Last night, I watched the full press conference from yesterday and a couple of things stood out.
I know some of our fans were not impressed with Rodgers having a pop at the fans for booing his substation, and I know some in the media – including some of our own – continue to try and make a song and dance out of his Jane Lewis comments in spite of Jane Lewis herself telling them to stop being so silly, but what annoyed me were other remarks he made.
“I think this group now, being in here at this part of the season, will learn from the experience. They are going through that. So whatever happens this year, they are going to be better for having lived the experience because nothing can prepare you for the expectations around a club like Celtic.”
First, I don’t want to hear talk like that from a manager of Celtic. Whatever happens this year? Maybe he’s missed the bottom line; we need to win this title or there’s an overwhelming argument for relieving him of his responsibilities as manager. Those expectations are exactly as high as he has said they are, and he can’t skate them any more than the players.
He is in charge of a team that had a seven point lead. If we can’t win this title in spite of a seven point lead at one stage and having already beaten our rivals home and away he’s done, because there will be no excuses for his failure to close this one out.
As far as I’m concerned that sounds like the beginnings of an excuse for failure, and he should not be under any illusions about brass-necking his way around it if that’s how this ends.
But secondly, and this is what bothers me most, this is not the first time he’s referred to this team in a manner which suggests that he’s unaware of what some of them have done before. This is not the first time he’s done that, and it’s been bugging me all the way through the season.
He came in here talking about “teaching this team to win” … as if we weren’t sitting on three helpings of silverware from the previous campaign. He had nothing to teach these guys at all in that regard, and I found those comments ridiculous at the time and they are even more ridiculous now. What should we conclude if we lose all three of those trophies?
That’s he’s still in the process of fixing something that wasn’t broken?
Or that he’s taught them how to lose instead?
This isn’t the appropriate time to be trying to tell guys like Callum McGregor and others how much they can learn from him. I daresay he can impart the odd lesson, but not about winning and not about having the mentality to win.
This stuff about them never having been in a close race is all codswallop.
We watched some of these players claw back a deficit in Ange’s first campaign to storm home to the title. These guys won every high pressure, must-win game that came their way these past two seasons and their wins over the Ibrox club home and away in this campaign prove that they can do it when the chips are down in this one.
So, I really wish to God that Rodgers would cease this kind of talk. It doesn’t make him sound like the wise old sage he evidently thinks; he sound likes an arrogant man talking himself into trouble. It’s colossally disrespectful to the guys who have been there, seen it and done it … and I daresay some of them think so themselves.
This is a different team from last year. We’ve lost the central defender pairing due to one leaving and one with a run of injuries. We’ve not had our most creative players like Jota or Hatate(injury).
Nothing from Abada (mostly injured, now trying to get away) and Kyogo’s style of play cleafly doesn’t suit the slow build up.
The people coming in are mainly new recruits or relatively inexperienced, so for a lot of them the experience will be new.
I agree that the language he used sounds like someone trying to hedge his bets and distance himself from any disappointing outcomes.
His only chance of success this season is now a double or he’s failed. ?
I think he would survive intact with The League but only The League…
It certainly won’t be your name (Treble) but history will (and should) be kind to him regarding Trebles in his first stint at Parkhead !
And Paradise he most definitely gave me in his invincible season there !
Not related to this but I just read about a father and son, Millwall fans receiving a 3 year ban for ‘tragedy chanting’ (they were mocking Leicester about the helicopter crash). It says tragedy chanting was made a public order offence last August, I take it that’s just in England?
Clearly it is just a public order offence in England…
As Famine genocide celebrations that took place in The Island of Ireland are not just tolerated by Police Scotland at Liebrox but celebrated by the host club and their rancid fans even with their youthful age of 11 years and 214 days old as of today !
when rodgers subbed bernabei with rolston and played him out of position it was a signal to lawell and co that he was down to the bare bones and he was making the fact obvious to the fans , sunday saw khun , another player who’d not get his game for any other team in scotland , can’t cross a ball , lose’s the ball too easy and gets pushed over too easy , rodgers played him into the second half , did he leave him on to show how bad he is too the fans ?
if rodgers loses the the league the lack of signings will be his downfall , he will be asked to fall on his sword and be paid off with confidentially clause , he must be aware of that since we are .
lawell will have every intention of escaping the cull and i reckon rodgers will want to take him down with him if he has to go himself , all is not as it seem at celtic ,
“Whatever happens this season” !
If this trajectory continues (Sevco are nearly three points ahead on goal difference after their last two games) then history won’t be kind to Rodgers in his second stint…
He (just like us) better hope that Sevco stutter on the plastic at Kilmarnock (and that the cheats with whistles,flags and monitors are in comatosed mode) –
And that we are not relying on an injury time winner at home to Bonnie Dundee !
the sevco game ain’t on sky tonight , so the officials will do their duty to a man without fear
I agree James, this is the start of preparing for the worst and getting the narrative BR wants out there. Lawwell has done it and now BR , both wanting to protect their jobs. What he is doing is accentuating that this is a new group despite half been over the course before. It’s getting the excuses in early, like Lawwell, no excuses, everyone was well warned that they were on the road to disaster, yet they knew better than the dumb fans. The Celtic board were continually warned all through the summer and when the window shut BR was warned that taking the side if the board would mean if things went wrong then he would have to take the fall with him. Fans were urging him to be more vocal in highlighting the need for quality, ready players. No excuses, win or pay with your jobs.
But tragically – The Celtic Board WON’T pay with their jobs Sid !
Your observations are sound, James. Thanks for sharing them.
I agree with pretty much all of what BR said, pretty much. I can’t really see the point in knit-picking and a reading between the lines that only serves up division.
Like it or not this is not last year’s or the year before’s team, maybe around half are before injuries and are you forgetting the calls of dissatisfaction from fans for getting rid of some of the other 1st team players eg Taylor, Hart. Forrest, Oh, even Maeda ffs.
Reasons are not excuses. We lost quality from the 1st team last summer and not replaced them properly at all when we should have been building on the foundation of what we had. The board has provided BR with no 1st team ready players only project and/or development players. That’s what’s contributed to inconsistencies along with a change in style and formation though that may also be to accommodate the players BR has to choose from. Accepting of course that this his chosen style.
We know what we’ve been like all season and we certainly weren’t able to lose more quality through the injuries to key 1st team players that we did.
It highlights still further what we all say, yourself included, the last of investment, the lack of building on our strengths, the lack of backing the new manager, as they most certainly did with Ange, lies squarely at the feet of the board.
Don’t dilute that.
If we’re not prepared to see that this group may not win us the prizes at the end of season and we don’t learn from it, as BR says, then we’re doomed to further acceptance of this board’s strategy and further failing seasons.
Dilution is pollution (I like that). Back the manager. The next couple or 3 games could determine our season. The fans need to speak with one voice or it won’t only be the manager or this league we’ll lose. C’mon a Hoops
James, aren’t his comments correct when you take into account the players who joined the club this season? there’s enough of them.
He’s had two transfer windows to sort this out Stephen. We can blame the board to a certain extent, but we’ve beaten Rangers twice & failed against teams we should be beating. Excuses are running out & it’s up to him to sort it out.
Yes Chris he’s had two transfer windows but apparently hasn’t had any say about who came in during the summer and not able or allowed to sign who he wanted in January, if it’s his team, his players and the results aren’t good enough then I’d be the first to criticise him but if as it appears , he’s trying to do his best with the hand dealt to him then I believe it’s totally unfair to blame him
You’re 100% right James. When Rodgers came back, he was full of confidence & ambition. Despite a dreadful summer transfer window, he assured us he was happy with the squad. The past few months have gone from bad to worse & now his confidence can be seen as arrogance, which is now turning to desperation as things start to implode. If he doesn’t retain the league for Celtic, it’s goodbye Brendan, not good enough.
Aside from all the talk, conjecture and speculation about and from within our club, only one thing matters tonight!
A comprehensive home victory and performance. If we achieve that, it not only builds on the last gasp win from Sunday, but instils more confidence in the team, and hopefully more positivity in our fanbase.
The key return to our team at this moment is CCV. It’s imperative that he is fit and strong for the full run in rather than resembling an oil rig worker’s shifts…4 weeks on and 4 weeks off! ( no offence intended to any oil rig workers out there!) As it has seemed, for large chunks of this season !!!
The big man is now the rock on which our title retention challenge, depends on. That and the ability to start creating and scoring more. ( more of second 45 mins of Sunday required.)
Most of are realistic enough to just worry about our own form, and that which will carry us to another title. We do not expect any favours or results from elsewhere, for a multitude of reasons !
The Sevco masses, pundits and media are now salivating wildly about what this season may bring and are hugely confident.
Rodgers now has to use all his years of experience and wise words to get every last ounce of effort and ability out of this squad whilst completely squashing their arrogance.
It’s a big ask, but
McGregor, Hart, Taylor, CCV, Johnston, O’Riley, Kyogo, & Maeda all have the requisite experience to help the others, and get this done !
I bet the oil rig workers wish that they had his salary and conditions Gerry !
Even to mention out loud about the need for more quality was wrong and an insult to the players who were trying their best to claim a place in the team The place to mention it and emphasise it was in Lawwell`s office. I wonder how he would feel if a player mentioned publicly that the team needed a better tactician in the technical area.
BR is loaded with money and total p**h. His interview was condescending to a point. It’s the boards fault for hiring him again. I did not want him back at Celtic park, this was the easy option for the board and more money for Rodger the dodger. He is not what we need. I can’t be bothered with his meandering speeches anymore. I suspect the players can’t follow him either. This season has been a disaster as far as performances go, and if that is what Rodger the dodger is seeking, he is way of his mark. Team changes, he’s no a clue, same plethora
of non sensible jibber jabber stories. The dodger must go. There is no other alternative. Next year, new board, manager and spirit of the current players is enough to win the SPL.
He moans that fans booed when he took off, as he put it, a defensive mid for as more attacking one. The fans booed because he took off a player that was looking good instead of McGregor or O’Reilly who were both poor.