This is down to Martin O'Neil and Sean Maloney, pathetic coaching, tactics and substitutions, to squander a 4-0 lead half way through the tie. Unbelievable actually, and there is no coming back from this, for this pair of muppets.
I think the real problem was the management went 4-2-3-1 in game where we knew we would have our backs to the wall in trying to preserve our 3-0 lead, and out midfield was light to say the least.
Would it not have made more sense to have packed the midfield and gone 3-5-2 with Liam Scales at left back for his height and heading ability. The poor cunt in goal had 40 shots reined in at him, because the midfield was over run as usual, and the back four had no screening and protection.
We had a four nil lead with only sixty minutes to go, and O'Neil and Maloney bring on the want away Hatate who then proceeded to give away a needless penalty. I'm not blaming the board for this one in any way, shape or fashion, O'Neil and Maloney panicked and conspired to throw the tie away, with their crazy substitutions and tactics.
Losing Bernado and Engels did not make any material difference I think, because the same result would arguably have still occurred, because of O'Neil and Maloney's gross mismanagement of the game.
I am not going to be persuaded otherwise. I'm still effin fuming with the pair of them.
This is a Celtic Board that shelled out the best part of £23M in signing Hassan, Hogh and Duran,
to augment the squad. As Simon Jordan alluded to yesterday, to lose a 4-0 lead with only an hour to go against Lask was disgraceful.
It was a master class in gross mismanagement, lack of tactical nous, and the insane use of substitutes. This is a sackable offence for O'Neil and Maloney.
£6M World Cup winger Hassan, sat getting splinters on his ass on the bench, and not even used by O'Neil and Maloney. Unforgiveable in my eyes.
Boaz, 17 players left the club at the end of last season. We signed 4 players. There is no squad depth and once again the board held up transfers in the hope that Champions League money would pay for it, so they didn't need to dip into their bank account. They have actually made a profit on the transfer dealings this summer of around £8m. All of that, plays a huge part in what happens on the pitch before a ball is kicked in anger. Theres also the fact they sold two of our key players before the tie started.
The players and management staff are responsible for the defeat, the lack of mentality, the clear lack of fitness, the team selected and the substitutions made, and how they conceded those goals. But if the squad was strengthened and better prepared then do you think Tuesday night would have happened? I don't think such a capitulation would have occurred.
It's going to be a difficult few days Andy and lots of finger pointing however, this is a collective failure across every department of the football club. I've stated previously - and the evidence is stark - that this Board has no ambition whatsoever: the threedbare squad, penny pinching in the transfer market, I could go on. Regardless of that dimension, the total collapse and lack of belief on the park from a position of 4 up with an hour of the tie to play is alarming and disheartening - not a good look for the coaching staff or the players. I have nothing but respect for MoN and for what he has achieved for our football club but his time to call it a day was after the Cup final - health and family first. His appointment was the easy option for this Board as they know they have nothing to offer and the appointment would appease the support and offer them protection. Having accepted the challenge, for my part I've found it astonishing that MoN did not make strengthening the midfield, adding physicality to the spine of the team a priority. As I say collective failure and the fallout - financially and with the prospect of a B list transfers and agent driven loan deals - will be acute and will shape the season ahead.
Just re read your piece Andy, you think the winning goal was a "rocket"??? IMO those kind of goals are scored on local pitches across the country every weekend, Sinisalo went down in stages and still couldn't get to the daisy cutter.
MON cannot be blamed for injuries but his tactics and personnel on the field is down to him FFS!!!
A week ago we were there so selling Engels was covered, we were about to spend an unprecedented MORE millions on what we thought was a strong squad. How wrong we all were, there isn't one player or area who escapes blame for that pile a dug shit.
Sinisalo let those long range daisy cutters past him too easily, our whole defence just collapsed in full view, the midfield........wow! Where do we start? After such a start to the season Nygren rolled back 12 months, never put a foot right, schoolboy passback was fckn unbelievable and caused the negative mindset which took over from there. Baur was a headless chicken and looked too easily brushed aside, McGregor tried his best but his terrible passing and panicking was so out of character, Hatate I hoped would give us one last hurrah, nope his head was already elsewhere, anywhere but Celtic, MacCowan! Couldn't do anything right, every touch was wrong he was the worst player on the pitch.
Our forward line, Yang setting up the goal was the only thing he did right, the rest of the 70 mins he was on was more dog shit, then we come to Tounekti, he couldn't get past any defender in a Ferrari, EVERY time he passed was backwards after shitting himself when up against a defender. The front two went from heroes to zeros in less than a week, why weren't Hussan and/or Osmand introduced???
I thought our board had woken up after spending £30m+ already when in the past that kind of cash wouldve been hoarded, I honestly dont know where we go from here, this result, not the dire performance, will haunt us for years, are MON's tactics outdated? If they are why didn't Maloney pipe up and say so? Sky sport will have a field day, Talksport will have a field day, BBC Scotland will have a field day and we're supposed to sympathise with MacCowan having to delete his Instagram page.
Almaty was awful in its own way, but losing a 4 goal lead, to a decent team TBF, is totally and utterly unforgivable.
This is down to Martin O'Neil and Sean Maloney, pathetic coaching, tactics and substitutions, to squander a 4-0 lead half way through the tie. Unbelievable actually, and there is no coming back from this, for this pair of muppets.
Andy
I think the real problem was the management went 4-2-3-1 in game where we knew we would have our backs to the wall in trying to preserve our 3-0 lead, and out midfield was light to say the least.
Would it not have made more sense to have packed the midfield and gone 3-5-2 with Liam Scales at left back for his height and heading ability. The poor cunt in goal had 40 shots reined in at him, because the midfield was over run as usual, and the back four had no screening and protection.
We had a four nil lead with only sixty minutes to go, and O'Neil and Maloney bring on the want away Hatate who then proceeded to give away a needless penalty. I'm not blaming the board for this one in any way, shape or fashion, O'Neil and Maloney panicked and conspired to throw the tie away, with their crazy substitutions and tactics.
Losing Bernado and Engels did not make any material difference I think, because the same result would arguably have still occurred, because of O'Neil and Maloney's gross mismanagement of the game.
I am not going to be persuaded otherwise. I'm still effin fuming with the pair of them.
Easy and lazy to lay the blame at the Board.
This is a Celtic Board that shelled out the best part of £23M in signing Hassan, Hogh and Duran,
to augment the squad. As Simon Jordan alluded to yesterday, to lose a 4-0 lead with only an hour to go against Lask was disgraceful.
It was a master class in gross mismanagement, lack of tactical nous, and the insane use of substitutes. This is a sackable offence for O'Neil and Maloney.
£6M World Cup winger Hassan, sat getting splinters on his ass on the bench, and not even used by O'Neil and Maloney. Unforgiveable in my eyes.
No Excuses.
Boaz, 17 players left the club at the end of last season. We signed 4 players. There is no squad depth and once again the board held up transfers in the hope that Champions League money would pay for it, so they didn't need to dip into their bank account. They have actually made a profit on the transfer dealings this summer of around £8m. All of that, plays a huge part in what happens on the pitch before a ball is kicked in anger. Theres also the fact they sold two of our key players before the tie started.
The players and management staff are responsible for the defeat, the lack of mentality, the clear lack of fitness, the team selected and the substitutions made, and how they conceded those goals. But if the squad was strengthened and better prepared then do you think Tuesday night would have happened? I don't think such a capitulation would have occurred.
It's going to be a difficult few days Andy and lots of finger pointing however, this is a collective failure across every department of the football club. I've stated previously - and the evidence is stark - that this Board has no ambition whatsoever: the threedbare squad, penny pinching in the transfer market, I could go on. Regardless of that dimension, the total collapse and lack of belief on the park from a position of 4 up with an hour of the tie to play is alarming and disheartening - not a good look for the coaching staff or the players. I have nothing but respect for MoN and for what he has achieved for our football club but his time to call it a day was after the Cup final - health and family first. His appointment was the easy option for this Board as they know they have nothing to offer and the appointment would appease the support and offer them protection. Having accepted the challenge, for my part I've found it astonishing that MoN did not make strengthening the midfield, adding physicality to the spine of the team a priority. As I say collective failure and the fallout - financially and with the prospect of a B list transfers and agent driven loan deals - will be acute and will shape the season ahead.
Just re read your piece Andy, you think the winning goal was a "rocket"??? IMO those kind of goals are scored on local pitches across the country every weekend, Sinisalo went down in stages and still couldn't get to the daisy cutter.
MON cannot be blamed for injuries but his tactics and personnel on the field is down to him FFS!!!
A week ago we were there so selling Engels was covered, we were about to spend an unprecedented MORE millions on what we thought was a strong squad. How wrong we all were, there isn't one player or area who escapes blame for that pile a dug shit.
Sinisalo let those long range daisy cutters past him too easily, our whole defence just collapsed in full view, the midfield........wow! Where do we start? After such a start to the season Nygren rolled back 12 months, never put a foot right, schoolboy passback was fckn unbelievable and caused the negative mindset which took over from there. Baur was a headless chicken and looked too easily brushed aside, McGregor tried his best but his terrible passing and panicking was so out of character, Hatate I hoped would give us one last hurrah, nope his head was already elsewhere, anywhere but Celtic, MacCowan! Couldn't do anything right, every touch was wrong he was the worst player on the pitch.
Our forward line, Yang setting up the goal was the only thing he did right, the rest of the 70 mins he was on was more dog shit, then we come to Tounekti, he couldn't get past any defender in a Ferrari, EVERY time he passed was backwards after shitting himself when up against a defender. The front two went from heroes to zeros in less than a week, why weren't Hussan and/or Osmand introduced???
I thought our board had woken up after spending £30m+ already when in the past that kind of cash wouldve been hoarded, I honestly dont know where we go from here, this result, not the dire performance, will haunt us for years, are MON's tactics outdated? If they are why didn't Maloney pipe up and say so? Sky sport will have a field day, Talksport will have a field day, BBC Scotland will have a field day and we're supposed to sympathise with MacCowan having to delete his Instagram page.
Almaty was awful in its own way, but losing a 4 goal lead, to a decent team TBF, is totally and utterly unforgivable.
I'M AWA TO MA BED FOR 6 MONTHS!