Much as we all want to see Celtic score a lot of goals and play with a certain verve and style, the only thing that matters on a night like tonight, in the run in, especially when things are still tight, are the points. Three of them to pile up nicely with the rest.
Nothing else matters.
This one ought to be easy tonight, and without sounding like a broken record would it be too much to ask to give Allan, Christie and Roberts a go from the start?
I really don’t understand what the hesitancy is about; all three are proven footballers and Kieran Tierney has already shown that throwing young players in at the deep end isn’t a bad thing.
From the sounds of Ronny at the press conference the other day he has no intention of finding out.
He’s talking about “building momentum” with a settled side; since Ronny suggested other managers might be stuck in the past yesterday (when it came to plastic pitches) I hope I’ll be forgiven for suggesting that this, too, is an “old school” idea and one with little merit.
There are times when you do need to mix it up a bit.
Playing against a packed defence requires a different approach than if you were playing a team that has an open, expansive game.
This “settled side” stuff is transparent, and oftentimes dangerous.
Opposition managers should never know what to expect from you.
They should be constantly wondering what you’ll try next.
The team that’s played the last few games should be good enough to get through tonight’s game. No-one’s disputing that. But if I’ve used the words “tactical inflexibility” once I’ve used them a hundred times and it will continue to worry me into the future.
After a week in which James Forrest has rejected a deal, Ronny had taken it off the table and then put it back on there again I hope sincerely that the Scottish Messi (what a joke those comments were) doesn’t even get a place on the bench.
Because really, what would be the point?
It was hard enough to justify his inclusion in the squad before this week, and whilst I get the concept of putting a guy in the shop window, what difference would that make?
He’d barely contributed anything before the refusal to sign a new deal, and with the very strong likelihood of his being punted in the summer, are we really expecting to see magic from him now? Leave him in the Development Squad a while, Celtic.
Other players are more deserving of a chance in the team.
Tonight will start the countdown towards the end of the season.
Including this game, we’ve got ten league matches left. There are cup games to come too, and how many of them there will be depends on how focussed the team is between now and he finish line.
Every point counts in the title race.
Nothing less than victory will do in the Scottish Cup.
This team needs to be zeroed in on the goal; a domestic double to send us into the summer.
Beyond that, I don’t want to think too much.
