(and if you don’t know what I’m talking about, just move merrily along, thanks, no need to comment.)
OK, so, we’re out of the Champions League.
And nobody’s really surprised - least of all us.
But consider the following:
It was our first time in it, ever.
We were in a bloody difficult group.
We were the only team in our group to win all our home matches.
We lost what most would consider our most difficult away match only by the home side cheating (admitted as such by the Juve list owner who went on the Celtic list the next day to apologise for stealing the points)
Our fans, as usual, did us proud - particularly in Porto where even after we were down 3-0 the only sound you could hear over the telly was Can you hear the Porto sing? No-oh, no-oh
Tonight, when the Porto-Rosenborg game ended five minutes before ours did, rendering our result meaningless, it made not a damn bit of difference to the fans at CP who continued to sing and cheer us along to a 4-3 victory over
a Juventus side that admittedly was not at full strength, but let’s face it, a half-strength Juve side is still better than 90% of the teams in Europe. And as the game was ending we were all singing
[ul]We are Celtic supporters
Faithful through and through
And over and over
We will follow you.
[/ul]
So, we’re out of the Champions League. But we went out of it with our heads held high. And really, that’s all we ever could have hoped for.
ITV had the choice of showing an almost meaningless Lille v. Manchester United fixture or the Celtic v. Juventus game, which was always going to be more competitive.
They chose Manchester United because that’s the team ITV supports, especially Mr. Clive Tyldesley whose drooling over Manchester United is becoming very tiresome indeed.
I saw the ‘extended highlights’ later on and it was some game. The studio panel, Barnes and, I think Townsend, thought it the best of all the group matches - in all groups I mean, not just that group.
Got to agree the penalty was a bit dodgy but there was a clear handball shortly after so I guess it evened out.
Very tiresome indeed. However, it did give us this little gem (which still brings a smile to my face):
Clive Tyldesley (with a lump in his throat) to Ron Atkinson about one minute from the end of Manchester United’s Champions Leagure Quarter-Final game against FC Bayern last year (Man. Utd. were 3-1 down on aggregate) - “They’re not going to do it, are they, Ron?”
Priceless!
But back to Celtic, if only that penalty in Turin hadn’t been given (and it had finished a draw), it would have been Celtic and Porto going through to the second group phase with Juventus out.
Clive Tilsley, I worhip the ground that awaits you. I have so much bile built up for both you and Andy Gray that I could decompose the Angel of the North. I get the impression that you get a milkbottle in your underpants at the mere thought of Manchester United. I worry about what happens to you when they score a goal. I’d almost bet you commentate in a red Gimp suit with the logo of Manunited on the front.
Bring back Brian Moore, I say. He used to sound like he’s turn into Satan every time someone did something exciting. But he was definitely in the United Fans club, but not as much as Tillsley or Gray.
Sometimes, when you listen very closely, you can hear Akinsons jewlery rattle…
Anyway:
Celtic, I love you. The unbridled joy of watching Celtic score is akin to nothing else on this planet. The rush of seeing Larrson make even more of a mockery of the Borg defense, watching Sutton bang one in on the volley, the exaltation on the face of players like Moloney as they score their first goal for the club, To see the replay of The Lisbon Lions lifting the European cup in 67,
My friends, dreams are made of this.
Plus, on occasion, I get to watch Celtic play with Ruadh!!
Guys and gals, she is one cool chika to be with when you’re drink vodka and watching Celtic.
The penalty, under normal circumstances, would be very questionable. But before the call, the ref had held the corner kick to warn the players that he would be watching them. The defender had fair warning and still grabbed.
Yeah, but Juve would have fielded a different team against Celtic if they needed the win. Just think, the game would have been even better!
I only caught the second half. But what a great half of play. Great victory for Celtic. I dig Martin O’Neill – he’s really building an impressive team.
I think the Celtic need better competition than is currently available in their home league and since UEFA and FIFA have serious reservations about them playing in another league (and one can see all the likely problems, from crowd control to league starting position and reactions of other teams)
There does not seem to be the money available across enough of Scottish soccer to be able to put up worthy opposition.
Great performance by the Bhoys last night but as **Zoff[b/] said, Juve had already qualified. Celtic were unlucky in Turin but it was the defeat away to Rosenborg that really let them down.
Hopefully they put together a good run in the UEFA Cup. Otherwise all there’s left to look forward to is three old firm derbys and a succession of games against the undiluted dross that makes up the rest of the Scottish Premier League.
My seat is behind the other goal, so I didn’t have a clear enough view of the penalty to comment on it. I’m sure we deserved it though
Tansu - now that that shitebag Taylor is out, I can feel sorry for you guys again. I can imagine what a blow it must have been to lose both MON and Lennon. But seriously, you can have Guppy back. [sub]Please?[/sub] Anyway I prefer to think of the sad smiley as being the same colour as Rangers - look how well the team that knocked them out of the CL ended up doing BTW
I just can’t get over what a change there has been in our club since O’Neill took over. Treble winners, with an impressive CL campaign under our belt (on well on our way to securing another go next year), and seeded in the UEFA Cup. A hell of a long way from the dark days of the Barnes/Dalglish season (the last day of which one of my friends vowed that “if Celtic win the league next year I’ll crawl from Dublin to Belfast and give Ian Paisley a blow job”!!!).
O’Neill took a lot of stick for his tactics after the Porto and Rosenborg losses, but I’m really not sure there’s much he could have done differently. We haven’t got good enough fullbacks for a 4-4-2. I think Thompson might have played more effectively under that system (going by memories of his performances in earlier days, when MON was still playing around with his formations), but I think the 3-5-2 would have worked fine if Petta had been there as he has the pace and the defensive abilities Thompson’s so clearly lacking. I would have started Moravcik in more games, and probably Tom Boyd as well, but I think it was the absence/illness of Petta and Sutton in those two games that really did us in. And there wasn’t much O’Neill could do about that.
We were never going to beat Porto away anyway.
kabbes, I’d love us to draw Chelsea in the UEFA Cup and see Sutty get a hat-trick
casdave, I actually do think there’s a good chance of us and the scum joining the EPL, in a few years when the Sky contracts are renegotiated. UEFA and FIFA might be against it now but support for it is building and I think there’s a good chance they can be persuaded. If that doesn’t happen, though, I really don’t know what the answer is. I have kind of mixed feelings about it myself, but in the long run I do think it would be the best thing for all the clubs in Scotland.
