Celtic’s awful exit from the Champions league to Cluj has now been consigned to the history books and we even have the chance of revenge after today’s Europa League draw with pairs Celtic with Lazio, Rennes and Cluj. The Hoops 4-1 win last night in Stockholm certainly helped when it came to exorcising the ghosts of that painful defeat but it didn’t extinguish the nagging feelings of what might have been.
I’m not convinced AIK were any poorer than FC Cluj nor do I think the players played much better in the games against AIK than we did against Cluj it’s just we had those who could be selected in the right positions on the night.
That one night was a culmination of desperate tactical decisions and poor utilisation of available personnel, coupled with a neglected recruitment process coming home to roost.
Last night and last week the tactics and positioning were addressed. Neil Lennon and the players deserve enormous respect for that. We still await on Peter Lawwell delivering fully on his side of the bargain, with at least two players – one a left back – expected to arrive by Monday.
The sad thing is the players we did have were close to being good enough to reach the play-off of the Champions league at least. Slavia Prague against Celtic could simply have gone either way. It was a 50/50.
With a little more help from the board Neil Lennon could have had more choices to utilise especially in the full back options and the Callum McGregor at left back brain freeze would never have happened. Ifs buts and maybes of course but I’m certain with a more proactive signing policy we could have been in a Champions League draw. Slavia beat Cluj and ended up drawing Barcelona, Inter Milan and Dortmund. Tough or what? Celtic would have been a pot 3 team though.
A fine opportunity was lost and its loss was self-inflicted yet again. We’ve had to move on though the pangs of regret still linger.
We’ve now seen today’s Europa League draw and there’s plenty to look forward to there.Plus we also have three days left of a transfer window to add the finishing touches to the player recruitment to allow Neil Lennon to fight the good fight at both domestic and European level.
We will now have European football up to Christmas, to have a good chance at progressing beyond that we still need Peter Lawwell loosen those purse strings.
We have at last signed a right back in Moritz Bauer. Granted it appears on paper a cheap option but at the very least we’ve signed an international right back and although a loan it’s more a try before you buy with a reported £3million fee already agreed should we all get along.
We’ve also signed a good goalkeeper in Fraser Forster, once more it’s a loan deal and again it smacks of penny pinching but the positives are we know him, he knows us, he was at least a fine goalkeeper and is likely to be so again. I’d also have hope that should that deal work out the possibility of extending the loan or purchasing the player outright is a realistic possibility.
A quality left back remains the major outstanding requirement. If Cluj told the management team and recruitment staff anything it’s that only having Bolignoli in place a major weakness, the lad will need help. We all saw what effect being the only recognised left back did to Kieran Tierney’s body. We almost broke the kid. In fact we may have.
The fact we still await an arrival so close to the window closing is worrying. For it to close and the position not to be addressed it would be a dereliction of duty.
We’ve been linked of course, we’re always linked. Greg Taylor and Birger Meling appear to be the two the press are regularly reporting.
Meling as I’ve stated many times would be my own personal choice. We’ve had to wait on Rosenborg’s Champions League exit to have any chance of that happening. The Norwegian’s exit to Dinamo Zagreb was just the opportunity we needed to arise to pounce.
Meling’s contract expires in December 2020 that should impact on the fee we’d need to pay and give Rosenborg food for thought as to whether they cash in now or allow the player to wind down his deal. I do hope we are giving both parties something serious and credible to consider, but given I hoped we’d pay £5million plus for Robert Gumny at right back from Lech Poznan and we ended up with a Stoke City loanee I feel I should question my own sanity in believing Celtic are even enquiring. I still have hope however.
Greg Taylor at Kilmarnock is the other lauded option. At the start of the transfer window Nuremberg bid £500,000 for the Scotland international. Kilmarnock rejected that bid and the noises appeared that it was £1million at least it would take to secure his services.
Wanyama and Benkovic on loan with Taylor permanently would maybe be enough for me to partially forgive the board
— Jamie (@Jamie67_) August 30, 2019
It appears the Germans were put off by Killie’s valuation. It’s also been reported Sunderland have had another bid also rejected. Rumour has it the required fee is now £3million. Who’d have thought publicly depositing £25million in your bank account would bump the price up for your transfer targets Peter? Must have been a head scratcher that.
Is he worth £3million? Possibly not, but that’s the price quoted. I’m sure there is room for manoeuvre with Jack Hendry as bait amongst others, but the sad fact is we would probably have got the lad for £1million and change two months ago had we been a little more proactive in our transfer strategy. How Peter Lawwell gets a reputation as a great negotiator is beyond me at times. Now we have a seller who knows we’re nigh on desperate and a transfer window closing fast.
One way or another we need a left sided full back. Anyone else think there a Man City loanee somewhere whose phone will be ringing this weekend? ‘Hi Son its Dad, I need a favour’.
The 2019/20 #UEL group stage draw! ????
Which games are you excited for?#UELdraw pic.twitter.com/aZkjcfj4lD
— UEFA Europa League (@EuropaLeague) August 30, 2019
Ideally I’d also think Lennon would need a Centre half or a defensive midfielder (Victor Wanyama anyone? His move to Club Brugge has been agreed between the clubs but the player has so far stalled, leading to perhaps some far fetched speculation of a Celtic return) to let Brown and McGregor to take it in turns to rest a little. Nir Bitton can play both positions but I do think his skills would be better utilised as cover for Scott Brown in midfield. Personally I’d prefer another centre half and I’d also like it to be Filip Benkovic. Go on Peter surprise me. I know, dreaming again.
Taylor and wanyama?
— Celtic Underground (@celticrumours) August 30, 2019
Neil Lennon has done well since the Cluj debacle and also before it. If you were to somehow wipe that aberration from your mind we’d be a side brimming with confidence, scoring goals for fun and with a real swashbuckling arrogance that you’d say proudly is playing the Celtic way, before heading to Ibrox to tear them a new one.
Neil Lennon requires more help to allow players to be rested. Hopefully from it we can bed in a settled back four with enough cover to allow the necessary rotation. Once the defence settles with less square pegs in round holes the conceding of goals will reduce markedly. To do that these extra bodies are absolutely essential.
We’ve blown the Champions League. It’s gone. It’s time we learned our lessons. We have an exciting Europa League group and face a challenge for our three trophies.
As John Greenleaf Whittier wrote. ‘For all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these, ‘it might have been’…
Better late than never Mr Lawwell. It is time to back your man.
Niall J
Also on The Celtic Star…
Celtic drawn against Lazio, Rennes and a revenge mission with Cluj in Europa League…see HERE.
Poker Update – Pistol missed the match, ‘No Chance’ of Odsonne sale, Taylor in Time for Sunday?…see HERE.
Trouble in Stockholm – ‘Clear many Hammarby fans were in the Celtic sections,’ Celtic spokesperson…see HERE.
Sandman’s Definitive Ratings – Celtic at IKEA HQ, The Flipside of the Cluj Coin…see HERE.
Europa League Completed Pots – teams we’d like Celtic to play and sides we’d like to avoid…see HERE.
Lennon deserves praise for the way Celtic dealt with AIK Stockholm reckons David Potter…see HERE.
AIK 1 Celtic 4 – Crowd Trouble on the Day We Win Away…see HERE.
