I AM LEGEND!
The Good
We just beat Barcelona. We just beat Barcelona? Is there anything more that I need to add? Yes, we were absolutely fantastic. Adam Matthews was impenetrable, Kelvin Wilson & Efe Ambrose were rock solid but Victor Wanyama is a player going to the very top in the game.
Over the two games we got a 2-2 draw and the best team in the world ever only led us for 5 seconds.
But, want to know what was just as good? In the second half we actually used our possession very well against far superior opponents. For 45 minutes we looked dangerous for the meager amount of time we had the ball. That is progress.
The Green Brigade display was one of the best, sorry, THE BEST I have ever seen at CP and in Europe.
I sometimes wondered if the aura that surrounds our club makes us like the unicorn of the football world. At times it’s hard to fathom what it real and what is myth. Make no mistake the day after of 125th birthday it’s hard not to believe that we are living and breathing fairytale.
The Bad.
How can we have bad from that result? Easy.
While it’s harsh to say anyone was poor, it’s not harsh to say I think we were lucky that the Lustig / Commons axis wasn’t ripped opened and exploited. It lacked the discipline of the left hand side. This column defiantly having a love / hate relationship with Commons.
Though we are walking in the air like Aled Jones on skunk did anyone really enjoy those 90 minutes? It was heart wrenching, gut busting and a torturous watch. If you found it enjoyable I’m sure you will enjoy some Tory MP’s $ex parties. You sadist!
The Ugly.
The aftermath. How the in the name of wee man do we follow up that or get the team focused for the weekend? We are now a scalp. A notable scalp. This is a massive test for the management team and also for the players who have been found very wanting when faced with this situation previously.
If we don’t get right, how much egg are we going to have on our faces? We are now in pole position to finish 2nd in the group. We could still finish out of Europe all together.
Despite the monumental nature of the result, in real terms nothing has been achieved.
Interesting times ahead.
Thoughts?
We could even still win the group. Stranger things have happened eh!
lordofthewing
Are you trying to compete with the Green Brigade with that heading? Brilliant title.
As for the weekend. To be honest, for once I could forgive the team for flagging. I am still in cyberspace and I only listened on Celtic TV. God knows how you return to earth if you actually took part in whacking the best team on the planet like we did last night. For once, I will happily give them a break. A result will be a bonus. I have no worries anyway as the Euro break will allow us to amass a safe lead in the league. As for the CL. I honestly can not see us fail to get through. If the crowd tore the sh** out of Barca, what will it do to Spartac? It is not just faith that can move mountains. I have heard the Parkhead roar do it just as easily. Besides, I have a hell of a faith in this team we have now as they will have in themselves after that result.
H H
A 2-2 draw?? 😉
Yeah. Over 2 games.
If both games finished 2-1 to the home side, that means 3-3 over two legs…..
Heh, mistakes like that are the reason it’s time to retire!
It was a 3-3 draw but ok
I know what you mean about our right hand side but I think that the belief was that the Barca right was more dangerous.
The problem for Barca is that they have no plan B because plan A works 95% of the time but, as Inter proved two years ago in the CL semi and Chelsea at the same stage last year, if you compress the space up the middle of the park they struggle. By packing this area with bodies it makes it extremely difficult to play through.
Celtic allowed Barca all the space in the world on the wings because they were unlikely to pitch it into the box as they have no height in their team.
This is not a tactic we will use against Benfica as they have height and strength so the crosses will have to be cut off at source and therefore the defense will have bigger gaps.
Anyway last night was a magic night. The ground rocked, and I mean rocked, for long periods.
It couldn`t have gone better.:-)
Words cannot describe how much I loved beating Barcelona. It’s a shame that Messi has joined the ranks of the undignified with his comments, but I didn’t really expect much else. He’s a bad loser.
Us now being a scalp is exactly what went through my mind.
The reaction has been amazing. Makes you proud. From the Sky Sports team on the day, who did a good job of the coverage (at least better than US commentators/analysists) to James Richardson issuing an apology on the Guardian podcast !
Well done Bhoys !