22 Jan 2024 11:39:22
Reading the comments re our youth system and transfer activity.
We're complexed bunch.
We want youth to be given a chance, a route to the 1st team.
But
We want transfers in and quality with millions spent.
We want success.
So the question is, can we get success with blooding youths into the 1st team
Or
Do we get success with spending millions like we did in the summer.
Can both predicament be achieved?
22 Jan 2024 12:15:19
The Celtic B team is only mid table in the lowland league with Hearts B sitting 2nd.
That tells us all, what we want to know.
22 Jan 2024 12:40:00
As I don't follow the B Team BuzzBomb, that's a surprising and scary stat for me.
Wtf are we doing at youth level?
☘️ ? ☘️.
22 Jan 2024 12:46:55
Many of our supporters who post on here, seem to want our young players loaned out, they often argue that players won’t progress if they are left to play in B team . It is difficult to have a competitive B team if we have 8/ 9 players out on loan + others injured .
Our young players certainly are not developing enough, over last 5 years, as an example very few have made a mark on our first team . It might be my imagination but I think going back decades ago we seemed to have had far better youngsters about the club, but even then we didn’t get enough coming through and taking first team places . Our club playing with the financial restraints of playing in Scotland, iMO need a steady supply of perhaps 2/ 3 Celtic trained youngsters from age of 8 yr old forcing their way unto ist team by the time they are 18/ 19;yrs old.
22 Jan 2024 12:51:12
The Celtic B team have only won the odd match, when we play in the Challenge cup each season.
Maybe it’s because our best youth players are out on loan but we still get a poor return with our youth players making the first team.
22 Jan 2024 12:56:56
Buzz first choice gk out on loan both first choice full backs out on loan main cb out on loan possibly best defender dane murray recovering g from injury as is main striker team captain and cm also out on loan . greentree of course both can be done but we don't . both vata and Kelly never looked out of place yesterday . if not given a chance would anybody stay and keep playing in b team with next to no opportunity of reward?
22 Jan 2024 13:06:36
Greentree,
the short and obvious answer is ideally the club and supporters wants a scenario where we have a 'crop' of youth players coming through and knocking on the first team door, across a variety of positions.
For the past 3 seasons, realistically, we've had two players in that position, Ben Doak who left for Liverpool and Rocco Vata.
I'm not sure many fans could argue that Celtic as a club, has been able to produce anywhere near enough young players who are good enough to be promoted into the first 11, for many years now.
At the same time, we require a first team transfer policy, including scouting, that ensures we are able to sign the right players, at the right price and plan accordingly for the positions required to be filled, in some areas they call it succession planning. Put simply in football terms, 2 players for every outfield position.
For far too long the club reacts and signs players from a position of need, even last minute desperation, as opposed to any long term planning. As in the phrase 'build from a position of strength'.
Given the amount of money wasted under every manager in recent years on 'projects' I can't help but think this money could have helped our youth development, maybe hindsight is 20/ 20.
I doubt anyone outside of our board actually knows what our 'current' transfer policy is - as far as I can tell it's buy cheap and hope for the best?
Currently our first team squad is made up of 42 players (Inc 10 out on loan) inc half of Asia, with the majority nowhere near good enough to play in the first team and our B Team, as BuzzBomb points out, is mid table ?
I don't keep up to date on our youth development/ B Team but I would expect given our success as a club and resources over the past 20 years in particular, it should be far, far better than it is.
As fans we like nothing more than seeing our young players working hard to be promoted to the first team and going on to bring further success to the club.
Right now it's answers on a postcard.
☘️ ? ☘️.
22 Jan 2024 13:40:31
How about we spend more on quality players, bin buying all the projects and instead promote youth to the team.
Cos buying all these projects impacts actually our youth set up.
22 Jan 2024 15:05:23
It's strange, we buy everyone else's projects and they buy ours. Ours are not good enough to get near our first team regularly and likewise theirs are not good enough for their first teams.
How does that equate? It is a bizarre situation.
We don't help as we demand the club bring in first team ready quality.
There is no real place for young players here and would we accept the club giving them time to develop if it meant us not winning titles.
22 Jan 2024 17:14:12
Good reply Pedro.
Maedain thsts exactly what I was getting at. If we tried to blood youth and lost there would be mutiny at the doors.
Not been many over the years, certainly since Tierney that could or might have made it. Doak maybe being one of them.
But on the other hand it must be dishearting to see us buy all these projects pushing our youths further down the pecking order.
22 Jan 2024 22:36:07
A reserve league would help to get our young players ready for the first team, really don't know why we don't have one to be honest.
23 Jan 2024 06:49:52
RJ, I wonder if it is because a lot of teams couldn't afford the additional costs of running a reserve team or thise that run the game don't want rhe additional costs in their side.
It is the only ay to improve our league and young players imo.