Today, in an ironic twist, the noted anti-Celtic “PR firm” Level 5 has had to praise Celtic boss Ronny Deila, after he was named manager of the month for October.
There are obvious reasons why this makes me smile, most notably because it was the month during which a lot of Celtic fans – me included – finally snapped with the guy.
For the record, I don’t think we were wrong.
A lot of our performances this season have been dreadful and the one in Molde was simply beyond the pale.
It was a disastrous display and Ronny deserved every bit of criticism that came his way.
I was actually asked earlier in the week if I was going to apologise for some of what I’ve written.
And it makes me wonder; apologise to who exactly?
Ronny? I’m sure he doesn’t read this site and if he does I’m certain he doesn’t care what I think.
Is it my fellow fans I should apologise to? Why? For what? For writing stuff they don’t like?
There’s an easy answer, and there’s always been an easy answer, to that; no-one’s forced to read this stuff. People know they will always get my honest opinion … and there are numerous articles on here where I’ve sat down and ate huge helpings of humble pie.
You know why? Cause I love Celtic. And I want my doubts erased. I was delighted this week when we secured Nir Bitton on a five year deal. Because that’s the kind of thing we should have been doing with all of our top players. Keeping them. Building a squad instead of dismantling one.
I want Ronny to be the Messiah. I want to watch as he delivers a treble.
Anyone who thinks I’m waiting, hoping, for this guy to fail … go have a lie down, or find a good doctor.
I’m a Celtic fan. I want this club to be all it can be.
So today I’m delighted he’s won this award, and I hope he wins many more of them.
It makes me happy to think he’s getting credit after the avalanche of negative press, and I differentiate that from what the fans think.
We criticise because we care.
They criticise because, for a lot of them, we’re the enemy.
So I get a special kick out of one of those natural foes having to send out the word to everyone that Ronny had won this award.
A couple of other sites have already explored Ladbrokes new relationship with Jim Traynor and Level 5.
Paul67 over on CQN highlighted how, on the day the two companies signed the deal that the Ladbrokes website carried two separate anti-Celtic stories, which Level 5 was only too happy to send into the world. Those stories formed the basis for numerous newspaper stories that day and in the days that followed, with some even labelling Celtic “in crisis.”
CQN, as you can probably gather, has been having a lot of fun with that in the last day or two!
See, for me this is the real way to handle criticism at a football club.
No bitching. No moaning. Just put points on the board, and balls in the net.
Over the last week or two there seems to have been new found focus around the place.
One of the signs of this came when Ronny got tough with the media. He knows the difference between their criticism and ours, and he called them out on their double standard. I thought it was about time. He’s played the Nice Guy role too long. It was time to get tough.
In the same week, the board has extended the contract of a top player.
Does that mean all’s forgiven there?
Of course not, and the Ian Livingston thing, and the minimum wage thing, are telling examples of how we Celtic fans try to hold our board to account.
But we also give credit where it’s due.
Leigh has continued to bang in the goals.
Other players have staked their claim, like Rogic.
Instead of talking a good game, Celtic has made the critics eat their words one at a time.
Now the same people who’ve been dishing out the crisis stories are being made to cover the positive side.
That delights me, as it must delight all of us.
Compare, and contrast, if you will, the two very different strategies being followed in relation to ourselves and Sevco at the current time.
Even when crisis is genuinely swirling around that place you rarely hear of it.
They don’t just an easy press, they get a fawning press.
But occasionally, even the media has to change the tune.
So tomorrow, unless there’s another gloating megalomaniacal press release from SevcoLand, the back pages will be filled with pictures of Ronny Deila holding the manager of the month award.
At the end of the season, if everything goes well (and a domestic treble will never see any manager sacked, no matter what Alex McLeish might think) they might even have to eat an even bigger helping of that old humble pie.
If they’re short they should call me.
I know the recipe and I’ll gladly sit down to a plate of it myself.
Congratulations, Ronny, on the award.
Now, start planning the victory on Thursday.
James I was critical of Ronny as well..But it’s constructive criticism were doing..I’m like you cause I want us to be as good as we can..There’s nothing rong with that..Hail Hail and COYBIG on Thursday nite HH
Spot on as usual James, spoken from the heart. If fans of other clubs exercised similar diligence with matters affecting their ‘club’ they’d be in much better shape than they are now.
Hail hail
Criticise where it is justified , don’t have a problem with that but don’t follow it up with a Ronny out shout. The end of the season is when he will be judged on how good or bad he has been . I personally want to see where he is taking us with the strongest midfield group I have seen at Celtic in years most of them young quality Scotttish players. Then we have the One of our Own group coming through ,I am certain they won’t be forgotten under Ronny. Interesting and exciting time to be a Tim.
Again I also said some harsh things about Celtic and Ronny but I finished with lets wait till Simonuvic was fit and playing first with first choice defence happy to see he looks the biz and acts like a leader on the park only I would rather see janko at full backHH ????????
I’m still adamant that RONNY is not fit for the job. If you wipe out all the Leighton Griffiths goals Celtic would be in a much humbler place right now and don’t forget RONNY would only give this guy the full 90 minutes now and again last season.
Last week when 3-0 up and coasting he makes two substitions , opens up the back door again and gives away another goal .
The guy hasn’t got a clue !
Apologise to who you say? To the people who read your rant I say.
They don’t have to read anything I write.
There are block buttons on social media, and people can simply decide not to read anyway.
In Ronny we trust! We are not Sevconians after all bhoys. We won’t turn on our own with an agenda driven entirely by the Laptop Loyal. We are bhetter and smarter than that.
Your right Ronny deserved everything thrown at him this season, boring one man up front displays is not the Celtic style, I feel the club is to big for him. If he doesn’t qualify for later stages he should resign. Because he got a couple of good results lately in a very poor league doesn’t forgive him. I don’t expect him to win a treble every season as cup games are a lottery but I expected to see an improvement in the way we play but I think we’ve went backwards. Zonal marking, nobody on the posts, still playing players who are nothing more than a liability are we the only ones to see this. I feel we better get our act together before the rotten mob come up next season. Any keep the faith & write as usual like most of FROM THE HEART. HH
I still say Ronny is out of his depth.Before Ronny we would have beaten most of the teams we met in the CL qualifiers.I don’t think he has the expierience or the now how to handle Europe,and until he came teams were dreading coming to Parkhead in European competitions.Now even lower league teams are not afraid to come to Parkhead.Some supporters keep saying give him more time,surely after 18 months in charge there should be an improvement of some kind,but there is not.I remember when the names were being banded about on who would be the next Celtic manager…the answers were it does not matter who we get we will win the league easy.Seems that this would satisfy most supporters,and Europe would be a bonus.To me this is lacking any ambition for our club.HAIL HAIL !!
“I love Celtic” you’ll do for me lad, keep the stories coming we all get a little frustrated at times but “over and over we will follow you” HH
Im a Ronny fan.Im not blind to defensive frailties especially in Europe.In Rs defence however he has not been helped by injuries and club,s policy of selling key players at every hands turn.Very hard to be competitive in Europe against that background.That said Iagree that Rhas assembled most talented group of young midfield talent at club for manys a day.This team also has attacking
culture with emphasis on pace.If R can find settled defence this team can develop fine with a little patience from fans.Hail! Hail!
I have allso critised Ronnie and quite rite i want celtic to progress in Europe and i don’t think he is the man for the job