, in my mind, determine the destination of this seasonâs championship flag.
Both teams have proved they can slip up elsewhere in the fixture list, and weaknesses in either defence tell me there are more points to be dropped at other grounds.
I asked Gordon Strachan, in a special one-to-one interview this week, if he had enough leaders in his pack. The manager put forward a brave case for a number of his team, but a flawed one in my view.
This is a Celtic side lacking the mental toughness, grit and deter-
mination to win the physical battle facing them in the cauldron of Ibrox at 12.30pm tomorrow.
Captain Stephen McManus is struggling with his fitness, but he has still to prove to me his credentials are worthy of the armband in the first place.
Paul Hartley, Scott Brown and Barry Robson are an absolute must in the middle of the park to have any chance of at least a point.
Pedro Mendes and Barry Ferguson could have a field day if Robson isnât fit, because Brown is the great enigma.
At times, Iâve thought he was the real deal this season, someone to boss games, but thereâs no consistency.
Thereâs no Shaun Maloney or Aiden McGeady, but if the Celtic fans are honest, neither has had a major impact on Old Firm games for quite a while now and their absence is not the over-riding factor in the bookmakersâ decision to make Walter Smithâs side the favourites.
If McManus is fit, Gary Caldwell could find himself in the holding role in midfield to allow Strachan to use Glenn Loovensâ height to defend and switch to attack from set-pieces.
Playing a half-fit Marc Crosas in the middle of the park would be a gamble.
Rangers can get at both Celtic full-backs and, where before, Martin OâNeillâs defenders tried to make sure crosses were blocked off at the source, these two give you enough chances to supply the strikers.
Artur Boruc, as ever, is the ticking bomb in this fixture. If his head is not right, anything can happen. Strachan needs Artur focused and ready to perform.
There are no excuses left for any more blunders. Heâs used up all his get-out-of-jail cards, saves rather than signs are what real Celtic fans want to see from the Holy Goalie.
Shunsuke Nakamura is capable of a moment of genius, but he has been known to disappear in this fixture. Georgios Samaras and Scott McDonald are the last two parts of the jigsaw in this battle for Celtic, Iâm not impressed by either.
Can they go to Ibrox and boss an ageing David Weir and a player of limited abilityâ in Kirk Broadfoot? Letâs wait and see. If you look at both defences, this should be a high- scoring 4-3 cracker.
Both teams have inferior players playing out of position in the backline and that should spell goals.
Rangersâ winning ingredient for this fixture is home advantage and a greater hunger, especially from their front two.
I expect Kris Boyd to get the nod to finally start an Old Firm game with his preferred partner Kenny Miller. Both men are desperate to do well in this game for different reasons.
The game will be bossed from the middle of the park and the class of Ferguson will take its toll on the less exper-ienced campaigners wearing the Hoops.
How Rangers fans still moan about their captain escapes me, but this match is tailor-made for the number six.
The last line of defence for Smith is Allan McGregor.
If he has his mind on the job on the park, then it could be a clean sheet but, like Boruc, heâs part of the goalkeeperâs union and calamity is sometimes never too far away.
Big games need big players and they, in turn, win games. I donât think Celtic have enough to match Rangers over the 90 minutes of this encounter.
If Strachanâs team get a draw, theyâll be lucky, very lucky.
Yer man Peter Martin makes some fair points there alright. I just donât know if Strachan will pick a team with the correct balance. We need to go there and be strong but not at the expense of pace and skill. A front six of Brown-Hartley-Robson-Naka-Sammy-McDonald wonât offer the threat of pace in behind.
Nakaâs Out
Celtic Team:
Holy Goalie,
Hinkel, Caldwell, McManus, Naylor,
Mizuno, Brown, Hartley, Robson,
Samaras, McDonald.
It was reported that Nakaâs sick but some well informed heads on different fora have said one of his kids is seriously ill in hospital. Hopefully, things will be okay.
Christ, this really emphasises the absence of McGeady. And Maloneyâs not playing either so weâre missing our triple creative threat. What a huge game for Koki to be pitched into. Itâs good to have Robson back - we wouldnât have won the league last season without his two performances against the Huns last April.
Donât have the full subs listing but Big Janâs on it.
Huns Team:
Cunt,
Cunt, Cunt, Cunt, Cunt,
Cunt, Cunt, Cunt, Cunt,
Cunt, Cunt.
In fairness, their formation is flexible and they can easily change to a 4-5-1:
Cunt,
Cunt, Cunt, Cunt, Cunt,
Cunt, Cunt, Cunt, Cunt,Cunt,
Cunt.
Come on Celtic.
Subs: M Brown, Hesselink, Loovens, Wilson, OâDea, Hutchinson, Crosas.
I think that the win vindicates Strachan in his dispute with the whinge-bag McGeadyâŚNo one player is biger than the teamâŚ
Mawn the fucking Hoops.
brilliant stuff- sometimes i forget just how much i hate the huns
brown ,the heid were brilliant, mcdonald was never a player i liked much but he was outstanding today- his workrate & agression was brilliant- winning the ball in his own half & bringing it up the other end on many occasions- cracking finish too
the horrible fuck ferguson looking like a twat when Sam faked to throw the ball at him was great too
HAIL HAIL
NCC
Itâs Magnificent When You Beat Those Cunts On Their Own Rotten Patch!
Mon the fooking hoops! That was so, so ugly but so, so beautiful. It was just an all out scrap really - their pitch was a disgrace - but we went there, fronted up and ultimately won the key battles and won them convincingly by the end.
Caldwell was excellent at the back. Scott Brown was relentless in the engine room even though his passing was dodgy at times. Barry Robson was strong, the type of lad you need beside you in this derby and McDonald was superb and took his goal brilliantly. The Holy Goalie also stood up and made the crucial save at 0-0.
That was a smashing win considering our absentee list so fair fooks to Gordon Strachan and the squad. Itâs always magic when Celtic score into the away end at the shitpit and it was class at the end too.
The Holy Goalie in front of the Huns at the final whistle:
Yes Skippy, that is the stench of Huns:
Skippy scores:
Well done Bhoys.
big brave bassa:)
Fair play to Strachan. The knives were certainly out for him if ye had been beaten. But his team delivered a great 3 points.
The end for young Aiden for definite.
Huns, Thatâs Yer Captain Shitting It!
Beaten convincingly in the stands too.
Huns 0:
Celtic 1:
Lenny enjoyed it:
http://www.snspix.com/cache/167/preview_1365707_1_400x500_0_0__1_ffffff_626c5b558c818a13e5b2c5ae8361a5ad.jpg
Boruc really needs to lose a few pounds he can hardly move in the goals at this stage
Fucking cracking result yesterday and a belting atmosphere it seemed. We didnât play all that well in the first half in particular but the pitch was a fucking disgrace and what we did was we won all the battles.
Was particularly impressed with Caldwell, Brown and McManus.
Ratings:
Boruc 7 - uneasy on crosses in the first half and looked uncomfortable but made a crucial save.
Hinkel 6 - one shocking pass, and one shocking lack of muscle when turned by Miller. Did quite well on the ball otherwise and we certainly retained the ball better on the right hand side than on the left because he was more composed in possession than Naylor.
Caldwell 8 - won everything in the air that came his way and was untroubled by Boyd and Miller. Let Boyd wander in behind but never let Miller do that so defended cleverly. Having a storming season
McManus 7 - magnificent in the air too (except one flick on that Boyd won against him) and got in a few good blocks. Did nothing for the Boyd chance when he really needed to make the pass more difficult for Fergushun. Otherwise very solid.
Naylor 6 - poor at left back where his distribution was as misplaced as it was unambitious. Looked totally unsure of himself. Did suprisingly well when moved to left wing where he had good energy and his more direct style was better suited.
Mizuno 6 - largely anonymous for much of the game. Fuck all he could do on that surface though, every time he tried to dribble the ball just stopped under him. Put in a couple of quality crosses from dead balls though.
Hartley 7 - over committed himelf a few times in the first half when he needed to stand up more but he let Mendes past him. Improved hugely in the second half despite giving the ball away very badly once for either the Miller foul or the Boyd chance. Then just got stuck in and won all his challenges and used it simply.
Brown 8 - excellent drive around the park. Passing was a bit off in the first half as it has a tendency to be sometimes (though less frequently these days) but the pitch will take some of the blame for that. Then just stepped it up and ran the show in the middle of the park by outfighting and outplaying Fergushun and Mendes. Did this so effectively that the two âcreatorsâ for them spent the last 20 minutes 5 yards in front of their back four and 5 yards apart from eachother. Brown bossed everywhere else.
Robson 7 - the guy is made for these games. Cracking tackles early on and just loves flying into challenges. One of our better peformers in the first half. Not really a day for wingers but he came inside to help out when he needed to and they got no joy down the flanks at all.
Samaras 7 - slowly improving after his return from injury. Looked a bit aimless for much of the first half and was mainly used as a target for throw-ins. Gave it away horribly just before one of their few chances (canât remember which one). But he came into it more and started winning flicks and did very well on the goal. After that he held it up really well and ran at them which they werenât comfortable with at all. Wouldnât blame him for not taking his own chance. Angle was just difficult to guide it anywhere in particular.
McDonald - 9 fucking smashing effort. Battled hard all day, won plenty of challenges, did a couple of gorgeous nutmegs in our box at one stage and just ran himself into the ground but did everthing cleverly and with a touch of class. Super shot for the goal as well. Really back in form.
SUBS
Wilson 7 - good energy and did well on the ball. Best 45 minutes Iâve seen from him in a while.
OâDea 6 - poor distribution but defended well.
Jan 7 - got one thing to do and did it perfectly.
Fair enough ratings Rocko. Hartley gave the ball away a couple of times alright but I donât think he did so for either of the chances you mention.
The Boyd chance came from Sammy chesting down a kick-out into Fergushunâs path. McManus wasnât great in getting across to Boyd but Naylor had gone completely AWOL and wasnât in position to tuck in.
McManus was at fault for the Miller foul. He dwelt on the ball for an absolute age and had his clearance half blocked down. It fell to some hun cunt in midfield to thread through to Miller.
Donât want to appear harsh on McManus as he was very solid other than that but I thought Caldwell was almost faultless beside him.
Niall McGinn sampled the Broomloan End yesterday. This is from the Irish Times:
http://www.irishtimes.com/sports/soccer/2008/1228/1229728596600.html
Old Firm win whets McGinnâs appetite
Celtic new boy Niall McGinn claims his âeye-openingâ experience at Saturdayâs Old Firm clash at Ibrox has given him added inspiration to become a success at the Parkhead club.
The Northern Ireland international, 21, will commence training with the Scottish champions early in the new year after signing from Derry City on a three-and-a-half year deal earlier in the month for a fee reported to be in excess of âŹ210,000.
McGinn travelled over from his Donaghmore home to take his place among the visiting fans in the Broomloan Road stand and see Scott McDonaldâs winner take Celtic seven points clear of Rangers at the top of the Clydesdale Bank Premier League.
The former Dungannon Swifts winger explained afterwards how a day mixing with the Parkhead fans gave him a fresh and inspirational perspective on what awaits him in 2009.
"It all kicked-in on Saturday. My agent, Gerry Carlile, and myself flew over for the game and we got a lift to Ibrox on a supporters bus from Coatbridge.
"It was an eye-opener.
"It was good to see the other side of it, to get a feeling for the supporters and see what an Old Firm game really means to the Celtic fans.
"The fans were first class. I was recognised and stopped at the match and people were having their pictures taken with me.
"It was great to be in there among them and I was jumping about and cheering with everyone else when Scott McDonald scored the goal and what a great goal it was too.
"Hopefully I will do the same one day.
âWe got the bus back to this wee bar in Coatbridge after the game and there was music playing and the fans were really happy,â added the PFAI Young Player of the Year.
"Then it was announced over the microphone that I was in the place.
"More people recognised me then and they were coming up to me, wishing me all the best and having their pictures taken.
"It gave me an extra lift and the inspiration to do well when I come over to begin my Celtic career.
âIâm not sure yet exactly what day I have to report for duty but I canât wait to get started.â
[quote=âBandageâ]Fair enough ratings Rocko. Hartley gave the ball away a couple of times alright but I donât think he did so for either of the chances you mention.
The Boyd chance came from Sammy chesting down a kick-out into Fergushunâs path. McManus wasnât great in getting across to Boyd but Naylor had gone completely AWOL and wasnât in position to tuck in.
McManus was at fault for the Miller foul. He dwelt on the ball for an absolute age and had his clearance half blocked down. It fell to some hun cunt in midfield to thread through to Miller.
Donât want to appear harsh on McManus as he was very solid other than that but I thought Caldwell was almost faultless beside him.
Niall McGinn sampled the Broomloan End yesterday. This is from the Irish Times:
http://www.irishtimes.com/sports/soccer/2008/1228/1229728596600.html[/quote]
Canât really remember what happened when he gave it away but it was second half and he did sort of well to get on the ball originally but he played a quick first time pass to nobody that Fergushun picked up. Maybe nothing came from it but I thought it lead to someone.