GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - SEPTEMBER 17: Callum McGregor of Celtic is seen at full time during the UEFA Europa League 2026/27 League Phase MD1 match between Celtic FC and Ferencvarosi TC at Celtic Park on September 17, 2026 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by Ian MacNicol/Getty Images)
I simply cannot believe we have watched that happen again. Celtic, what have you done? Another dreadful performance, another evening watching my beloved club and asking myself: what the hell is happening to us?
Beaten 3–1 by Ferencvaros at Celtic Park. After what happened at Ibrox, this was supposed to be the response. Instead, we are sitting here with even more questions.
I don’t want this to become another match report, because the scoreline is only part of what worries me. The bigger concern is how familiar the problems have become. The midfield, the defensive organisation, the distances between players: we keep finding ourselves discussing the same weaknesses.
We saw them against LASK. We saw them at Ibrox. Now we have seen them against Ferencvaros. How many warnings do Celtic need?
My dear Celtic, why are you allowing opponents to read you like an open book? They can see where to put us under pressure, where the spaces will appear and how to make us uncomfortable. Where is the evidence that we are learning to stop them?
I don’t expect Celtic to win every match and I know European football can be brutal, and I know opponents can have good nights. But I do expect the champions of Scotland to have a plan that makes life difficult for the team facing us.
It makes me think of Jamie Fraser in my beloved Outlander, and Black Jack Randall’s determination to break him. Jamie’s strength and pride are so much a part of who he is that watching his enemy discover his vulnerabilities is painful. You keep hoping he will find a way to resist, because you cannot bear to see someone you have come to love brought so low.
Obviously, I am talking about the feeling of watching that happen, rather than comparing his suffering with a football defeat. But that helplessness is familiar right now. Our opponents seem to know exactly where Celtic are vulnerable, and every time they exploit it, a little more of our confidence disappears.
The green and white Lion of Celtic Park looks wounded. I want to see him find his strength again, and I want our rivals to have a reason to fear him.
Right now, we look far too easy to unsettle. That frightens me, because I love this club and I want to believe that the people responsible know how to put things right.
Instead, I feel we are anchorless. I watch the players and wonder whether they are as uncertain as we are. When the opposition takes control, who is supposed to change the game? Where is the support for the player under pressure? Why does one problem seem to spread through the whole team?
I am a Polish girl who loves football, not a professional coach. But even my brain can recognise when a system doesn’t make sense. Right now, Celtic’s football has far too many missing parts.
The midfield does not connect properly with the players around it. The defence is left exposed, and when possession changes hands, we look vulnerable. Whatever the intended formation, it is not consistently giving us the balance we need.
And when the team becomes disconnected, individual players are left trying to solve problems that require a collective answer.
That is also how I look at the new signings. Where was the fresh energy we were so excited about? How are we helping those players make a difference?
I am not asking those questions to write anybody off. Some are still finding their feet, learning their teammates’ movements and adjusting to the demands of Celtic. They deserve patience. But they also deserve clear instructions and a team structure that gives them a chance to succeed.
We cannot keep asking players to settle into something that looks unsettled itself. There has to be coaching, adaptation and evidence of improvement. Otherwise, what exactly are we waiting for?
That is why I want the coaching staff to examine these performances honestly. Where does the midfield lose its shape? Why is the defence left dealing with so much space? Are players being asked to do things that do not suit them? And when something is clearly going wrong, why are we not correcting it?
Find the bloody problem and fix it. Because Sunday is coming, and it is the Ibrox mob again.
After what happened last weekend, that was already an enormous test. Now it carries the weight of another defeat and another performance that has shaken our confidence. Celtic cannot walk into it with nothing more than a promise to try harder.
Whether the answer involves a different formation, different personnel or clearer roles, the changes have to make sense. I want to see a midfield that can contest the game without leaving the defence stranded. I want the players to know when to press, when to hold their positions and where their teammates will be when they receive the ball.
Give us something we can recognise as preparation. Give us a reason to believe those lessons have actually been learned.
The supporters will bring their passion. We always do. But we cannot organise the team from the stands, close the gaps ourselves or supply the tactical answers. That responsibility belongs to the people entrusted with this club.
And there is too much at stake to keep getting it wrong. We are pursuing a sixth consecutive league title. We cannot sleepwalk through the season while opponents become increasingly confident that they know how to hurt us.
I refuse to believe this is the best these players can produce. I have seen enough quality to want more from them, and enough of the problems to know that simply insisting they are good players will not solve anything.
I am angry and disappointed. Of course I am. But I am still here, still loving Celtic and still hoping we will see the response this team owes itself and its supporters.
Hope does not mean pretending everything is fine. It means believing improvement is possible and expecting the club to work towards it.
I have to give it a three out of ten for the performance, two out of ten for the tactical execution, and a very clear instruction at the bottom of the page: corrections required before Sunday. There are no marks for repeating the same mistakes.
I don’t want to watch players moving hesitantly around the pitch, unsure of themselves and one another. I want to see the Boys in green and white playing with purpose, supporting each other and giving the opposition something to worry about.
So, Celtic, wake up. Learn. Change what needs changing, and give us a team ready to fight for that result. Sunday is another chance. This time, I want the green and white Lion of Celtic Park to roar. If not, I fear the worst for the season ahead.
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Not sure O’Neill is any sort of coach. Reminds me of Clough or Ronnie Moran at Liverpool – just go out and do it. Hence Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton etc dont need coaching, Sign good players and they will work it out. Trouble is, we did’nt sign good players, or at least, not good enough.
MON said when he managed Leicester, Emil Heskey used to come on and score and kept him in a job and now Larsson is doing it at Celtic.
So he has form in leaving it late.
It was also said he only turned up at training to pick the team. I think man management is his “thang”.
The only thing that can save us is the crowd groaning at the passing back and sideways.
With respect Paulina, the teacher marking papers analogy is wearing a bit thin. The polish girl references are not far behind. Please find a different persona – someone who loves and writes about Celtic is enough. You’ll be fine.
it’s f**king exponentially better than the ginger witch chat but, agreed, there need not be any requirement for her to adopt a persona as ‘passionate Celtic fan’ is more than good enough, and she is that for sure.