There is something vaguely pitiful about The Last Gasp.
The last effort, the last try, the last attempt. It usually comes when you’re beaten already, in body and mind and spirt and just want to go home to your bed. If it occasionally succeeds that’s because of the law of averages, and because if you throw enough at any problem your odds of solving it nudge up a little … but usually not by enough to justify the weight of the effort that it takes.
This is why part of me wants to applaud the Daily Record for their attempt to squeeze one last drop of piss out of their awful series of stories about Ange going to Leeds, stories which have nothing to them but hot air, and the sort that fills a room after everyone’s had a curry. Those stories have been utterly destroyed in the last week.
So I like the brass neck of it. Even if it’s appalling, even if it reeks, and it is both appalling and reeking. Even the headline is shriekingly awful in a way that makes your teeth itch.
“Ange Postecoglou learns Leeds next manager timeline as Celtic boss’ betting odds see major hike.”
As if the big guy is even interested in what Leeds time-line for appointing their new manager will be. As if Ange Postecoglou – facing a cup final in just over a week – could possibly care less. Yet that headline makes it sound like he’s sitting by the phone, like a love-struck teenager, waiting for it to ring. That headline is just so, so bad.
“It looks increasingly unlikely Postecoglou will be taking the Leeds job as the Elland Road side take their time and consider their options,” reads the sub headline.
What? He’s not taking the Leeds job? Well god-damn, who would have thought that?
Oh wait, all of us did. And we all knew that before this big breaking story which Robbie Copeland turned out last night, which actually amounted to nothing more than a rehashing of the bookies latest odds, along with the news that Leeds are going to “take their time” with the appointment, and let their assistant take the next couple of games.
Leeds, actually, have no choice but to “take their time with the appointment” as every manager that they have approached so far – five that we know of, five – have all turned them down.
It’s like being the wildly optimistic kid at the school dance who asks lassie after lassie for a snog, not realising that even those who might have been interested won’t be by the time you get to them, number 20 on the list of possibles.
Leeds have really botched this.
Ange was never going to be interested in this job, but any remote possibility that he might be would have gone by the boards days ago, when Leeds decided they preferred to ask everyone else in football first. It doesn’t matter who they hire now, that person knows they were not first choice, second choice, third choice, fourth choice or even fifth choice.
The Daily Record would have you believe that Ange still occupies a corner of their minds.
I think it’s perfectly obvious that Leeds are suffering from the very English egotism I’m never done writing about. They would consider a manager in the Scottish league only at the very last knockings.
They would literally scour the rest of the planet first.
Ange won’t care either way. As he’s made perfectly clear he was not exactly sitting waiting for their call. Whatever The Record might write, or want you to believe, he’s not watching the odds checker with envy or resentment.
He literally could not care less.
Every Celtic Supporter, Every Nationalist Supporter should boycott this Unionist rag as well as its Sister Newspapers which other than the Daily Ranger should be named the Daily Liar.
Why oh why James give them value and write about them so much. We are riding high at the moment going for a treble. Everything about our team is great James. Why concentrate on the press and beale. I have checked in on the site for years but most stories are now press or beale. Join the 99% of the fans that don’t care about what’s written in the record or elsewhere. Give them a miss James, you will be better off for it.
I for one are thankful that James does write about these sorts of articles. Mainly because I could never bring myself to read any article published by any of the so called main stream press, therefore I’m greatfull, due to James efforts, I don’t have to and can enjoy not only his insight but more so, putting the author and publisher to the sord.
I find it invaluable, not only that but, pressure must always be applied to these morons of the press to try and hold them to some level l of accountability.
James does a similar thing with the phone ins and radio shows. He refuses to indulge but does enjoy the efforts of some of the other excellent Celtic bloggers who endure.those particular sewage farms.
Indebted that I don’t have to.
James could you do every Celtic fan a favour and stop giving the record money
Ange is one of the 99% plus. To Ange, reading the Papers is a time waster.
Brilliant blog James,
They’ll be buying rosary beads and going to Mass next week when Lent starts
Their desperation to get rid of Ange is hilarious
Now Boyd’s joined the list of desperate huns wanting Ange gone asap
But for the good of Scottish Fitba
He says
” Yeah I would, but not for the reasons that you would think; in terms of get him out the door so Celtic would not start to put in the performances they have put in. For me it would be a sign of where Scottish football is. ”
Jesus Christ
Let’s clarify one glaring mistake in the blog right now and that is this.
Ange is NOT a Scottish manager he is in every sense of the word “international”. Underestimate that at your peril my lad.
With the news we’ve heard in the last couple of hours, Ange will now be touted for sturgeons job.
James why have you jumped on the literally band wagon,you could have just said he couldn’t care less,why the literally was that opposed to metaphorically not caring less, very pretentious .