European football is an adventure. It is not the bread-and-butter stuff, although it lets us afford the jam. The bread-and-butter stuff is domestic football and that’s where we stand or fall.
I love that our critics are mining the stats pool today for as much negativity as they can get. They are welcome to. In the end, we’ll have the last laugh and you know what they say about that.
There are people who think the result is the only thing that matters, but as fans we’re not daft.
We know what we’re watching and we know that was a much-improved away performance last night, one that might have gotten us points on another day. The media knows that Feyenoord are a damned good side. They pipped the side which recently hammered our rivals to the title, their manager was the first choice at Spurs.
Today you’d think we’d lost to European minnows.
I am not going to fall into the trap the media has set for us here, in which we should be rending our garments and gnashing our teeth and considering the campaign a write-off and a disaster. They go through every one of our European performances and use them to judge the guy in the dugout right now. Is it fair game to use Rodgers’ previous record here against him?
Maybe it is, but his record was used against Ange Postecoglou as well, and the records of Ronny Deila and Neil Lennon were thrown in there for good measure.
That’s why I find al the stat quoting today to be absolutely abysmal. None of it means a thing except to remind us that no Celtic boss will be judged on his own merits; always the “overall” record will be thrown in their face. And whilst it is up to someone, at some point, to change that it is scandalous to throw it at Rodgers as though every single bit of that history is his fault.
There’s a guy at Celtic Park who bears far more of the responsibility; we know his name, and what position he holds. He has presided over a collapse in our co-efficient and European standing which is frankly shocking, and left us in a Hell of a place from which we must rebuild our credibility entirely. And the policy he imposes does not make that easy.
But in Scotland we are, without question, the ruling power, and those phenomenal accounts from the other day demonstrate that even if the trophy haul in the last decade isn’t enough for people. The reason they focus so much on our European form is that they have no means of challenging our supremacy here at home … and it’s here their hypocrisy is best expressed.
At home we get no credit for our momentous achievements, and the reason that some of these folk won’t give it to us is that we earn more and can spend more than other clubs.
Yet at the same time, they write as if we should be punching out sides who can outspend us sometimes by ten or twenty times. Their decision to focus on “50 games record” in the Champions League is pathetic. What if they compared the last 50 games Ross County have played against us and used that against their board and their players and their manager?
No, this is their game and I refuse to play in it.
This is why I try to keep a realistic sense about where we are in Europe, and what we need to do in order to improve. We could push the boat out a little further, but it would be better if we simply spent the money we do spend better, with a blend of experience and quality with youth and potential, and then reversals like last night would not be so regular or painful when they come.
In the meantime, we focus on the weekend because that’s the stuff, that’s where the trophies are and where the access to these tournaments and their big money will be decided. And it just so happens it’s where we’ve got a four point lead over our biggest rivals … and where we can extend that to seven because for once we kick off first.
It’s easy to see what they’re up to. What a joke … but the last laugh will be ours.
Just happy to be there…..
Use your eyes. That was not a great side we played last night. That was our 1st choice front 6 along with starting full backs and goalkeeper and our attacking play was awful. The wingers cannot go past players. There is no creativity out wide or through the midfield. There is no end product. It’s been evident in every game we have played this season and it will be evident at Livi on Saturday. If Rangers weren’t rank rotten then the league would be in serious jeopardy. But yeah great accounts
Those old enough know this countries cganging but its still religious biased in certain quarters like all those who own the media put things out that people believe 100 of years if brainwashing and Celtic F.C 1888 is classed by those media abd bbc run by mason or just fear off letting R.C.into there jibs passed on by there fathers but know scitland is a multi religious culture and hatred of the R.C religeon byt in the media sfa there is still a string infulence at the top uts changing soon we will have now sectiarin walks watered down aa orange parades anyone watches or hears it us religouse hatred terrible embarassing just inconviose to people rrying to go about there business streers blocked traffic held up no go area gid help you if you are anything to prove your a RC imagine a sihk been harast for wearing a turbin no way
What in earth was that you just posted Jack,
I’ve posted a few times on here in the past. Just like to put it out there that this post from “Jack” is not from me. I’m like you Jim, I didn’t quite understand that last post.
The reason they focus on that record is because it is absolutely honking.
We haven’t been competitive in Europe since the days of Martin O’Neil.
That lot down the road were within a German goalkeeper’s boot of winning a European trophy just a few years after being in receivership, and yet we sit around telling ourselves that we are a ‘well run’ club. We are not a well run club. Repeat: we are not a well run club.
Being able to look at a spreadsheet and figure out how not to go bust is the minimum that any of us should expect from these guys, given the amount of money we pour into their coffers.
‘Well run’ would mean competing with clubs in Europe of equal or less resources . Until this club wins another European trophy it does not deserve to be called a well run club.
Maybe Celtic fans should look more closely at that record, compare it with the likes of Feyenoord and ask more questions of our board.
You are spot on Jim,outwith Scotland, Celtic will be judged on how they do in Europe and it just gets worse each time we take part,I know we are not CL level I’m not even sure we’re Europa League level,maybe Euro conference level,but like I say it’s one thing beating the dross in the spl ,quite another competing in Europe,and we wonder why English media and English football in general call it the Mickey mouse league,our Euro exploits since MON have been abysmal.
No point asking the Board ( it’s a shareholder’s Board not Ours), they couldn’t give a flying feck what the fans think. We’re just repeat customers with a loyalty to the Brand.
Even if we withdrew our financial support, no CL Briefs, 3rd & 4th strips a Season it wouldn’t matter. They would just downsize the playing staff to cut costs. The know that there are enough Celtic Happy Clappers out there to keep the tills going…kerching.
They are content to beef up the fiscals to let DD & others ( Board Members included) to make a killing in the inevitable buy out. It’s coming.
We’ll certainly never ever win this financially doped Champions ? League for sure…
The Conference League – Maybe but that means not being champions in Scotland to be competing in that –
The Europa League – Aye it’d be nice as it’s never been in Scotland but Sevco came close, but we would need to shithouse our way to the final just like they did…
And if away goals were still in play they’d be out long before any business end but they weren’t –
Still it shows what can be done from The SPFL !
Of course winning the SPFL gives us the chance to play within the CL, so therefore takes priority in that regards.
Yet the balance between the two remains to far apart still.
Thankfully last night was an away game, as our home form is going to determine our CL campaign moreso than last night’s result.
We went into that match with way to many inconsistencies in form, from our more renowned and established players, and this trend was also on show last night.
The overall performance also needs to improve also.
So the only way to rectify these trends at present has to be within the SPFL.
The theory hasn’t changed and no real sign of that happening either as of yet, that if we remain the only club within Scotland of competing at CL level, then who’s really going to stop and change that over the course of a season?
The answer still remains as no one, yet we have to remain mindful that our own complacency doesn’t become an issue.
Also need to note that as a full squad we still haven’t had a full week together yet, so expecting to see improvement before our next CL outing, and a fair degree of it needed also