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Celtic’s season has been relatively injury free. This weekend, Ange explained why.

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Image for Celtic’s season has been relatively injury free. This weekend, Ange explained why.

Last night’s news that Alistair Johnston isn’t badly injured and will probably be fit for the weekend is more than welcome. He’s been exceptional, and we certainly don’t want to go into Sunday’s Cup Final without him. If he’s fit, it means we’re going in with a full-strength team—barring some bizarre mishap like someone tripping over their shoelaces. Every player will be available, and that’s a great position to be in.

This season has been excellent in terms of player fitness. We’re still relatively early in the campaign, but fingers crossed, we’ve avoided any serious problems so far. There’s been the odd injury here and there, but nothing resembling the sort of injury crises we’ve endured in previous years. Last season especially felt like we were cursed at times.

It’s worth remembering that last year was a transitional one. We were moving from one type of training to another, and I think part of the reason we suffered so many injuries was down to that. What’s clear now is that while Rodgers demands a high pressing game and works his players hard, he knows their limits. He understands how far he can push them, and that wasn’t always the case with Ange.

Ange’s recent comments following Spurs’ game against Chelsea shed light on their injury problems. He openly admitted that some of their issues stem from the way he trains players. He specifically mentioned muscle strains and tears as a direct result of his methods, which reflects his uncompromising philosophy. He has essentially acknowledged that their injury crisis is partly his fault, but he has no intention of altering his training regime, just as he refuses to change his tactical approach.

Ange is right to say that training must mirror how he wants his team to play. He has the mandate to run things his way, and his methods have brought him success. However, at Spurs, it seems a bit reckless given their lack of squad depth. Even at Celtic during his second season—despite some missteps in recruitment under Mark Lawwell—we had enough depth to see us through. Still, there were times when the sheer number of injuries pushed us close to disaster.

Last season, I think some of our injuries were down to the transition between Ange’s training methods and Brendan’s. The players had to recondition themselves, and that had predictable effects. But now that Brendan has fully implemented his approach and the players are properly adapted, the difference has been remarkable. Between his methods and our squad rotation, this team is fitter than it’s been in years.

Meanwhile, Ange takes his Spurs side to Ibrox tomorrow in the midst of a mini injury crisis. The media has focused on the negatives of his record there, but under Ange, we rarely lost meaningful games, regardless of the venue. I don’t expect Ibrox to trouble him too much tomorrow. He’s taken weakened Celtic sides there and come out on top, so even with a depleted Spurs team, I think they’ll be too strong.

The contrast between the two situations is stark. We’re heading into the Cup Final with a strong, healthy squad under Brendan Rodgers—a man at the peak of his powers, under no pressure, and thriving. Ange, meanwhile, is battling to secure a win with a weaker team than he’d like.

This contrast reflects the results of two very different sets of compromises. If I had to choose between the two, I’d stick with what we have now. Rodgers is simply better at managing the overall package. That’s no slight on Ange, who I still love, but Rodgers is a superior coach. His ideas work better as a cohesive whole.

Everything fits under Rodgers. We’re stronger, fitter, better organised, and sharper than we’ve been in years—and we’ve got the cutting edge to match.

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4 comments

  • Jay says:

    I have to say I think losing Ange last season was a blessing in disguise.
    I thought he’d made a mistake going to spurs & I thought we would be in danger of regressing with him leaving. But we are in a far better shape now than we would have been under him. He would have learnt nothing from the 7-1 at Dortmund & that result would likely have been repeated at Atalanta under him plus other European games. If he had stayed this would have been Ange’s last season as the fans would have grown tired of the failure to progress in Europe. Maybe Ange is a 2 season manager. He comes in sets a mentality & then the club brings in a more pragmatic coach to build upon the desire to win.

    I also don’t think Ange gives 2 tosses about rivalries. He wants to play good football & win but will lose a game rather than change his style. It’s short sighted & is infuriating to the fans of the club he runs. I’ve seen countless articles about how Ange will be savouring coming back to Ibrox to give them a skelp & I just don’t think he does. He’ll want to win the game but no more or less because of who the opposition are. Where as people with Ibrox will be desperate to get a result because it’s an ex manager of ours. I can see them getting something from the game tonight. I wouldn’t be surprised if they got run over but I also wouldn’t be surprised by any other scoreline either. That sums up Ange at Tottenham.

    Seeing the difference in how Brendan & Ange operate it is clear that Ange is not an elite coach to me & he is showing to be coming across more & more stubborn to his stance as the pressure mounts.
    He’s going to lose his job. It’s inevitable, the fans & the media are turning & the squad aren’t good enough to get them where the fans want to be & he’ll be the man to take the fall for that.

    But Ange’s failure at Tottenham in all honesty is good for us as whether we like it or not it has created the view that winning with Celtic is easy & almost a given. So when jobs like West Ham, Wolves etc come up I don’t think BR will be linked as heavily as the interest in Scottish league managers will quell. (Not that I think BR will consider a smaller club in England again, I think he would leave for a top 4 team & that’s it)
    He won’t take on any of these other clubs after seeing how quickly the landscape can change within a club.

    • woodyiom says:

      Your last point is very important Jay – IMO no top 4 EPL club is ever going to offer one of our managers a job directly – the SPFL is just not seen as strong enough and our constant winning makes it look like anyone can do it (in reality its not quite that easy but clearly beating the majority of the SPL should be within the remit of any half competent Celtic manager) BUT ambitious managers would see the likes of Everton, Brighton, West Ham etc as the perfect stepping stone to go to prove they can manage at that level and then move to the top 4. With Ange’s apparent demise even the middle tier EPL sides will be questioning whether winning at Celtic and doing “reasonably ok in the CL” makes you qualified enough for them – which is to our benefit.

    • Clachnacuddin and the Hoops says:

      Really good assessment there Jay !

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