Serial recidivists never get shamed by their conduct. If someone is a low-down dog who cheats on their partner and feels not the least bit bad about it, there’s little question that they will do it again and again and again and it doesn’t matter how many times they get caught.
There is no threshold that they cross where they think to themselves, “this is becoming embarrassing. I’m getting myself a bad rep here.” None of that matters to them at all.
If you believed to yourself, at any point today, that the officials might refrain from giving a penalty to the Ibrox club, at the slightest pretext, and especially in the direst need, you haven’t been paying attention at all.
Theirs is the club which shamelessly claims the identity of a dead one.
This is the governing body which allows them to do it.
If you believe that there is any form of disgrace that is beyond them you’ve failed to learn the lessons of history. The possibility of that hardened into probability the longer the game went on.
The chances of it went from being 70-30 to being 100%-stick-the-mortgage-on-this certain as we entered the closing stages of the match.
The greater the need the greater the chances of it, and if you reckoned for a second that anyone involved would balk at this because there have been so, so, so many penalties given to them in the last few weeks and even Scottish tabloid hacks might just say “Isn’t this getting a bit … ridiculous?” well, what planet do you live on my friend?
They were awful today. As powderpuff as we were yesterday, and whilst VAR was on hand to give us a chance to win the game before we shot ourselves in the foot, there wasn’t a single Celtic fan who expected a second penalty after we’d flogged the first.
There probably wasn’t a single one of us, on the other hand, who didn’t think that today was a certainty.
Still, they’ve dropped points which means that we just about got away with that dire performance at home against Motherwell. It makes me feel not one bit better, because we look vulnerable in a way I can’t remember us looking that way for a long time.
But the Ibrox manager, who the media had as some kind of swaggering conqueror, doesn’t look that great either. One draw in Europe. One draw domestically. In eight games.
In the Hearts match they needed a 90th minute penalty to snatch a draw, which Naismith’s mob then conspired to help them turn into a win.
Robson’s team was never going to collapse like that today, but it’s the second time in his tenure, in only six domestic matches, that he has required the intervention of the VAR room to save his bacon.
If they win their game in hand, we’re back to that five-point lead. It’s decent.
But here’s the fact of it; the first team of the two to go on a lengthy winning run will probably take this title.
That has to be us.
They have entered their toughest spell of the season and they’ve proved that they have a glass jaw. This should be the period where we extend our lead, not maintain it, and this weekend has been an opportunity missed.
But they’re really not that good.
Under normal circumstances, I’d be looking forward to them coming to Celtic Park so that we can administer a punishment beating. I’d want us to be playing a hell of a lot better, with a hell of a lot more speed and penetration, before I’d be rubbing my hands at that prospect though.
Right now, I don’t think we’re playing well enough to justify that.
But let me repeat; they’re really not that good.
That team of theirs is not built for the job in front of it, and there’s not much money to improve it. Their chances of selling any of those jokers in order to give the manager his “transfer war-chest” aren’t particularly good either.
They will leave that game relieved at having not dropped anything more.
Relieved and grateful to their Brethren on the sidelines for getting them out of that big hole they were in, and whilst they can, and will, continue to rely on a little help from their friends the only beneficiaries of that result are at Celtic Park, where the sighs of relief will be audible.
I’ll say again what I’ve said repeatedly this season; if we get our own act together, if and when we hit a sustained run of form, this is ours to lose because there’s no question in my mind that the team across the road will continue to drop points in all sorts of circumstances.
Maybe not three points too often – the Brethren will see to that as much as possible – but enough of them that we should continue to pull further away from them as the season goes on.
If. If we get our act together. This is still ours to lose, as determined as we seem to be to make our own lives as difficult as possible.
Still, if I were on the other side, I might feel those fateful twin emotions today; fear that their team just doesn’t have the mentality or the quality to sustain a serious challenge, and loathing at those serial failures in its ranks who once again have proved how poor they are.
They have the biggest wage bill in the country.
For once, the loathing is directed at the right people.
The simple truth is that they have a much better goalkeeper than us – how many points is that in a season? Taylor is now a caricature of himself – a slow useless midget. How many point is he worth in a season? If we had rectified this situation at the start of the season the league would be over.
The team yesterday was a mistake by Brendan. If we don’t sign a striker we won’t win the league, you can keep waxing lyrical about Kyogo but the truth is he just isn’t contributing what he should, maybe due to carrying an injury, our Captain is out of sorts and looks to be needing a rest. I could go on and on, the reprieve we got today is welcome but I’m not confident we can capitalise going forward.
If we don’t sign a striker we won’t win The League – Very true indeed MW…
I think if they sign Shankland and they don’t then they’ll have a very good chance of winning it –
He scores for fun in Scotland…
That’s all that’s required to win The League !
Both teams draw
Media narrative for the next few days
Celtic slipped up
Rangers rescue a point
The pen they got at Pittodrie today was clear and obvious from a VAR point of view. We’ve had 8 pens this season, they’ve had 7. Neither of us has conceded.
Ridiculous stuff from the Aberdeen defender.
Very poor from us yesterday and we deserved to be punished for it. Glad we weren’t. End of story.
Celtic have stopped playing to Kyogo’s strength. Many of his goals were scored from players getting to the byline and either putting it low across goal to the front post, or cutting it back to him or someone else running in to the box. This mostly happens when players are playing on the same wing as the foot that they use predominantly. We are far too obsessed with wingers playing on their opposite side and cutting in to an already packed middle of the park. Getting to the byline (or shooting from distance) is the way to defeat teams that set up like Motherwell and St. Johnstone.
Sorry James but a bit of an overreaction, after yesterday, especially when no damage to ourselves actually occurred imo.
This stage of the season, we still have to play 3 different types of way?
CL and at the shithole, where we play upon the back foot with not having so much possession of the football.
Second within the SPFL, when teams are prepared to push more upon ourselves, and our far better footballing quality has been able to dismantle them comfortably enough up to now.
Third is the anti football teams within the SPFL, who do nothing more than sit in and hope for the best?
It remains the third option we are currently struggling with more so, and where the scum hold an advantage over ourselves?
Simple reason is that the scum can continue to hump balls into the area with better physicality and VAR to assist them?
Not the type of team we want to become, but still need to add that dimension within our squad still imo?
Still got 3 games against the scum and remain a far better all round footballing team, where we will create more and better goal scoring opportunities than we do against the anti football approach teams imo?
We might not have been perfect so far this season, but nowhere near as poor either, that some are trying to claim either.
Take a look at what we have to contend with in the 2 games we have in 4 days and the totally different approach that’s required in both?
Still remain unconvinced that setting up this Celtic team in the same manner, regardless of the opposition and how they might play, is the best available option for ourselves?
Think we need an overall squad, that can adapt better what the opposition have to offer?
This approach hasn’t had a chance to be put into operation as of yet, due to the amount of injuries within the squad to date.
So this period still requires keeping the lead intact within the SPFL, and seen nothing as of yet, to suggest that won’t be the case before the break?
On the other hand, I’m hardly looking forward to the trip to Rome, or the last home game within the CL either.
Var video advantage rangers
The Aberdeen player knows what will happen, he will go down and a penalty will be awarded, just let the big bunderheed go for it and you have 3 points in the bag, at least when Johnston got pulled, he went back the way, that’s 2 penalties won diving forward. It is truly an art.
it was a definite penalty today for the huns….in fact, i’d say it was more obvious than the tug on johnston yesterday…
WHY do defenders do this in this day and age,,,,aberdeen players and certainly their fans,KNOW that the officials are actively looking for a chance to get tavpen on the score sheet…and yet this happens…think it was a similar offence against hearts…
instead of complaining to the ref after the game…robson should have went straight to his defender and gave him a right bollocking there and then on the pitch…
defenders should be punished by their clubs for giving away such obvious penalties…
the dons got us out of trouble today…trouble we should never have been in…the more the season continues…the less faith i have in rodgers…i’m not even gonna watch the match against lazio – probably another shambles under rodgers….
glasgow celtic fc – definitely a club like no other – and not in a good way.
And if this continually shi* show doesn’t spur our board on to greater things then we know the reason why! And that is to keep them and this corrupt league interesting
Obs I didn’t watch their game but heard Robson on the radio complaining about a block on their player prior to their “deserved” penalty ha ha, all the pundits agreed with the decision. imagine that.
So Bojan Miovski scored again, interesting that we’re still not interested, he seems like a guy that knows how to find the net but we probably don’t think we need someone like that with the under firing Kyogo and Oh. Where has Kyogo been of late, is it as simple as he doesn’t like the cold, wet, miserable weather.
Oh is the big strong striker figure that the club need but, oh how many chances can he miss. Call me impatient but we can’t wait forever for him.
It is ironic that Miovski came to our rescue. HH
Never a pen,,,gets pulled back but dives forward,,as for cuntwells dive,no yellow from Walsh,,c,mon Celtic board call this shit out you bunch of cowards.,,agree James we got away with one today,,,
I’m maybe in the minority here, but I still sometimes find it hard to comprehend the amount of negativity amongst our fanbase, after we drop points. Maybe I’m just a very positive person, or an older fan, that has previously witnessed many dire performances & seasons…
Their lacklustre display today, doesn’t excuse our poor result yesterday, but again, they couldn’t fully capitalise or gain an advantage. Nothing is more predictable than a Rangers penalty, and it doesn’t matter if it’s the 1st or 91st minute, but ultimately, the status quo remains. The league title is our bread and butter and as long as we stay consistent, we shall win the title ! Never worry about the opposition…just concentrate on ourselves and stay ahead of them, regardless of all the bluff and bluster, that continues to emanate from the pro Sevco smsm! Our fanbase should always unite and keep the faith ! HH ?
we are defo struggling to break down teams who go 5 at the back and don’t come out to play. That was tepid on Saturday. To much tippie tappie stuff carrying no real threat. We hope its a bad day at the office but we had much the same against Hibs earlier and that’s the worry. I also feel the current passing play just doesn’t suit Kyogo. Not direct through the defence lines. Everything we did on Saturday was in front of Motherwell. Never really hit the by-line often enoughand no real pace
Spot on