15 Jan 2016 23:05:05
I know loads of the posters on here don't rate Ronnie but you cannot argue at how great a job he has done at developing Leigh Griffiths.
Anyway, this post is not about Ronnie and I just wanted to say well done to Leigh Griffiths on getting your 50th goal for Celtic.
His goal scoring record is really impressive as he has nearly 1 goal per game. What makes it even more impressive, is that a lot of his appearances have been as sub. He really is a key player for us now and you can see how much we miss him when he is out injured.
The only thing I think he needs to prove now is that he can do it in Europe. Hopefully he can keep developing and show us all that he is the man we have been crying out for.
15 Jan 2016 23:34:23
Think you're wearing your Ronnie glasses, Griffiths has been a prolific scorer where ever he has been, think you would be better reflecting on why Griffiths was'nt getting game time earlier on and nearly went out on loan, because of Ronnies crazy team selections.
16 Jan 2016 00:48:39
Aindoh rumours of Griffiths going out on loan may be greatly exaggerated . Griffiths wasn't the fittest of players at Celtic at the start of last season . From talking to RD he realised that if he got really fit and scored goals he could have a great future .
No special formula, just hard work and Griffiths is earning the applause he deserves
and Ronny has the striker we all crave for .
{Ed007's Note - Griffiths was on his way out, Chris, it's an open secret now. RD spoke to him though and then fought his corner for him to stay. Unlike with Tony Watt, Pedro backed the manager and didn't make him look like a liar.}
16 Jan 2016 09:12:28
@Aindoh - I bet you do not even see the irony when you say I am blinded by Ronnie love. Your comment is a classic case of Psychological projection if ever I saw one and I will explain why.
You say Ronnie's crazy team selection was the cause of Griffiths going out on loan but I beg to differ and I strongly suspect that your Ronnie hate is blinding your opinions.
1.If you recall, for the first half of the season Guidetti was bang in form and it would have been hard for anyone to oust him at that time. (Griffiths got his chance when Guedetti's form dipped) Do you think Ronnie should have dropped his top and inform striker to play Griffiths? Let me answer that for you, No Ronnie got this one right.
2.Griffiths was not fit enough, had the wrong attitude both in training and off the park. This is well documented and Griffiths has even said that it was not until he had a talk with Ronnie that he buckled down. Ed said, Ronnie fought his corner and was instrumental in him remaining at Celtic.
By looking at the facts you can see that you are completely wrong and Griffiths absence from the team had nothing to do with Ronnie's crazy team selection. However, why let facts get in the way of your Ronnie hate.
16 Jan 2016 11:10:33
You've got me all wrong I am not a Ronnie hater, but neither am I one of emperor's new clothes, praise be his name, no criticism will be tolerated, brigade, fact is Griffiths was fit enough to come on as sub in a lot of games, fit enough to be played out of position in a lot of games, fact is he was a prolific goal scorer before he came to Celtic, Ronnie did'nt turn him into one, maybe I've got the wrong end of the stick as regards Griffiths going out on loan, I read it was the other way around, Ronnie wanted to loan him out and Lawwell wanted him to stay, am sure that was the story at the time.
16 Jan 2016 13:03:36
Good debate between RabMac and Aindoh. Can see both points and both make good points.
The good thing either way is that Griffiths is in great form, scoring goals for fun and seems fairly settled with us. With zero competition for other places in the squad previously we have seen performances drop (Izzy before Tierney got his chance, Gordon when he knew no one trusted Zaluska, Ambrose when we we only had him and VVD as centre backs a few seasons back) .
All we need is a bit of proper competition for him or preferably for me a partner for him!
16 Jan 2016 13:09:15
There's a difference between pressing for 70 mins and doing it for 20 though aindoh.
16 Jan 2016 13:39:58
You seem to be evading the points I raised by going off on a tangent. I pointed out the flaws in your argument by providing facts. Are you refuting the facts or accepting you were talking pish?
Dealing with the points you raised in your tangent though. Yes Griffiths was a proven goal scorer before coming to Celtic but he had a record or just under a goal every 2 games. He now has a ratio of nearly 1 goal per game. This clearly shows that he has benefited from being at Celtic. I am sure no one would say that Griffiths has not improved as a player since being at Celtic and I think he and the coaching team can take great credit for those improvements.
16 Jan 2016 14:35:56
Facts are chiels that winnae ding, are you saying Guiddetti's drop in form was due to the coaching and guidance he was getting from Ronnie and the rest of the coaching staff?, Griffiths might have been an immature wee nyaff, but he was always a goalscorer, he's older now and more mature, he would have come to his senses under any manager, are you really surprised he has a better goals ratio now at Celtic than he had at Wolves or Hibs or Livi, who's teams were struggling in the league.
16 Jan 2016 15:31:55
I cannot say for certain why Guidetti lost his form but that is irrelevant to what we are discussing. I was merely pointing out that it would have been hard to get in ahead of Guidetti when he was on form.
Are you still trying to tell us that it was Ronnie's crazy selection problem that was keeping Griffiths out the team at the time?
You state that any manager would have made Griffiths mature and that any striker coming to Celtic would improve their goal scoring ratio. However, let me give you an example who mirrors Griffiths in many ways who did not do what you claim is obvious - Derek Riordan.
Derek Riordan was full of talent and proven goal scorer in Scotland. He was also immature and had many off field issues. Did he mature at Celtic? Did he go on to improve his goal scoring ratio? Or was it Ronnie's crazy team selection that kept him out the team as well?
Whether you like it or not, or whether you admit it or not, Ronnie has helped Griffiths mature and has also helped him develop as a player. Yes, playing for Celtic does provide you with more chances to score and that will play a part in the improved ratio but it is not the only factor Griffiths has improved his ratio.
{Ed007's Note - If any manager would have made Griffiths mature and screw the nut why hadn't any them done it before? LG himself has spoken about what RD has done for him so I don't see how anyone can argue with it.}
16 Jan 2016 16:13:05
No other manager has had Griffiths at this age, any time I seen him on tv highlights before he came to Celtic, he seemed to apply himself realy wellon the field, I thought he would be a great signing for Celtic, even though a lot of people were against the signing,
can't remember how old Riordan was when he came to Celtic, but it must have been pretty frustrating for him not playing many games and being a bit of a hothead, he might have been talented but he never gave me the impression of being a hard worker before he came to Celtic whereas Griffiths always gve me that impression
my crazy selections was not aimed at why Griffiths was'nt getting picked it was playing him out of postion, and just picking the wrong team compared to who I thought should get picked.
16 Jan 2016 17:58:07
Both Griffiths and Riordan were 23 when they signed for Celtic.
With regards to Ronnie picking different players than the ones you would have picked. What makes you more qualified than Ronnie at picking players?
Do you see them every day in training? Do you know if they are in need of a rest or not? Have you won the league as a manager in 2 different countries? Are you privy to their off field antics? Do you know who would be best suited for the tactics you are playing?
Let me answer for you and that is NO to every question but yet you think you are better qualified than Ronnie to decide who should play. Another thing, why should anyone take your opinion on board when you clearly can't even tell that Griffiths has improved as a player since Ronnie took charge.
16 Jan 2016 18:18:26
Iknow I am not better qualified, just annoys me that if the team played well one week, he changed it the next week for no other reason than it seems than just he didn't like playing the same team two weeks in a row, or before an important euro game, he'd play one team on the saturday, then a completely different one in the midweek
Alot of people on here thought that Griffiths was a wee scrotum, and did'nt want him anywhere near the hoops (not saying you were one of them) , now they're having to eat their words, of course he might be playing better, because he is getting more game time, but to say he is an improved player because of Ronnie, you would have to compare it to when he was playing regular at Hibs,