Celtic banter 3

06 Jan 2026 23:24:34
Sevco are currently going through a purple patch but they have rode their luck during this period.

Sevco have won their last 4 league games.
In those games they have allowed their opponents 52 shots at goal with 21 shots on target but yet they only conceded 2 goals.
Those stats are not sustainable if they want to win the league.

I'm now expecting Celtic to vastly improve which wouldn't be hard.
Celtic have had the most shots at goal in the league and yet even Hibs have had one shot more on target this season.
We will bring in strikers and I'm sure Celtic will start to score more of the chances we are creating.
MON also going back to a flat back 4 will stop all the crazy kamikaze recent defending.

I'm still not worried about Hearts.
I watched their last 30 minutes against Livingston and they were a bag of nerves.
Hearts never had one shot at goal in that last 30 minutes at home to the bottom club.
Hearts had 2 off target shots in the second half but they came before I started watching.
Livingston missed a sitter with the last touch of the game.

07 Jan 2026 01:26:38
Having our fans banned from the stadium is a worrying factor, as is the board's open hostility towards the fans and the toxicity around the club.

Loads of fans, myself included have had enough of their pish and want change. I do not see the protests or inside stadium demonstrations going away just because they appointed MON.

Did you see the letter from the collective to the board tonight? There was some talk about a stadium boycott this weekend as well. The board ignore us at their own peril.

07 Jan 2026 01:27:46
Sevco are just "back" until their next defeat. The title is only ever a one horse race! We have just been unlucky that we had a couple of really poor managers in Rodgers and Nancy that were too arrogant to see their tactics weren't working. Their refusal to change cost them their jobs!

07 Jan 2026 06:57:12
Teams that win leagues usually have lots of goals in them, tight defence and a good GK.

We don't have any of these attributes and looking at the team just now, that's not going to change…. unless we get at least 4 recruits in.

I stated on here before the season started we needed at least 4 signings to qualify for CL and win the league.

This still stands.

We have a poor squad.

No guarantees we will win the league even with 4 good recruits…. but very likely not to win league if we don't recruit.

07 Jan 2026 08:37:35
I think most fans wanted a boycott this weekend myself included but it was more to get Nancy the sack rather than the Board.

I reckon the majority of fans will be against a boycott now that MON has been appointed and they will now get behind our new Manager and players.

07 Jan 2026 08:42:33
Since the start of December Sevco have played 8 league games and they have conceded an astonishing 102 shots against them in those matches.

That's an insane amount of shots for a team that's on a winning run.
Celtic and Hearts have only conceded about 80 shots each in our last 8 league games and that's with our crazy kamikaze defending.
It puts it into perspective how poor this Sevco team are and I now expect Celtic to step up a couple of gears and show that we are still the best team in Scotland.

07 Jan 2026 09:30:17
Bhoy a take it you celebrated all they trophies Rodgers won ?.

07 Jan 2026 13:32:35
Bhoy88,

It's clear you personally don't like BR and that's fine, several supporters don't.

However, reffering to him as a manager as 'really poor' is both nonsensical and not factual.

BR is one of the most successful managers in our clubs history, whether you like him or not.

07 Jan 2026 16:08:02
Of course I celebrated the trophies we won under Rodgers and I would've celebrated if Nancy won the League Cup. I wanted Celtic to win on Saturday despite knowing full well it would've kept Nancy in a job!

Any manager who doesn't change his tactics when things aren't working is poor manager full stop.

07 Jan 2026 16:19:20
@buzz I can understand some Celtic fans just want to get back to supporting the team and I can see the logic in doing so.

However, I am of the opinion that a boycott this weekend would send a strong message to the board that everything is not all right and we will not be resuming normal service until you listen and act.

07 Jan 2026 17:25:41
And what makes you an authority on what makes a good manager????.

07 Jan 2026 14:52:08
Quadruple treble shhhhh don't mention that.

07 Jan 2026 17:10:55
But your assertion is Rodgers was a poor manager,11 trophies quadruple trebles back to back but you never hive him an ounce of credit.

07 Jan 2026 18:25:02
Well I did say it was Brendan's system that was costing us and MON proved this with the same set of players! I also stated Nancy's system was awful before he arrived!

07 Jan 2026 18:25:02
Well I did say it was Brendan's system that was costing us and MON proved this with the same set of players! I also stated Nancy's system was awful before he arrived!

06 Jan 2026 22:04:49
Buzz, when was the last time Celtic were 3rd at this stage of the season.

06 Jan 2026 22:26:49
Celtic have finished in the top 2 since the 1995/ 96 season.
I would say 31 years ago when we played at Hampden.

06 Jan 2026 21:48:39
{Ed's Note - Ed001 has posted a new article entitled, Fulham v Liverpool - A Quick Liverpool Perspective

06 Jan 2026 21:07:57
I was going to post this before Sunday's game, but I didn't want to tempt fate.

I still remember the New Year match against the old Rangers back in 1998, when they were chasing 10 in a row. We won 2–0, with goals from Lambert and Burley, and it completely changed our season. That result gave the players belief that they could beat Rangers and go on to win the league and, ultimately, it stopped 10 in a row. It was a truly pivotal moment.

I just hope that Sunday's victory for Sevco doesn't prove to be a pivotal moment in reverse, one that sets them on course for the title. One thing is certain, though: our board have royally messed up this season, and if the unthinkable were to happen, we all know exactly where the blame would lie, as they have made our task of retaining the title much harder.

06 Jan 2026 21:30:14
It was Saturday Joe.

06 Jan 2026 21:39:06
M8 they have been getting by with every decision going the struggled against us on sat no matter what they say, there garbage.

06 Jan 2026 21:50:44
I think we're all pretty much in agreement Weejoe that Hearts will falter and get reeled in. The closest they've come to winning a league title in 'recent' times, was back in 1986.

This season it's likely they'll finish 3rd.

That just leaves us and them.

Granted, Saturday's result will have given them a boost and the narrative their pushing (as is the media) is that there's a 'togetherness' blah, blah, blah.

Sevco are a poor outfit and will drop points against the so called smaller teams in the league.

Saturday's result should be used as motivation by MON towards every player in that dressing room. The players owed the fans before Saturday, and by god, they have added to that debt by way of that 2nd half collapse.

MON for me will be the defining factor for us this season, I feel he may think he's got something to prove, the Celtic players undoubtedly have something to prove and there's no better motivation than being written off halfway through the season.

HH St. Martin.

06 Jan 2026 22:10:32
My bad.

06 Jan 2026 22:41:31
Sacking Nancy and getting MON back was the best decision we could have made at this time but make no mistake we are now in a dogfight for this league title and it should never have been the case.

The board need to give MON the tools he needs to win the league.

2 strikers, 1 on loan and 1 on permanent contract.
2 RW
1 LCB
1 RCB

and bring back the green brigade and fix the rupture between them and us.

06 Jan 2026 23:55:17
We already have 2 LCB in Scales and Trusty. We need a RCB, RW and a ST. We have Yang and Forrest who can play on the right. Infact we need a LW as well because Tounetki and Balikwisha won't do until Jota is fit. A proper No.10 who can unlock a defence wouldn't go a miss either!

06 Jan 2026 20:56:49
If MON can turn this malaise round and start off with a win against the Arabs, we can motor on from there. I believe he has the skill to get these players back playing to their strengths. At the very least, he has a great tactical brain to change things if they are not going well.
In my opinion, the buns are oozing with confidence but they are not a great team and will slip up soon enough.

Hearts don't have a depth of squad to continue at the top so we need to start getting on our A game as soon as we can. Saturday will be a must win game but I expect a good crowd, some noise, great MON football and a big win.
COYBIG! ??.

06 Jan 2026 21:13:06
Let's hope so Rab but if our board want to improve our chances further then they need to let the Green Brigade back in and try to reconcile with the fans by eating a large slice of humble pie. Failure to do that will ensure that this toxic atmosphere will continue.

06 Jan 2026 22:06:00
Its unforgivable that we were so far in front of this mob and they are now above us! Hopefully now with a decent management structure in place we can get back to the top as soon as.
Absolutely furious that this board have basically used the last couple of months as their personal vanity project.


Nancy was so obviously the wrong choice for us, even us mortals could see that. We could have been out of sight just now if they'd just given Martin the gig until the summer.
Lot of pressure on MON but I think he's well up for it!

07 Jan 2026 09:05:15
There will be no humble pie eating Joe, they do not believe they are at fault with the GB dispute, as far as they are concerned the GB did this to themselves with their behaviour.

Both sides need to admit they did some things wrong but that will never happen. There has to be some conciliatory comments from both sides but they are so far apart, I cannot see that happen.

We need the atmosphere back in the ground so I hope BOTH sides can agree a way forward that suits both sides.

06 Jan 2026 20:52:37
Watched Martins presser could listen to him all day class act.

{Ed007's Note - Presser?? ???? Behave MTT!

07 Jan 2026 05:41:26
What dyu call it mate?

06 Jan 2026 20:40:35
I feel we can be more confident of getting quality players in this window simply because MON/ Shaun will have placed their order. This is what we require to win the League. No excuses, no misunderstanding, crystal clear - this is what we need, go get them.

06 Jan 2026 20:58:21
I wish I shared you optimism but based on what Martin O'Neil said today, we will be getting the ones that were already identified.

06 Jan 2026 21:09:39
Do you think they will have much of a say who comes in mb 1 and a think a CF should've been in already. mostly loans a think but not to bothered as long as a decent standard.

07 Jan 2026 16:10:48
MON said he would have the last say on transfers and he would seek Maloney's and Fozzy's opinions on players.

06 Jan 2026 20:33:28
There will be 10 players available on Saturday who started in Martin's last game against Dundee.
Saracchi is the only exception but KT replaced him early in the game due to his injury.

With KT included the team against Dundee United could be -

Schmeichel
Donovan, Trusty, Scales, KT
Engels, Calmac, Hatate
McCowan, Maeda, Yang.

06 Jan 2026 20:51:33
Martin says mone of the long-term injuries are remotely close, maybe saratchi and ilheabacho might be the exception.

06 Jan 2026 21:06:31
I'm not at all keen on Kasper as for me he's been more off it, than on it, and has cost us goals in big games, going back to the SC Final last May. There's talk again of the keeper from Man. City coming in.

Hatate for me is on borrowed time but, as you've posted Buzzbomb, MON seems to be able to get a tune out of him - as he does with several of the players.

Like many, I'm hoping for an oven ready striker to bang in the goals as well as another 2 or 3 players who can come in and ensure games that could otherwise be heading for a draw end up being 3 points for us.

McCowan for me has always been far more effective coming off the bench.

If MON and team can retain the league this season it would be very special given the issues around the board off the park and the challenges around the team on it.

HH St. Martin.

06 Jan 2026 21:11:37
That's what a had except Sinasola and after Schmeichel performance sat he should start but wont.

06 Jan 2026 21:16:27
Well said Pedro, I echo those opinions.

07 Jan 2026 09:27:48
I agree Kasper's days should be over, he has cost us dearly this season. Sinssalo should start on Saturday and should be our number 1 until we sign another keeper.

I agree and have said many times, McGowan is a better impact sub than a starter.

It is up front we are sparse, maybe Maeda through the centre with Yang on right but who do we play out left. The 2 we signed have not made the grade.

Maybe Jamsie could play with Yang, one of them on the left.

Get Iheanacho back fit as he his a quality CF, however we really need to sign a couple of forwards this month as he is away in the summer, as will JK I suspect.

Scales and Trusty along with CCV have done a good job for us but I think we need a rcb as I think CCV will be away. I still think Nawroki would have done a job for us.

Scales has been the biggest loser under WN, he was our standout player until WN arrived.

In a back 4 our current defenders do play well but in WN setup they were badly exposed as many CBs would be.

Get Scarrachi back as he is one player who gets behind defences.

On the right, I have no idea why we signed a player who hasn't played all season, expecting him to sort out a problem area for us.

We need a new RB who will challenge AJ for the next few seasons.

If MON gets the players he needs, we still have a chance to turnaround this season, if he doesn't, we will be good enough to push past sevco but Hearts are a different proposition.

06 Jan 2026 20:10:00
Callum Wilson has left West Ham, he apparently was on 5k a week but I find that hard to believe.
I think he could do a turn for us although I accept he's no spring chick.

06 Jan 2026 20:17:10
His injury history would be a major concern, as would his age.

06 Jan 2026 20:36:19
Another Carlton Cole type signing no thanks.

06 Jan 2026 20:41:14
Injured 21 times in 10 year mainly thigh then knee. he's 34 in Feb and I can't see his injury record clearing up here .

06 Jan 2026 21:08:03
No thank you. We have Ilhneacho already and his injury record is not great but he is 4 years younger than Wilson.

We don't need more has beens at the end of their careers.

06 Jan 2026 20:44:48
Rather stick with the rubbish we already have without adding a never has been.

06 Jan 2026 21:49:21
Wilson a far better player / goalscorer than cole even injury prone.

06 Jan 2026 19:07:59
Niccolò Machiavelli would not have been remotely surprised by what has unfolded at Celtic with Nancy. He would, however, have recognised it for exactly what it is: a clumsy attempt by those in power to conceal their own incompetence behind a conveniently exposed subordinate.

From the outset, the handling of Paul Tisdale's name should have raised alarms. Weeks ago, long before the appointment of Wilfried Nancy was confirmed, Tisdale suddenly began appearing in media reports, repeatedly and conspicuously linked to the process. There was no clear reason for this abrupt visibility other than narrative construction. I said at the time that he was being set up as a patsy, a pre-emptive scapegoat whose presence in the story would later allow the real decision makers to melt into the background. That assessment has aged uncomfortably well.

Machiavelli's lesson in The Prince is stark: rulers protect themselves by ensuring that unpopular or risky decisions are executed by others. Hatred must be redirected. Blame must land somewhere safe. But Machiavelli also assumes a level of competence at the top. What we are witnessing here is not cold strategic brilliance, but panic-driven deflection.

Because the truth is simple and inconvenient for the board: the appointment of Wilfried Nancy was their decision, born of their judgement, their process, and their failures. Paul Tisdale did not have the authority to appoint him. He could not sign it off. He could not override concerns. The board held all of that power and with it, all of the responsibility.

Due diligence is not a ceremonial exercise. It is the core function of a board. Assessing managerial suitability, understanding context, interrogating track records, stress-testing philosophy against reality, these are not tasks you outsource and then shrug about later. If that work was insufficient, it was not because of an advisor's presence. It was because the board failed to do its job.

Trying to pin the outcome on Tisdale is therefore not just cynical, it is revealing. It suggests a board either unwilling or unable to stand behind its own decisions. Worse, it suggests one that believes accountability is something to be managed away rather than owned. Machiavelli advocated using intermediaries to absorb blame, but even he warned that rulers who rely too heavily on such tactics eventually expose their weakness.

This is not clever Machiavellianism. It is second rate evasion.

The board's incompetence lies not only in the hiring of Nancy, but in what followed: the quiet reshaping of the narrative so that responsibility appears concentrated in one individual rather than where it belongs, collectively, and squarely, at board level. When things went wrong, they did not lead. They hid.

There is a corrosive effect to this behaviour. When advisors realise they will be publicly sacrificed for decisions they do not control, honesty disappears. Challenge disappears. Only compliance remains. Machiavelli warned that rulers who punish truth tellers and protect themselves end up ruling in darkness. Football clubs are no different.

If Paul Tisdale is allowed to carry the blame for Wilfried Nancy's appointment, it will not be because he deserves it. It will be because the board lacks the courage to admit that the failure was theirs, a product of poor judgement, inadequate scrutiny, and an absence of accountability. And no amount of narrative engineering will change that reality.

06 Jan 2026 21:08:24
WJ

Nicholson is on record in the AGM video interview stating Nancy was the outstanding candidate and we had been tracking him for some time. He has to go.

06 Jan 2026 21:14:58
@Paythefacepainter - 100% that has to happen and I really don't see the fans relenting on their crusade to have these charlatans removed from the club.

07 Jan 2026 07:00:44
Copy and paste comments from youtube lol.

06 Jan 2026 17:44:22
Looking at the fixtures anyone notice that after an away game in Europe we always seem to be away on the Sunday too? Feyenoord away then Hibernian away now it's Bologna away and Hearts away! Happens all the time to Celtic.

06 Jan 2026 17:59:24
We pumped both Feyeenord and Hibs with an elite manager in charge. Now we have an elite manager in charge again these away days will be toffee?.

06 Jan 2026 18:10:19
Year after year the 'random fixture computer' seems to be programmed for that very purpose. Celtic to my knowledge have never questioned the very suspicious regularity, It's almost as if there is some sort of cheating or manipulation by our football association?

06 Jan 2026 20:47:01
If it's not refs it's computers - thank god we are serial winners or the paranoia would be beyond belief.

{Ed007's Note - I've used, studied and worked with computers nearly all my life, when I done an HND in Computer Science over 30 years ago when we used DOS, before Windows or Chrome one of the first things I was taught even at high school was a term GIGO, Garbage In, Garbage Out... a computer can only ever do what you tell it to, if you're programming is wrong it won't work but if it's spot on it will work a treat.}

06 Jan 2026 21:32:20
Does GIGO apply to our board Ed?

{Ed007's Note - It applies to everything in life when you think about it, Joe.}

06 Jan 2026 21:35:52
I can get that but how can a computer know if we will qualify or fail for champions league for example and then have the Euro fixtures provide away games before our domestic away games.

It's far fetched for me.

{Ed007's Note - Well we already know the dates of European fixtures for the 2026/27 season