Only A Three Is An Acceptable Roll From Tannadice

It’s hard to completely 100% on Sunday’s game when every single tim the world over has more than one eye firmly placed on next weeks Old Firm game. However I’m certain Neil Lennon and his Celtic warriors will be firmly focused on the  task ahead this Sunday. Only 3 points is acceptable for Celtic, with Rangers at home to Motherwell being a home banker, Celtic must win at Tannadice and keep pace with Rangers going into next weeks Old Firm clash at Celtic Park. Lenny and the bhoys will be the most determined out there to ensure that as if a week on Monday, Celtic will be the only team in Scotland not only unbeaten, but also with still their 100% record secure.

So this Sunday sees us travel to Dundee, where we never ever get it easy anymore. A 2-0 win last April on the day Rangers won the championship was slightly marred by after match comments from Scott Brown, Neil Lennon and Peter Houston regarding the treatment of Scott Brown, or as it was known to the Celtic fans, each and every Dundee United player going out their way to kick Scott Brown. Obviously Skoosh rose above it and Celtic, after a few scares, went on to secure a comfortable 2-0 win thanks to a wonderful goal from Diomansy Kamara and a late Robbie Keane Penalty.

This game is going to be very tasty. If there is one team who hate losing to the Old Firm at home the most then its Dundee United. Celtic and Rangers have both secured the title at Tannadice on the last day in recent years, and very much like Celtic and Rugby Park, Celtic have a very good record at Tannadice despite being involved in some close encounters in the city of Discovery. Who can forget when Barry Robson decided to commit GBH on Lee Naylor? or when Chris Sutton scored his first Celtic goal very late in the game on his own and Martin O’Neill’s debut? Theres been some terrific highs for Celtic at Tannadice recently and on Sunday that trend must continue.

Adding to the few I’ve mentioned above, memories of Tannadice are usually fond including a Shunsuke Nakamura hat-trick in a 4-1 walk over before a big European game. The boxing day clash in 2007 when Jan Vennegoor and Stephen McManus scored in the second half in to give Celtic all 3 points in a 2-0 win – the first time in over a year Celtic had kept a clean sheet away from home.

But none of the above compare to May 2008, when Celtic won the league title at Tannadice infront of the Setanta camaras and every Celtic supporter in the world. Celtic’s title chances were described as ‘over’, ‘dead’ and even the remark ‘what title chances?’ would’ve been acceptable after Motherwell came to Celtic park and won 1-0. But there was one group of people who didn’t give up, Gordon Strachan and his Celtic team. Some supporters had given up, I famously remember being told ‘sit down, stop singing, the titles over just look forward to next year without that Ginger B*****D’ when I joined in a chorus of ‘Over and Over’ in the dying stages of that Motherwell game. I wasn’t sure if I still had faith myself, did I really have faith? Or was I just determined not to concede that Rangers would win the league? Even I dont know.

7 Weeks after that, and a lot went on in those weeks if you can’t remember, 2 wins over them, 2 wins at Fir Park and 2 home wins over Aberdeen and Hibs respectively, coupled with Rangers losing points at Hibs, Celtic twice and Motherwell, meant that Celtic remarkably went to Tannadice as FAVOURITES for the title. Who’d have thought that would’ve been the case 7 weeks previous? The guy sitting behind me? (who I’ve still to see again btw) or me?, Who was proclaiming that ‘awk dont worry, we’ll still win the league’ just so I wouldn’t have to say ‘Rangers will win the league’ to be honest, I had an idea we’d win the league after our 2-1 comeback win at Fir Park in early May.

But enough of that and back to Tannadice, two days after Tommy Burns’ funeral, who had lost his long second battle with Cancer, Celtic had a chance to give Tommy something he deserved, another league winners medal. Tommy might not have won the league as a manager during his spell at Celtic, but as a player and as a coach, he had an enormous influence on several Celtic league wins, and in the team that stopped 10 in a row, many of that team were doing it for Tommy! So there was no way Celtic weren’t returning to Glasgow without the league title, and a terrific battling determined warrior like display, led to Jan Vennegoor of Hesslink bulleting home a header in between 2 Aberdeen goals against Rangers, giving Celtic the title, giving them 3 in a row and an automatic place in the Champions League.

So how does that night play a role on Sunday? Well we have only won once at Tannadice since then, and that was in this May, a relatively meaningless game, and Dundee United are a very capable side now under Peter Houston with the threat of Daly and Goodwillie upfront sure to trouble any defence in the SPL, but Celtic are a better side now and we have a strike force in Hooper and Stokes who will trouble any defence in the SPL.

One slightly disappointing though however is that we will be without our captain, Scott Brown. Sadly his injury has been seen as a ‘good thing’ in the eyes of some Celtic Supporters, a view I would like to state here on this blog I 100% completely and utterly undoubtedly disagree with and I would distance myself from the ‘Thank F**k He’s Injured’ Brigade. To greet the news of an injury to any Celtic player, no matter what your opinion of him is, with joy and relief is disgusting. Scott Brown might not be able to flick the ball over defenders heads and over head kick the ball into the net every week, but he has been a damn good player this season for Celtic, If he’s good enough for Neil Lennon, then he’s good enough for me. He’s not the greatest player we’ve ever had in the midfield, but no player wearing green and white hoops deserve to be injured, and certainly doesn’t deserve fans to be rejoicing at news of his injury. Roll on the new year Skoosh when your strutting your stuff in the middle of park for the Champions Elect, when Scott Brown lifts the SPL title in 2011, it will be a successful season for him individually aswell as for Celtic, Get Well Soon Skipper.

Now with that out of the way, Who takes his place in the middle of the park? For me its a no brainer, step forward Marc Crosas. Efrain Juarez hasn’t impressed me lately so playing Crosas in there to protect him seems like a good idea to me. Maloney Crosas Juarez Ledley would be my midfield 4 and please, if Izaguire and Mulgrew are injured, play Mark Wilson at left back Lenny, we need Joe Ledley in the middle of the park. Big Dan to lead ’em out and to lead Celtic to a comfortable win in the end up setting us up nicely for our crack at them next week.

I’ll go for 3-0 Celtic with an early goal from Joe Ledley, a header from Gary Hooper, and a penalty from Stokes in the dying stages.

Hail Hail

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