New Tricks
Morning, all.
Forget about The World Cup, folks. The biggest football show on earth arrives today for a whole eleven weeks, eleven weeks of unbridled joy for Celtic fans as DD & Co get busy bringing in the players that MON and his staff require to make a major push for European and world dominance. Yep, that’s right. Today’s the grand opening of the summer transfer window.
We already have vast amounts of money squirrelled away in a savings account, with more to be confirmed when the year end financials are signed off at the end of the month. This is known in some quarters as a warchest. At Celtic Plc, it is a rainy day fund, only to be used in the most dire of emergencies. Here’s a thought-why not use some of the stash to avoid that dire emergency instead of waiting for it to arrive and having to blow the lot?
Radical, eh? There’s some out of the box thinking for y’all, and no mistake.
Of course, you’d have to be out of your tree to think that our club will change the habits of a lifetime just because some eejit with a keyboard thinks it makes sense. The Keynesian school of economic planning ain’t their roadmap to success. No sirree, cut costs and to hell with the quality-or the consequences. So what if spending an extra £100k might have got us the player who brought us European or even domestic success? That’s hypothetical, innit? The £100k saved is real, and that’s what matters.
I listened to the thoughts of Chairman Wilson the other day, and I have to admit I found him more encouraging than similar interviews over the years. He wasn’t confrontational, he held out hope for a more progressive future, and mentioned that changes in structure were on the way. I’m not entirely sure whether this was all cleared with his boss first or even if he was telling it how he’d like it to be rather than how it more likely will be.
Time will tell, just as time will tell whether the manager will be given adequate funds to buy the players we already need as well as quality replacements for those who are probably heading out the door. But as things stand, we need all of those PLUS a Director of Football, staff for a revamped scouting and analytics department, and a clearout of Lennoxtown coaching and medical teams. Not to mention adequate contracts for Martin’s two most trusted lieutenants whose continuing unconfirmed status is a disgrace.
I want to be pleasantly surprised this summer with signs of real activity on all of these fronts. We all do. Celtic FC cannot continue to be divided by those who want the best for the club-that’s the fans who provide every penny of its income, remember-and those who still live in the days of the £20 maximum wage-that’s the board and their lackeys who control the expenditure. The latter cannot continue to treat every penny as a prisoner, they must not continue to downgrade the quality across the board.
Because we, the fans, can play that game too. We can also tighten the pursestrings, as was shown last season by the Not A Penny More campaign. If they refuse to spend the money, we can easily refuse to provide it. And once again we will have a division in our midst next campaign, one which will continue to grow with time.
Celtic Plc know exactly what the manager, the players, and the fans want. They have eleven weeks to learn new tricks and provide it.
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Above article by BMCUWP
Mit
Why do I suddenly want Iran to win the damn thing
BIGPACKY
I never saw Frank, who I think was a winger. My main memories of Jim are as a left back-and tbh, I wasn’t too fond of him! The curse of inheriting a place vacated by a legend, I suppose.
I soon found out that Jim was better served playing the midfield enforcer role. Hard as nails. I was too young for those days though.
From a very good source. I doubt there’s much that surprises in here.
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MON first offered a 50% cut but negotiated on his own 35% (supposedly as a few financial issues, bad investments etc)
Sean offered 50%, knocked it back
Fozzy offered 75% knocked it back (Offered Sean’s job on the quiet)
DD called Sean after the kb and was furious ‘Who do you think you are?’, swore at him down the line and SM said, I’m sitting with my wife and kids you’re on loud speaker can you refrain from the foul language, he didn’t so SM put the phone down on him. This led to the London meet over the weekend. Before it, Sean popped into his neighbour Peter Lawwell and he advised him to not sign if he didn’t want to and stick with his current 2 1/2 yr pathway contract with Celtic. Also added that people are now seeing how difficult it was for him to work with DD. (SM was offered the Scotland U21 job but turned it down to see us thru to the end of the league. DD now looking to put out that it’s SM is knocking back Celtic
MON and SM put forward players for signing currently playing in the EPL and DD scuppered them all and signed off the loan deals. There is no scouting set up at the club. MON gave SM and Fozzy most of the credit getting us over the line, he was more motivational
Club are trying to claw back as much money as possible over their feck up appointing W Nancy
Gavin Strachan is going to West Bromwich Albion (he was there before)
CalMac is going to Saudia
Lot’s of players know this is going on and are well pissed off
Happy days under DD
SAN LUIS
Various versions of that floating around. Of course, they wouldn’t be if the club had done their job properly.
100% Bobby.
All we can hope is that some sort of common sense breaks out in coming days.
Indeed, possibly best thing that could happen is MON threatens to walk away in support of his lieutenants.
23 days since Cup Final.
Pre-season training for non international players starts on June 19, 4 days away.
Shelbourne game is July 7, 22 days away. ( 2 World Cup quarter finals that day )
Sporting game is July 14, 29 days away. ( WC semi final that day ). Who plans this?
Milan game is July 25, 40 days away.
First game of season is August 1, 47 days away.
CL playoff qualification draw is August 3, 49 days away.
CL playoff first leg is August 18, 64 days away.
Close of transfer window is September 3, 80 days away.
So, 47 days until season starts. 33% of the close season has passed. What have we done so far?
MON replaced….erm….MON. We have rewarded Shaun and Fozzy by presenting them with insulting offers, extended contracts for Forrest, Yang, Scales and McGowan, and punted Inamura and Palma. Seriously earth shattering moves.
If history is any guide, Despot will wait until we are turfed out of the Cl on August 26 to decide how much to release to MON, with a week to scrape up unwanted detritus.
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Here’s Chris Sutton from last year, just before the season start:
Celtic goal hero Chris Sutton reckons it’s “scandalous” the champions are still chasing quality recruits with the Premiership due to kick off in a week’s time. But the ex-hitman believes his old team are scurrying to get reinforcements into the building. Sutton asks: “What is going on here with Celtic? When Rodgers came back, the talk was about how he’s been promised funds to take the club to the next level, to compete in Europe and hammer home their dominance in Scotland.
Can anyone seriously say that is how it looks right now? If anything, they have left the door open for Rangers and they are taking a serious gamble on the Champions League. The new season is a week away. The Champions League play-off is just over four weeks away. And the team is far weaker than the one that finished the season.
It’s not like the club is strapped for cash, yet they are now facing a scramble to get the players they desperately need in the door. We’ve seen the project players coming in and Rodgers made it crystal clear he needs more experienced ones in the door and quickly. So where are they?”
Sutton continued: “The same names have been bandied around for weeks now and there’s plenty of talk about the transfer fees and whatever. If they want these guys in the building then why wait? Just go out and get them. If they don’t want to come, then go elsewhere. Celtic can’t afford to hang about until they make up their minds or until their clubs drop their valuations. Why weren’t the replacements in the pipeline before players left?
Kyogo Furuhashi apparently made noises about going months before he departed. You could argue Nicolas Kuhn looked like he was going long before the end of the season. Those were not surprises so plans should have been in place. Rodgers was talking about needing to refresh his squad back in the spring.
To be still saying it going into August is scandalous. This is too important a time to be dithering.”
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Let’s hope MAHE’s optimism is well founded. We are going to need to see hard evidence pretty damn soon that things have changed.
Tick tock, tick tock.
HH
INIQUITOUS IV
INIQUITOUS IV
Those quotes from Sutton appear to have come from about eleven months ago. Admittedly, things haven’t changed much. In fact, they’ve probably got worse.
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS
June 15, 2026 5:05 pm
INIQUITOUS IV
Those quotes from Sutton appear to have come from about eleven months ago. Admittedly, things haven’t changed much. In fact, they’ve probably got worse.
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Hi Bobby:
Yes, I wrote that they were from last year, just before start of season.
We don’t want deja vu!
HH
INIQUITOUS IV😊
INIQUITOUS IV
Apologies, missed that bit.
SAN LUIS
“CalMac is going to Saudi”
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Hi San Luis:
Any idea how long CalMac has left on his contract? Despot is a venomous, spiteful bassa. Hard to imagine him allowing a move to Saudi, even for a significant fee.
And as I write that, I changed my mind. Money is his whole driving force.
HH
INIQUITOUS IV😊
BOBBY MURDOCH’S CURLED-UP WINKLEPICKERS
June 15, 2026 5:12 pm
INIQUITOUS IV
Apologies, missed that bit.
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Dinna fash yersel. Nae apology necessary.😊
Tunisia fire manager after 5-1 gubbing.
We extend Clarke’s contract before our gubbings. Real smart.
9 days before switch from ‘Scotland’ mode to ‘Anyone but England’ mode.
Mike in Toronto
June 15, 2026 3:03 pm
Apparently Infantino has agreed that Trump will present trophy to World Cup winner.
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It will also be impossible to remove him from the winner’s podium without a ton of vaseline and a crowbar. The Chelsea players should have told him to feck off after the Club World Cup.
Manager de la Fuente not a happy camper.
Cabo Verde keeper having a worldy!
San Luis.
Classic gossip
But a jaunty ride mate,I am thinking of a music to extract more drama :-)))
HH
SAN LUIS
“MON and SM put forward players for signing currently playing in the EPL and DD scuppered them all and signed off the loan deals. There is no scouting set up at the club.
Lot’s of players know this is going on and are well pissed off.”
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Sadly, this all sounds credible. Makes me baffled at why MON has re-upped 3 times now.
His legacy is secure, the downside risks are enormous. What can he possibly gain, without absolutely iron clad guarantees of funds available?
FUBAR right enough.
HH
INIQUITOUS IV😊
https://x.com/FitbaFocus/status/2066272801376309373
Aye….
Spain doing a Celtic … camped around box, passing sideways … hoping for a bit of magic from someone and/or waiting for Capo Verde to get tired and make a mistake
Would love Scotland to defend like Cabo Verde in the next 2 games.
Heroic so far.
I remember Frank Brogan, played outside left. Good with ball at feet, held his elbows at an odd angle when running, but he was a bit on the light side. Ex Saint Mungo’s Academy.
The fitness, size and work rate from some of the ‘lesser ‘ teams has been remarkable so far
If I’m Pep, I’m sitting by my phone expecting a call tonight
Spain slow and entitled. Absolute rubbish, turned up expecting an easy game. Have done that before. Our 1-0 over Haiti looking better by the hour.
Football is a funny old game. Spain with 27 shots tonight 7 on target and 7 saves by keeper and 0 goals . Borussia Dortmund had 17 v us and 7 of them went in.
Well done Cape Verde , especially their 40yr old goalkeeper who had a game to remember for the rest of his life.
A Celtic-like performance from Spain today. Arrogant. Camp around box and expect some bit of magic and/or expect opposition to tire and make a mistake. CV out coached Spain, who had No plan B when Plan A wasn’t working.
Amazing that Cape Verde only committed one foul in the entire game. Just crowded people out. Nice if we could do that.Try to keep the diving into challenges to a minimum.
DeBruyne v Salah .. two of the best of their generation… both deserve to go out on a high
Apparently, Motherwell are in talks with Portuguese coach Goncalo Feio to replace Askou. The former Legia Warsaw coach, who was apparently interviewed by Sevco last year, is well regarded after his time at Legia Warsaw.
23 days since the cup final
21 days to our first preseason game
Celtic, Motherwell and Hibs only 3 SPL teams not to sign any player so far.
Egypt 1-0
Now THAT’S a goal. 1-0 Egypt.
Nearly another from the Pharaohs.
Hoop hoop hooray
June 15, 2026 4:02 pm
Mit
Why do I suddenly want Iran to win the damn thing.
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HHH
I think they will get a lot of sympathetic support here.
HH
INIQUITOUS IV😊
Someone here described Spain playing like Celtic as “arrogant”…..that’s a new one. Never a word you could use to describe any Celtic team I have watched during my 76 years on the planet. Useless, clueless, untalented etc. etc. but never arrogant, that’s a word to describe Huns.
De Bruyne unlucky, great free kick.
Fuxake, Ratskin on.
Roku clearly trying to con a penalty. should have been booked for that
Infantino might have a teleporter or body double. He was in Atlanta for Spain Cabo Verde, and here he is in Seattle for Belgium Egypt.
My money is on a very powerful private jet.
I just cannot see that earlier rumour being true.
I heard Shaun and Fozzy were on holiday until not long ago.
I know Martin would be given assurances, wouldn’t stand for that type of nonsense, and holds sway enough for DD to okay his requests.
My gut feeling says the announcements are being staggered.
Martin last weekend, Shaun and Fozzy this Friday, signing the next Friday etc.
Hail Hail
1-1 First touch by the big man Lukaku within seconds of coming on.
Lukaku scores with his first touch, 1-1
Some first touch
Lukaku 1-1. His first touch!
Cannae see Calmac going to Saudi either.
Oops, not Lukaku. Goal scored by Angus OG.
Own goal called.
Actually, an own goal. But Lukaku made it by attacking the goal … something Belgium haven’t done so far
Lukaku just showed why we should keep Kelechi. Big guy with experience and ability, and a great change up option.
Celger, what you say is true but we wont be re-signing Kelechi if Martin only gets one striker on top whack. If thats the case its smarter to go with a 90 minute striker.
Same situation as the Ox, why give him top whack for the odd 45.
Both hold no resale value.
I like big Kels but would rather give someone like Hogh his wage.
Hail Hail