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Celtic were poor at Hampden but media praise for Aberdeen is ridiculous.

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Image for Celtic were poor at Hampden but media praise for Aberdeen is ridiculous.

There are times when I wonder if people in the Scottish media actually watch the games they write about or if they scribble down what the loudest guy in the press box is saying and then add a few flourishes of their own.

Because I actually did watch the Scottish Cup Final. I watched every maddening minute of it. And if what Aberdeen did is being hailed as a “tactical masterclass” then it’s no wonder our football coverage is so intellectually bankrupt.

Aberdeen had 20% possession. Twenty. Percent. They were camped in their own half like they were playing Barcelona in their prime. They carried no threat until a desperate last charge saw them fluke an equaliser via a bad mistake from our keeper. That was their game plan? Sit in, don’t attack, and hope for an own goal? Are we really saying that’s the bar for tactical genius now?

It’s like praising a boxer who spends 12 rounds hiding behind his gloves, gets absolutely battered, and then wins because his opponent trips on the ropes and knocks himself out. That’s not strategy. That’s luck. Blind, dumb, cosmic luck.

Aberdeen played for penalties from the moment the game kicked off. And they were so wretched at it that they nearly didn’t get there. Celtic should have been out of sight. Maeda missed a sitter right at the end. Had he scored that their fans could have had no complaints at all and the media would be talking in a different way.

Aberdeen, who supposedly executed some grand masterplan, offered nothing for nearly the entire match. Their manager will be praised for “discipline.” But if discipline means refusing to play football, then the game’s in trouble.

Now, a few things need saying for the sake of context.

This is not the first time I’ve been highly critical of a team which played spoiler football; I’ve done it even after games we’ve won.

I don’t believe that there should be any credit given for a team sitting with eleven men behind the ball. People can make the claim that this is a legitimate part of football strategy; they may be right.

But what could have been a showpiece final yesterday was a deadening occasion which most neutrals would have switched off before half time. I recognise that football bosses don’t consider themselves in the entertainment business, but we shouldn’t be giving credit to those whose tactics are enough to put neutrals off watching.

If Celtic had scored a second – which they should have, comfortably – then what? What was the plan then? You can’t flick a switch after 70 minutes of passive cowardice and suddenly play like Guardiola’s City.

Let’s indulge in a bit of counterfactual thinking here. What if Aberdeen hadn’t scored that own-goal equaliser? What if Celtic had held firm? Would the media still be calling it a tactical masterclass? Of course not. They’d be criticising them for lack of ambition, for not laying a glove on Celtic, for being unwilling to make the least effort to win and every single word of that is as true right now as it would have been then.

Aberdeen fans, too, would have been incandescent.

They were teetering on the brink before the game. Had they lost, they’d be calling for the manager’s head. They’d be slating the club for bottling another final. They’d have gone into full meltdown mode. We’ve seen it before.

Now imagine that same fury, amplified by the frustration of watching your team not even try to win the match, and you’ll understand just how fine the margins were between hero and villain for the Aberdeen boss. This game plan didn’t win them the cup. Celtic’s wastefulness did. Let’s not pretend otherwise.

The thing is, these tactics don’t actually work more often than not. People remember the rare occasions where the underdog pulls it off but forget the countless times where it doesn’t. On the few times it does it comes down to luck. We got a slice of luck for our goal. But we hit the bar and the post. Our top player – the country’s top player – was through one on one with their keeper at the end.

If any of those hits the back of the net, what’s the so-called strategy worth?

The coverage of it as though it were tactical brilliance is embarrassing. And the idea that this is some sort of blueprint for how to play against Celtic is laughable. You try that 10 times and you’ll lose 7 of them. I am angry that we left ourselves exposed to that 30% risk. That’s down to the manager for not altering the approach.

It’s easy to forget that Celtic had a plan. A proper one. We moved the ball forward although not quickly enough. We pressed high. We created chances. Had we finished just one more of them, the entire narrative collapses. The media’s attempts to mythologise Aberdeen’s “plan” would look as silly as they actually are.

Let’s talk about the message it sends as well. This was a cup final. A chance for glory. And Aberdeen played it like an away leg in Europe against Real Madrid. Where’s the ambition in that? Where’s the romance? The idea that they “deserved” to win because they ran around a lot and blocked shots is an insult to the sport. You don’t deserve to win by abdicating all responsibility for playing the game.

And here’s another inconvenient truth: this kind of football is why the Scottish game has such a poor reputation. Neutrals would have seen a one-sided match where one team couldn’t put the ball in the net and the other one had no interest in trying. If this is the “showpiece” event, then what does that say about us? That final was dull, turgid and cynical. And we’re applauding that? Really?

Aberdeen fans will ride high for a while, of course.

They won a cup. That’s not nothing. But I wonder how they’ll feel next season if they’re back to playing turgid, risk-averse football and it starts costing them points against St Mirren and Motherwell.

This isn’t a condemnation of defensive football, by the way.

There’s a place for structure and organisation. But it has to be part of something bigger. Mourinho at Inter Milan in 2010 didn’t just park the bus – he parked it with intent. His teams could counter. They could kill you in transition. What Aberdeen did yesterday wasn’t that. They set out to play damage limitation and hoped for a break of the ball.

In the end, the narrative suits the press. They’ll sell Aberdeen as brave underdogs overcoming the odds. It’s a better headline than “Celtic misfire in shocker of a final.” But it’s dishonest. It’s disingenuous. And it’s dangerous, too, because it encourages smaller clubs to abandon ambition and play fearfully.

We should be promoting courage. We should be celebrating teams who take the game to stronger opponents, not those who cower in their own half and pray for a miracle. Aberdeen got their miracle. Good for them. But let’s not pretend they earned it.

Because if the ball had bounced slightly differently – if Maeda chips the keeper late or if Engels balls sneaks inside the post, if Schloop’s rasping shot is an inch lower and dropped under the bar – we’d be having a very different conversation today.

And deep down, everyone in our media knows it.

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James Forrest has been the editor of The CelticBlog for 13 years. Prior to that, he was the editor of several digital magazines on subjects as diverse as Scottish music, true crime, politics and football. He ran the Scottish football site On Fields of Green and, during the independence referendum, the Scottish politics site Comment Isn't Free. He's the author of one novel, one book of short stories and one novella. He lives in Glasgow.

30 comments

  • Dan says:

    We were pish in the league cup final, won on penalties and we backslapped that we always find a way. Aberdeen won the cup against a side with vastly bigger resources. That deserves massive credit. Possession doesn’t win games. Our 80% possession got us an own goal, no more.

  • Johnny Green says:

    James, you know fine well that our biased media are over the moon whenever we lose, it has always been that way, and they will adopt whatever narrative suits their agenda after the event. Good teams historically all over Europe have always on occasion lost to inferior outfits, shit happens and it’s almost inevitable.

    Aberdeen rode their luck and got a somewhat jammy result, we lost, end of.

  • Wee Jock says:

    Totally agree, the SMSM are a disgrace but we knew that anyway. Scottish football is a disgrace in it’s entirety, from top to bottom, from the non governance of the SFA and SPFL, the corrupt match offials, the managers like thelin who play anti football, the price of watching this so called entertainment, the cutting of tickets to away fans and leaving stadiums empty, the failed academy models that raise kids hopes and destroy them as soon as they hit sixteen and the clubs need to pay them. Aberdeen deserved nothing from the final. Neither did we, but we know where our problems lie, we just need the power to sort them.

  • wotakuhn says:

    Morals? They don’t have them. Pity? I don’t have any for them.
    I never do nor never will buy any of their publications. Death to them all

    • Clachnacuddin and the Hoops says:

      A person of ma very own heart and thought process you are wotakhun !

  • Clachnacuddin and the Hoops says:

    As pish as their strategy was they have won it and we haven’t…

    That’s something Rodgers needs to own so it is…

    And their strategy was the same strategy that got us a valuable point v Atalanta in The Champions League…

    And one thing for sure…

    I certainly won’t and absolutely will NOT be listening to Clyde Superscoreboard tonight if it’s on that is…

    They will be utterly overjoyed at our misery – Which for me is still there today !

  • terry the tim says:

    Brendan will never change his system which to be honest has been very successful.
    Just think he could have tried something different on Saturday at half time to upset Aberdeens rigid set up.
    Play Idah and Maeda through the middle for example.
    In taking Khun and Idah off he took off two players who scored 40 goals between them this season.
    Yang, basically he is a diddy.

  • micmac says:

    Boring ,horrible non football approach from Aberdeen, not helped by our slow, unadventurous possession obsessed style of play, resulted in a borefest. Two own goals summed that game up.
    They would have been better starting with the penalties, it would have saved us two wasted hours in all our lives.

  • Pilgrim73 says:

    Spurs won the Europa league final with 22% possession. Finals are about moments and we didn’t capitalize on ours. The goal they scored should have been a mere consolation. WE had plenty of opportunities to win the game, the fact we didn’t is nothing to do with formations or tactics, the players failed to take the opportunities through a combination of poor decision making and execution. That can happen to any team, what we need are better players who will minimise the chances of this happening again.

  • Kevcelt59 says:

    Agree 100%. Although we’re no entitled tae win trophies, that yesterday, ye would expect and even condone, if it were a team like Ross C, or other decidedly lower team in a final against us. That lot tho, are supposed tae be arguably the 3rd biggest team in Scotland and they resort tae that shitbag, spoiler display. Fact is, In the end tho, in spite of the negativity, we still shouldve had the plan tae adapt and alter our game and dae better.

  • hans says:

    You rightly criticise the other mob for being arrogant and entitled. And then you write this?? Aberdeen had taken two recent hidings from us. What other way were they going to play?? The responsibility to break them down and win the game rested with us. We failed on the day. It happens. Get over it.

    • Kevcelt59 says:

      @ hans. When we beat them convincingly before, we had key players like Jota and hetate available. Jota was out for this and thanks tae them, they weakened our mid even further, by puttin our main, midfield craft player hetate out the game. Ah would say that evened it up a good bit. Ah always will give credit where its due, tho ah dont think that type of pish, negative, approach was necessary from them on Saturday, or deserves any big plaudits. It worked, good for them.

  • TonyB says:

    We were too slow and ponderous – hardly surprising since so much of the build up play . through plodder Scales – and gun shy when anywhere near goal.

    Aberdeen got their goal through a player willing to have a shot from outside the box, unlike Celtic, and I have no idea why our players are so timid in this regard.

    When a team floods its own box, we should be peppering it with shots rather than taking an extra touch.

    In offs, hand balls and goals past unsighted keepers are all strong possibilities in these circumstances.

    Decent strikers know this and teams profit accordingly.

    • Clachnacuddin and the Hoops says:

      Yep Tony – This trying to walk it into the net simply doesn’t always work and certainly didn’t on Saturday…

      It cost Rodgers and Cal-Mac their proud Hampden unbeaten records…

      There has to be a Plan B – But not with Rodgers… EVER…

      Sevco schooled Rodgers at Parkhead big time in March for sure…

      How ?

      Goal 1 – A HIGH corner ball (off the ground) into the box and the smallest cunt in The Sevco team Raskin has the freedom of the east end of Glasgow to score with a header…

      Goal 2 – A HIGH cross (off the ground again) into the box and Diomande wins it controls it and scores into the corner…

      Goal 3 – A HIGH punt up to our box by Butland the rickoshay falls to Igamane who scores the winner with aplomb…

      See the Sevco success Brendan – It came from HIGH FUCKIN BALLS to our box…

      But will ya ever learn – Probably not tragically –

      Sometimes one needs to swallow one’s pride and learn from others now and again…

      And yes – That includes Barry Fuckin Fergushun !!!

  • Gerry says:

    Stats will confirm that they won the cup and nothing else matters unfortunately.

    We were poor and didn’t change our approach to ensure that we wouldn’t be having these conversations..

    As some have said, we should be trying two strikers in more games, when teams are so compact and hard to break down.

    However, at the end of the day we move on. Our smsm will always be thoroughly delighted when Celtic lose any game, let alone a potential treble cup final . Nothing will ever change in that respect and the fact that Sevconians are on cloud nine, says it all.

    Celtic fans should always be concerned about ourselves, and how we can improve and progress every season.
    Saturday was an important one that got away via the lottery of penalties and the chance to put another trophy ahead of the Mordor select !

    Let the sycophantic media charlatans dress up the Dons win as much as they want…what else would you expect? They won the SC, and take the associated kudos that goes with that , regardless of the way it was achieved !

    Important we brush ourselves down, acknowledge our failings and get ready to go again when the real action begins!

    I’m sure our support will be ready for it then ! HH

  • Clachnacuddin and the Hoops says:

    The Celtic support will brush ourselves down and we have all acknowledged our failings…

    But will Mr. Brendan Rodgers ?

    I simply canny see it I’m afraid !

    • Gerry says:

      Time will indeed tell Clach…

      • woodyiom says:

        Gerry – there’s more chance of me scoring with Nicole Scherzinger than there is Brendan acknowledging his failings and/or adapting his tactics/formations both in game or from to game.

        He’s simply too egotistical to admit (even to himself) that teams have worked us out and that we are easy to prepare for because we play the same way week in week out with pretty much the same team – how many of us predicted our starting eleven on Saturday? Which means Jimmy Thelin did as well !!!!

        Hell will freeze over before Brendan moves away from his 4-3-3 formation and favourite players.

  • Wonderbet10 says:

    What credit do we deserve from playing from the back, with two centre halves and a goalie having more possession spending time on the ball than the entire midfield and attack of ours?
    They were hammered three times this season and found a way.
    The ibrox club had been constantly getting beaten and they found the way. Even they guy sacked by alloa got the better of our elite manager, at Celtic Park ffs.
    After Dortmund hiding we played against Atalanta the way like Aberdeen against us and we got praise and plaudits for learning the lesson and maturing..
    Football fans are strange, with double standards and lacking any common sense. We should focus on us, because we need to negotiate a play off and with so much money at stake they will watch all our games from this season ( European hiding, sevco games, SC final and others) and they will capitalise on our mistakes UNLESS our elite manager changes something.

    • Clachnacuddin and the Hoops says:

      Our ‘elite’ manager – Erm April Fools Day was 56 days ago Wonderbet10…

      The thing is he truly could be elite if he’d be less pig headed and have a Plan B,C,D,E,F

      Even a Plan B would be a start…

      I can’t argue with 12 trophies outta 14 – That’s magnificent indeed…

      But it might end out 13 outta 17 next season as quite simply teams have us sussed !

      • woodyiom says:

        12 outta 14 in Scotland (technically 11 outta 13 as the league wasn’t over when he moved to Leicester) in an era when our biggest rivals are absolutely honking!

        Lenny won his first 5 outta 5 second time round before imploding during the COVID season.

        Big Ange won 5 outta 6.

        The reality is that its not that difficult for us to win trophies currently given our massive financial superiority albeit as Saturday showed Cups are always a jeopardy. If Brendan was elite he wouldn’t be here. He’s a very good manager and clearly a superb man-manager as players love him BUT his flaws are significant and prevent him from being headhunted by yje elite teams.

  • Wonderbet10 says:

    Post scriptum:
    It’s all funny and nice to laugh at the Ibrox club. I really enjoy that, no matter what others will say.
    But more time is being devoted to them than our own club, both at videocelts, here and read celtic.
    Their takeovers, managers, transfers. When the hell are we going to focus on our development?

    • Clachnacuddin and the Hoops says:

      I still think it is very important to absolutely know your enemy in this rancid footballing country full of dark arts and filthy covert skullduggery Wonderbet…

      That we as Celtic supporters for decades were as asleep at the wheel as our custodians regarding this was utterly tragic and cost us (and other competitors) millions in prize money and more importantly silverware…

      I still don’t think we are paranoid enough I’m afraid !

  • Wonderbet10 says:

    Clach,
    I kinda know what you mean, but not to a full extent. I come from Poland, I fell in love with Celtic when Zurawski and especially Boruc played their trade in here. My first visit to Celtic Park was back in 2011 for the September 2:0 Inverness game. I have no tangible feeling what Celtic Fans suffered during the 90’s, cheating, EBT and so on. I can only guess.
    Yet, I don’t see any real growth opportunities when this stays in power. They are too complacent, they don’t respond quickly enough. The manager doesn’t have any flexibility, which is a killer not only in football, but in life in general. We need to adapt and quickly enough, it’s humiliating to not be able to break through a side which cost way less to assemble than the guy from Norwich who was replaced on 60th minute, with no contribution whatsoever (and other players’ service to him , actually).
    It’s embarrassing, isn’t it?

  • Cgreen123 says:

    It was a long time ago but I remember we used to play little triangles as we moved forward but whether it is laziness or tactics, no-one runs of the ball anymore and the only players usually open to receive a pass are the two centre backs.

    I blame the ridiculous “holding midfielder ” nonsense as it stops improvisation and flair. One man should not be dictating the play but the team should be alive and bouncing off of each other as the game progresses.

    Let everyone use their talents to the best of their ability and have confidence in them to make the right play.

    A holding midfielder allows for others to cop out.

  • mcg123 says:

    Look it’s cup football … Partick Thistle beating Jock Stein’s Celtic 4-1, Crystal Palace beating Man City… shit happens

  • briancavanagh says:

    James

    We lost because we were not imaginative enough. You can’t blame the press for Celtic giving them fresh copy by having no plan b precisely what you would expect of an ‘elite manager’ And anyway it is cup football. I am old enough to see Jock Stein, an actual elite manager lose the cup finals in 1970, one of which to Aberdeen. Stein made changes accordingly. Introduced more of the quality street kids and the rest was nine in a row. Will BR have the humility to recognise he needs to adapt?

  • Mr. Mojorisin says:

    Aberdeen played to their strengths and hoped Celtic had a bit of an off day. We can’t really argue with that. The same thing happened in Atalanta for Celtic who also had very little possession.

    And tbf Aberdeen had 2 golden chances to win it in extra time.

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