The Saturday Star Supplement

Great round up James well written unlike B Mackay’s churnalist Mark Matimesheet.
But I still think big Simo is still worth the jersey the more he plays. him and Odin were getting stronger at the end of the Season.
Also agree we’re over run with Talent in Midfield.
But just feels great to be a Celtic fan this morning the biscuit tin is open. And you can smell the Fear in the Zombies cause they’re talking ?.
Mon the Hoops

HH ?
 
So Luca is defo in.

I too am off the opinion that Turnbull will be monitored by Celtic and it wasn’t platitudes being dealt by us.

Stick in DT hopefully see you back in the hoops soon. Very soon.

Interesting about Scott Allan, can’t argue that he wasn’t professional when he was with us and whilst its a one-sided version i would say his parting shots weren’t as professional.

Scott you could have looked to Ryan Christie for inspiration. He was out too, he took his loan move, his head didn’t go down...... he fought to be counted where it matters.... on the pitch pal.

Wish you all the best for your future SA. ☘️
 
Maria said:
So Luca is defo in.

I too am off the opinion that Turnbull will be monitored by Celtic and it wasn’t platitudes being dealt by us.

Stick in DT hopefully see you back in the hoops soon. Very soon.

Interesting about Scott Allan, can’t argue that he wasn’t professional when he was with us and whilst its a one-sided version i would say his parting shots weren’t as professional.

Scott you could have looked to Ryan Christie for inspiration. He was out too, he took his loan move, his head didn’t go down...... he fought to be counted where it matters.... on the pitch pal.

Wish you all the best for your future SA. ☘️
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Spot on about Scott Allen. Who did he think should have been left out so he could play? Broonie, Ryan Christie, Cal Mac, Tom Rogic, Ntcham ? Does he really believe he should be ahead of any of them in the Celtic midfield? Happy to take a good wage though. He probably could have went to any SPL team and be a first team pick (no where near a Celtic wage though) He choose to stay knowing he would not play. He traded playing football for making money and is now moaning about it.
If the rumour mill is to be believed, The John McGinn/ Rod Petrie saga cost Scott Allen a loan move to Hibs. Has he bad mouthed Petrie yet? Didna think so.
 
Celtic are very unlucky not to have scored but at least be a few up in this game. Our creativity is positive, wide areas are proving to be fruitful and the defence/midfield looks good. MJ is a different player this preseason he just looks "on" constantly. Shved and Ralston have done very good. Solid running and willingness to take the ball on. Looking forward to the 2nd half.
 
We have our first real game on 9th July just 9 days away in Sarajevo. No one can predict our lineup or own formation which will constantly change and adapt. We could play with 2 or 3 centre backs and have 5 to choose from, one or two strikers from 3. We have four speedy and talented wingers and three excellent goalkeepers. Midfield is a toss up. We have at least ten players who could slot in. Assuming that every player is available I reckon the only certainty on the team sheet would be KT. Not even Scott Brown is in this category. My prediction and hope is that this season will see the blossoming of Mikey Johnston and Henderson Arzani and Ntcham(if we can keep him) and perhaps Kouassi. (or perhaps we stick with Brown Rogic, McGregor, Christie and Bitton.) What a dilemma for Neil Lennon to have and I still haven't mentioned the development squad who are itching to get some game time. We have enough talent to be able to beat ANY team that we play. What a great time to be a Celtic supporter.
 
What I think is key is the longevity of our squad. We've got a big season ahead with lots of games. Plenty of opportunities for fringe players to get a game. But what's good to see in these of friendlies is that no player is taking the foot off the gas. Every player wants to be play for the jersey when given a chance. Ewan Henderson and MJ are different class. Both have a clear vision on how they want to player their game. There's such a zing to the squad just now.
 
Any thoughts on us playing a European away 3-4-2-1 formation with 3 centre backs, Ajer Jozo and Chris and a midline of Connell, Scott and Calmac and LB of course TK. Forrest and Rogic or Christie and led by Eddie. Subs Ncham, Henderson, Griff, Bayo, and Bitton allows us to choose to strengthen defence, midfield or attack depending on the way the game is going..OK no left winger but KT almost qualifies
 
The hardest part of picking a Celtic team is choosing who to leave out. There are so many great options which is a great position for the manager to be in. The question is not what constitutes the best Celtic team but what is the best team for the next game. When playing at Celtic park against a parked bus we need less defenders and more attackers. Playing away from home esp in Europe a clean sheet will be excellent. I'd also like us to have a throw in coach. It's the worst aspect of Celtic play and has been for years. When was the last time we had a player capable of taking a long throw in?
 
Fisiani said:
The hardest part of picking a Celtic team is choosing who to leave out. There are so many great options which is a great position for the manager to be in. The question is not what constitutes the best Celtic team but what is the best team for the next game. When playing at Celtic park against a parked bus we need less defenders and more attackers. Playing away from home esp in Europe a clean sheet will be excellent. I'd also like us to have a throw in coach. It's the worst aspect of Celtic play and has been for years. When was the last time we had a player capable of taking a long throw in?
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I have to agree. Think Lenny has to show a lot more creativity with his tactics and team selections than Rodgers did. BR had his "philosophy" that he liked to follow for every game, so we used the same tactics, same formation and mosty the same players for every game. We were able to overcome domestic foes (almost it became much harder after the opposition sussed him out) but resulted in some embarrassing thrashings in Europe.

I understand the old argument of playing to your strengths and not to worry about the opposition, but that is very naive in the modern game. As we are so dominant in most Scottish games and on the back foot in Europe then we need to be more creative. Play less defensive players against Hamilton, add in a 5th defender against PSG or Barca with extra cover in midfield because "parking in the bus" does not come naturally to us as we are so unused to it.

After 70 minutes, instead of bringing on the same old player like Sinclair or Rogic, or replacing a defender with another similar style defender be adventurous and bring on one of our exciting swashbuckling youngsters like MJ, Hendo, Morgan, Dembele, Oko-Flex, etc, etc. They have the talent, need the game time and add another dimension to our play. To be fair to NFL, he has shown in the past he is more adaptable to changing our style.

You are right about our poor set-plays. We are awful. Poor at throw ins, corners (defending & attacking) and free kicks.im not sure if this is directly as a result of the sheer number of games we have. Playing twice a week from July through to New Year means we have very little time on the training ground to work on set plays, so is this possibly the reason???

Another thing that is overlooked is that domestically our opponents mostly gave Monday to Friday dedicated to working on tactics to counter-act Celtic's gameplan whereas we only have 1, or at most 2 days, to sort this out due to playing European opponents and travelling. And our players are suffering from niggling injuries at this time too. Proactive, sensible squad rotation is essential to avoid burn-out.
 
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