The way I see it all is like this,
Neil Lennon's last 15 games as manager have been directionless in all competitions, yet we still have managed to succeed in the league far better than in Europe.
But, when we look at the opposition in these games all have been mainly wins against teams we Should win against... IF... we are to be serious contenders for the title and the magical ten.
The two main teams that are a threat to that happening are as yet still threats.
One we have just played against has left our park with the points and the other lies in wait for us...at theirs.
That we have already played over 26% of games in the league and are well off the pace and summit has the alarms going off within our support.
Sevco are getting results that we neither expected of them nor did we believe WE would play so dis-functionally, for so long.
We cannot afford to drop another point, with the signs suggesting we are lucky to be only 4 points behind.
We have been very fortunate to get away with wins against St Mirren, Dundee UTD and St Johnstone....thats 6 points more than we might have had, otherwise possibly 10 points off the top.
That 'luck we carried will end'...but will Sevco's fortune end with them starting a losing streak?
We cannot take that risk.
For me theirs would be an unassailable lead this early and moreso because referees appear to giving Sevco a free rein...they don't deserve.
Should we address this now, irrespective of loving Neil or hating him?
It is sheer folly to assume Sevco will have another meltdown in the coming months just as they did last season.
If we drop points against Aberdeen on Sunday then things MUST change.
Is it better to cut loose from an unopen parachute and open your reserve........ to stave off the inevitable.
But......
How do we do this?
If we sack Neil, who replaces him?
Who out there is better than him, and will want to come to us anyway?
Do they have a winning pedigree and mentality?
Is it not daft to get someone else in who doesn't have a ready built knowledge of the team's abilities and their best strengths.
Experimenting at this stage of the season is playing from a weakness with no guarantee of success anyway.
Would Broony be qualified to play and manage Celtic despite his success on the park, knowledge and rapport with his team-mates.
....unless we can answer yes to even one of the above questions, we are unlikely to be any more successful and win the league with another manager than sticking with Neil.
Changing the man in the hotseat now, won't leave him with enough time to fix things and risks it all.
Neil, at least has won a few trophies in his own right and has it in him to correct the slide if he has help from his coaches/others around him.
I think our team, if its managed well will beat any Sevco team... we have the pedigree, and enough skill to motor on once our injuries lessen and full squad utilised.
The Celtic team runs itself, they show that week in and week out. Our guys can be successful even without a manager....its the nonsensical tampering by Neil that flies in the face of our slick cohesion.
Our scouting, strengthening and buying of new players in the last four windows has been poor to say the least.....but if you keep buying players by the dozen you're going to get it right eventually...and lately why Gerrard has been getting it right more often than not.
This January window will be more important than at anytime in our history, but only if if Peter is as concerned as we are.
........That said, its got to be Neil that fixes it and fast....very fast
Great points jc and of course any changes the board should make during a season and especially this one will be putting themselves in the firing line, so any desision they make a lot of careful thought would have to be put into it. All this speculation comes down to one thing only and that is confidence in Lennon. After the shitshow on Saturday it is becoming harder to defend his position as manager and that's why I think these next 2 games are crucial to him. We have no idea what goes on behind the scenes and some of the news are alarming if true.
Lennys future will be decided on the pitch with results and the 2 loses to date both fall upon lennys shoulders and both were huge loses. In a lot of walks of life the 3 strike rule applys and lenny has had 2 so far this season. Let's face it if anyone else bar lenny was in the hot seat with what we have witnessed so far this season I believe they would have been out by now, such the cry for there head would have been to loud to ignore. But there is also a limit to how much the supporters will stand for and I believe we have reached that time now. Don't believe any of us would take any pleasure if Lenny was to lose his job, but the ball is still in his court and now it will be down to him how he plays it and weather he can restore the confidence that has been lost in him. I would love to see him turn things around I am not so sure he can or will and yet have the belief in the players even though so many seem to have let him down.