Celtic FC Team Talk/Gossip/Rumours Thread [warning post #417, 418]

kryogen

according to sky sports hes gone

lennon apparently asked to take over till end of season

Vanbis

blindpilot wrote: »

If Lennon stays on until the end of the season and does well he'd have as much a chance as anyone. Lamberts name will be around too. Hard to know really. Its all a bit of a mess there now.

Celtic have had some terrible results of late but sacking Mowbray after just half season and letting him in bring in so many new players i think is madness. We all know Celtic don't have the money to throw around so whoever comes in will have a small budget to begin with and probably told they have to work with the current squad of players. The only thing that will change is the style of play.

Brewster

bit of a bogey wrote: »

I completely agree with everything you say Brewster. It all stops on the managers head. Its not as if rangers are filled with far superior players.

It was up to Mowbray to bring in the right players with the proper leadership skills as I feel thats what lets us down. Didnt see the game last night but to date there seems to a complete lack of belief in their own ability. That comes from the manager.

Not happy at all with the players that were let go and the players who were brought in. I would have thought he did but when Mowbray took the job, I dont think he quite realised the amount of pressure at such a club as in you have to perform every week. Every team is out to beat you. Typical thinking by bringing in Fortune. An average player in the premiership so thinks he'll be magnificent in the spl. It doesnt work like that tony! People who dont watch the spl on a regular basis dont seem to understand that. I dont know why Mobray didnt know this!

Its a difficult job to find the right sort of players on a shoestring budget. I was happy with Fox and rasmussen might be a find but we havent that sort of money to be splashing around on $h*te players like Fortune! Celtic fans cannot continue to blame the board. We've spent money whilst rangers havent spent a bean!

Also feel getting a great player like robbie keane is going to be a waste in a season thats been abysmal. So disapponting!

I call it as I see it. My views are not always popular on here, in fact quite the opposite, but everything I have been saying has come home to roost.

Robbie Keane has not been a good signing to be honest, he won't be around next season and he is preventing the likes of Rasmussen developing. Celtic had to go for him, no question in the vain hopes of clawing league back, but now he is a preventing any sort of team developing for next season? So whats point?

Vanbis

Brewster wrote: »

Robbie Keane has not been a good signing to be honest, he won't be around next season and he is preventing the likes of Rasmussen developing. Celtic had to go for him, no question in the vain hopes of clawing league back, but now he is a preventing any sort of team developing for next season? So whats point?

Good point and its not as if Ireland are going to the World cup and he needed games. I think Keane was more a desmond signing then Mowbray.

Dempsey

Vanbis wrote: »

Good point and its not as if Ireland are going to the World cup and he needed games. I think Keane was more a desmond signing then Mowbray.

It was made pretty clear in public that Lawwell wanted to sign Keane regardless of the manager for the past few windows

cruiserweight

BBC confirm Mowbary gone

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/celtic/8586352.stm

Brewster

Vanbis wrote: »

Good point and its not as if Ireland are going to the World cup and he needed games. I think Keane was more a desmond signing then Mowbray.

Keane's Celtic career was over before it even began losing at Kilmarnock. He is a great player who has scored goals for fun in Scotland as everyone knew he would, I hope he gets a cup medal for his efforts. Its the least he deserves.

celticbest

cruiserweight wrote: »

BBC confirm Mowbary gone

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/c/celtic/8586352.stm

I have to say I'm sad to hear Tony is gone (on a personal level) , I know he had to go but I just wish the results could have gone with him and we were still challenging for the League.

I know he gave everything to Celtic and I hope he doesn't have any bad feeling towards Celtic & that the fans also remember that he did not intentionally go out to get the results which we got.

I also hope that on some occasions in the future he will come back to Parkhead to watch some matches and that he receives a good reception if he does.

Dempsey

Sad day but it was coming and the result last night was just too much to give him a vote of confidence

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/c/celtic/8586377.stm

Maybe it isn't a league for trying to force the game and be expansive

It was this comment that made me want him sacked.

His vision was all about having an expansive game in the SPL, only now he has a maybe?? Only now he realises why MON and Strachan played the styles they did! Also it shows that he didnt factor in the standard of away pitches which wouldnt suit his vision.

That 'maybe' showed that he was out of his depth and out of it for quite some time before last night.

mike65

Lennon in til end of season.

Dempsey

mike65 wrote: »

Lennon in til end of season.

No pressure to get the right manager then! :pac:

Always felt that the board had to rush the process near the end because of the UCL qualifiers coming up.

Pompey Magnus

Just looking at the odds being offered on potential managers for next season, Lennon is the current favorite followed by Paul Lambert, Mark Hughes and Willie McStay.

I can't see Hughes taking it, too big a risk for him to ruin all the good groundwork he has built up in his career and I expect he is looking to return straight to the premiership. Lambert has done very well with Norwich this season and seems to stand out as being the most realistic appointment who may achieve something.

That said we will see how Lennon does until the end of the season but I don't have high hopes for him unfortunately.

Dempsey

Lennon might get the results whilst the league is over but I have massive reservations whether he can do the job long term, he'd need an experienced old hand as an assistant to help him. Celtic is not a job where you can learn how to manage, you either have the tools to do the job coming in (MON & GS) or you sink to the bottom (Mowbray)

Lambert says he will never take the Celtic job, said it earlier this season and he was pretty definite in what he said.

Mark Hughes would get a thumbs up from me but I think he'd need a bedding in period and people would get very nervous that he'd be another Mowbray and he'd need to have the stones to deal with that pressure.

Willie McStay, I like the man, knows his stuff but I dont think he could handle the pressure.

I actually cant wait to see Lennon in the dugout, its going to be interesting to see what he does.

Eirebear

If nothing else, with Lennon in charge the next Old Firm game suddenly gets a lot more interesting!

5ForKeeps

Paul Lambert would be in with a shout! After the way he has turned around Norwich is nothing short of managerial brilliance.

Goldcupfav

Really think Mick McCarthy would be the perfect man for this job! Doubt he would leave Wolves unless they get relegated which looks like it aint going to happen this season!!

Dempsey

5ForKeeps wrote: »

Paul Lambert would be in with a shout! After the way he has turned around Norwich is nothing short of managerial brilliance.

Already said this but

http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/football/spl/celtic/2010/03/03/former-celtic-skipper-paul-lambert-insists-i-d-never-want-to-manage-hoops-86908-22081893/

I had eight terrific years at Celtic but there comes a time when you have to cut your ties.

I still look for Celtic's result and Seville will always remain the biggest disappointment in my football career. But the idea of coming back doesn't appeal to me

3rd March 2010

Pompey Magnus

45 mins into Lennon's first match, Celtic lead 1-0 but they look no different to how they were under Mowbray. They have been rushing for a goal from the kick off and won't just take their time and control the ball for a little while. Instead they keep Kilmarnock stuck in their own box forcing Celtic to resort to long shots.

The only thing separating the teams was a bit of brilliant control from Keane. I'm not going to jump to conclusions but I'm somewhat disappointed that Lennon hasn't tried to get rid of the frantic attacking mentality that failed so miserably under Mowbray. Celtic just aren't good enough for that kind of play and it is far too easy to defend against.

Coillte_Bhoy

Pompey Magnus wrote: »

45 mins into Lennon's first match, Celtic lead 1-0 but they look no different to how they were under Mowbray. They have been rushing for a goal from the kick off and won't just take their time and control the ball for a little while. Instead they keep Kilmarnock stuck in their own box forcing Celtic to resort to long shots.

The only thing separating the teams was a bit of brilliant control from Keane. I'm not going to jump to conclusions but I'm somewhat disappointed that Lennon hasn't tried to get rid of the frantic attacking mentality that failed so miserably under Mowbray. Celtic just aren't good enough for that kind of play and it is far too easy to defend against.

Jaysus, will you give him a chance.

kryogen

Time for a change i think

Lennon is clearly not the man to lead the team forward

Pompey Magnus

Coillte_Bhoy wrote: »

Jaysus, will you give him a chance.

I will give him a chance, but I had hoped he would start with a clean slate and stamp his own style on the team from the start to give the fans some confidence in thinking he deserves a chance for the long run. If he intends on continuing Mowbray's style then he isn't going to succeed, its as simple as that.

Celtic won today alright, but if it weren't for some Keane brilliance (a luxury they won't have for much longer) and a bit of good fortune for a change they could easily have dropped points again today despite being massively dominant.

But we'll see how the run in goes, it's early days for him yet.

Dempsey

You actually expected him to change the system 3 days after getting the job? Crazy expectation imo

I think he'll just continue to tweak gradually towards what he wants, today was all about getting the players performing to an acceptable standard and 3 points and they did.

Clean sheet would have been a nice bonus, cruel deflection but I think Boruc was half asleep tbh

Fortune & Samaras arent good enough tbh

Pompey Magnus

Dempsey wrote: »

You actually expected him to change the system 3 days after getting the job? Crazy expectation imo

These are trained, highly paid professionals. It is not too much to ask to expect them to be able to understand a managers instructions to play possession football for a while and take control of the game. I wasn't expecting him to go 4-5-1 or anything extreme like that, but I was hoping that he would keep the ball in the midfield and the Celtic half for a bit longer and allow the game open up, instead what we had was Samaras running like a headless chicken at the Killie defence and losing the ball or Lee Naylor wasting a good attack by hitting the ball a mile over from outside the box after only 20 mins. On his return to Rangers after Paul Le Guen's time in charge, Walter Smith was only back in Rangers 3 days before his first game which was against Dundee Utd, he made immediate and significant changes to the team which had been in disarray and they won 5-0, so it can be done if the manager is good enough.

Before Keane scored first the team looked like the game was almost over and they were in dire need of a goal immediately. There is nothing unreasonable in expecting a manager to instruct these guys differently 2 hours before a game, never mind 3 days.

Lennon does not have the luxury of time to tweak gradually, he has 8 or 9 games left to impress the Celtic fans and the board and show that things will be different under him, he got a result today but that was nothing down to him, it was due to some Robbie Keane individual brilliance, without which I can easily imagine the game being another 2 dropped points.

Anyway we will see how the away game to Hibs will go, that will be Lennon's first real test to see if he deserves a chance for next season. I just don't believe the system he inherited from Mowbray is anywhere near strong enough to allow him to be cautious and only change it gradually as I can see it causing more points to be dropped, and the more he drops, the less likely he will be to get the job full time.

Dempsey

Walter Smith was a experienced manager, this is Lennons first appointment after he completed his badges, are you trying to criticise him because he didnt match Smith's comeback match??

I think he can tweak the tactics gradually and win all the matches. He doesnt have to make massive changes to get a more clinical performance. MAF had a shocking game and if he put away his chances, you wouldnt be criticising the performance or the tactics now. You blaming Lennon for MAF missing sitters?

The performance today was down to Lennon because he gave them a dressing down when he got the job, he told them that the level of performances from them was unacceptable. To say it was nothing to do with him or Mjallby is laughable and sensationalist punditry I'd expect to hear from Eamon Dunphy tbh

Pompey Magnus

Dempsey wrote: »

Walter Smith was a experienced manager, this is Lennons first appointment after he completed his badges, are you trying to criticise him because he didnt match Smith's comeback match??

No, what I am criticising was his lack of bravery. He had nothing to lose in a dramatic change in tactics and nothing to gain in doing what he did by sticking with the Mowbray tactics. The performance today was nothing that Mowbray couldn't have done, in fact had he kept the job I expect we would have gotten a similar result after a similar performance. It was pretty much business as normal. Celtic get 20+ chances, score 3, Kilmarnock get 2 chances, score 1 and hit the crossbar with the other.

Lennon will not keep the job if he doesn't take risks, that is the simple fact of the matter. The squad WILL drop more points if they play like they did today, especially in away games.

I think he can tweak the tactics gradually and win all the matches. He doesnt have to make massive changes to get a more clinical performance. MAF had a shocking game and if he put away his chances, you wouldnt be criticising the performance or the tactics now. You blaming Lennon for MAF missing sitters?

This is a silly argument, if MAF put away his chances throughout the whole season Mowbray would still be in a job. You can't fault my argument by saying MAF might have scored, even though he didn't. I'm not blaming Lennon for the missed chances, I am disappointed that he didn't recognise the blatant problem that has plagued Celtic for the entire season, too many rushed attacks leading to the opposition defending deep and Celtic being forced into long shots and an inability to make decisive, defense splitting passes.

The performance today was down to Lennon because he gave them a dressing down when he got the job, he told them that the level of performances from them was unacceptable. To say it was nothing to do with him or Mjallby is laughable and sensationalist punditry I'd expect to hear from Eamon Dunphy tbh

In what way was the performance today ANY different to the majority of the games Mowbray was in charge??? I watched almost the entire game and it looked just like any other game I saw this season where Celtic dominate yet only manage to score a small fraction of the opportunities they created. So what did you see today that identified the positive role Lennon played in the win?

As I said though, the Hibs game away will be a big test for Lennon. Perhaps he can prove me wrong and pull off the Mowbray tactics better than Mowbray himself could, I doubt it though and so I can easily foresee dropped points if he doesn't make some brave decisions between now and then.

Dempsey

There was certainly far more effort from Celtic players, McGeady actually had end product, Scott Brown wasnt just clattering into other players he demonstrated some intelligence. The team looked fired up, thats down to Lennon and Mjallby, you claiming he had no part in the improved performance today is just wrong.

kryogen

Getting humiliated by St. Mirren would have provided some kick up the arse for the players regardless of the manager imo, they had to be fired up for the next game

Dempsey

kryogen wrote: »

Getting humiliated by St. Mirren would have provided some kick up the arse for the players regardless of the manager imo, they had to be fired up for the next game

Then why did they sack Mowbray, he would have gotten this result with ease :pac:

kryogen

Dempsey wrote: »

Then why did they sack Mowbray, he would have gotten this result with ease :pac:

i disagreed with the sacking of Mowbray so your asking the wrong man

if you think there was not going to be some sort of reaction from the players (and lets face it, it wasnt a vintage performance) after the humiliation then i dont know what to tell you

with or without Lennon, or Mowbray they had a point to prove earlier

Dempsey

kryogen wrote: »

i disagreed with the sacking of Mowbray so your asking the wrong man

if you think there was not going to be some sort of reaction from the players (and lets face it, it wasnt a vintage performance) after the humiliation then i dont know what to tell you

with or without Lennon, or Mowbray they had a point to prove earlier

If 10 points behind with a match in hand wasnt motivation enough going into a match against St. Mirren then he deserved the sack for poor man management and the players deserved their dressing down (i hope they all were fined) the next day for looking like they couldnt give a **** about winning matches.

There was a reaction from the players but to say that Lennon, Mjallby, etc didnt have a bearing on their thinking is just wrong. I'm not saying it was all Lennon but he's certainly has been a significant factor.

kryogen

and im not saying he had nothing to do with it, apologies if it came across that way

just i wouldnt be singing his praises unduly yet, you had to expect a reaction is all

you have a point re the man management, but this hasnt been a factor before for him

Dempsey

kryogen wrote: »

and im not saying he had nothing to do with it, apologies if it came across that way

just i wouldnt be singing his praises unduly yet, you had to expect a reaction is all

you have a point re the man management, but this hasnt been a factor before for him

I'm not expecting a flawless managerial performance from Lennon/Mjallby. Its unrealistic tbh, but if he wins all his matches then I would give him the job because for an inexperienced managerial pairing to achieve that would be sensational imo

kryogen

id give him the job because he will at least get given time by the supporters, he knows the club inside out and he would be well able to put his foot up a players ass if he is not playing to his best, but tactically he may falter, we will see sure

i cant see a high profile proven manager taking the job anyway so Lennon isnt a bad alternative, though tbh, he was part of the Mowbray management team so its hard to say he had no input on what was happening this season

Dempsey

kryogen wrote: »

id give him the job because he will at least get given time by the supporters, he knows the club inside out and he would be well able to put his foot up a players ass if he is not playing to his best, but tactically he may falter, we will see sure

i cant see a high profile proven manager taking the job anyway so Lennon isnt a bad alternative, though tbh, he was part of the Mowbray management team so its hard to say he had no input on what was happening this season

He was the reserve team manager and did you not hear the stories?

Lennon was marginalized as far as input into the 1st team was concerned to the point where he wasnt allowed on the team bus. Apparently Peter Grant was jealous of the rapport he had with the players and Tony had to play politician and outcast Lennon because Grant was on 'his team'.

Lennon denied any problems in public but I doubt he wanted the circus in town on his first day.

1967

Have to say i am surprised that Neil Lennon wants the job considering he has battled with depression for years.

A Dub in Glasgo

I would imagine that Celtic team manager would drive you insane with all the expectation and hull-a-ballo involved, TM certainly looked uncomortable with it so I am surprised with Lennon as well

PauloMN

1967 wrote: »

Have to say i am surprised that Neil Lennon wants the job considering he has battled with depression for years.

Why?

Not saying that he'd be the ideal choice for the job in my view, but I'd imagine that having a long-term focus would be a very positive thing for someone with depression. One thing is for sure - he knows what life in Glasgow is like being a Taig.

Personally I'd be more worried about him taking the job given his financial situation wrt his property company and all the legal stuff going on there and that will be going on for a while to come yet. *

* Disclaimer: Could all be bollocks though, was in a red top.

bamboozle

if Lennon is successful between now and season end then i'd have no problem seeing him getting the job full time as long as someone experienced in put in place as his number 2 with Mjallby dropping down to first team coach.
For what its worth it is comforting to see the first thing Lennon do upon appointment was to bring in a former defender in Mjallby, then again the dogs in the street knew that Celtic's problem for the last few seasons has been a porous defence.
If the Lennon experiment failed i'd go with
Hughes,
Curbishly
Coppell

or any experienced coach capable of getting a defence to gel!

cruiserweight

Rangers one down early on against St Johnstone, Sheridan scored

cruiserweight

Rangers two down now :eek: 12 minutes gone

Eirebear

2-0 now after 12 minutes...wicked deflection

Eirebear

2.1 now Papac.

cruiserweight

2-1 now, 16 minutes gone. Good weather must be bringing out the attacking football

Dempsey

Rangers to do a comeback tbh

cruiserweight

Dempsey wrote: »

Rangers to do a comeback tbh

Well 3-1 to St Johnstone now

Eirebear

Rangers FC

Proving Tony Mowbray wrong, even in defeat!

Dempsey

cruiserweight wrote: »

Well 3-1 to St Johnstone now

Either they comeback and prove my punditry to be correct or they loose and I'm a happy Celtic supporter!

I win either way! :pac:

cruiserweight

St Johnstone score again 4-1. Not watching the game, listening to it on BBC while watching Bayern vs United, but the commentators are complaining about Lafferty diving and using his elbows etc.

Blackjack

cruiserweight wrote: »

St Johnstone score again 4-1. Not watching the game, listening to it on BBC while watching Bayern vs United, but the commentators are complaining about Lafferty diving and using his elbows etc.

Now he wouldn't do a thing like that, would he?.

Lafferty is a pure numpty.