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Very interesting admission from journalist Stephen McGowan today. It's also worth nothing that McGowan is the most reliable journalist out there with Celtic and usually the first to break the transfer stories.

"The one that sums it up best is Ivan Toney, who they had in Glasgow, actually in the building – who wanted to sign for Celtic and they could have got for £6 million. For whatever reason, probably financial, they decided not to commit and signed Ajeti."

Toney is currently top scorer in the Championship this season with 24 goals. Ajeti has looked fat, awkward and disinterested this season.

Fergal Harkin - loan manager at Man City
David Webb - former executive with Spurs, Bournemouth and Huddersfield
Mario Tognozzi - chief scout at Juve

They are supposedly the three candidates linked with the new director of football role. I think it's a good move in the long run, Lawwell had far too much say and control at Celtic over the past decade, it was effectively a dictatorship.

This model works effectively with a training ground focused manager, someone who is tactically astute and with a track record of bringing players on and developing them.

We've had some good success in recent years with youth team players, McGregor, Forrest, Tierney etc all establishing them as first team regulars. All three made huge progress under Rodgers. It's interesting the amount of youth team players we lost since Lennon came into the job.

Morrison and Hepburn left for Bayern
Allan went to Man City

Would they have left had Rodgers still been there?

Looks like Dembele will also move on shortly too. Bar Welsh and Hazard who were only thrust in due to emergencies we have had no real youth team player development. Johnston had already established himself under Rodgers.

This is the model that is best suited to Celtic at the minute, bring players through, develop them and then hawk them down to English clubs for mass profits and reinvest that money back in. We've done a half arsed version of this in the past - we brought players through, developed them and then sold them on the cheap to the EPL at the first attempt with Lawwell trousering the money.

We need to be firm on our valuations of players this time, we need to put the money into tying them down on contracts so they not sold on the cheap and we need to reinvest any money from this straight back into the first team.

Keane not the man in my opinion. Mickey O Neill for me, but would he leave Stoke. Maybe if he was under pressure,  but that doesn't seem to be the case. Good guy, intelligent, cool head.

I'd have Rafa above him, for some reason I get a feeling Celtic would suit him. Doesn't need the massive money, got £12m in his job at China. Would love the challenge of getting Celtic back to the top, and some big European nights.

Would he leave Stoke?

FFS.

If Celtic are willing to buy out his contract and match his terms at Stoke, he'd be up the road in a heartbeat.

It would cost Celtic about £5m to release him from his contract though and I can't see Celtic doing that for a manager when there are currently a number of very qualified managers without a job at present.

Wouldn't have Keane anywhere near Celtic.

FFS the guy failed at Sunderland and Ipswich. The last manager we had was ran out of Hibs and Bolton.

It's very clear the type of manager we need.

We need a guy who has a track record of coming in and developing players, who has a defined style of play that reflects dominating possession and is someone who is both very clued in tactically and relentless on the training ground. Roy Keane is none of those.

Roy Keane is just name, a guy with a big reputation due to his playing days but who has an appalling track record as a coach. His legacy is Sunderland are now a debt ridden League One club. Failed at Ipswich, mass fallings out with players.

What other clubs do you see looking to offer Roy Keane a job in management? For good reason clubs would not touch him with a bargepole.

Has Angelo been closed down again?
Only 8 posts on this subject in 24 hours

Bedad but you are some tulip. 
You've announced to the world umpteen times that Angelo is on your ignore list and here you are counting his posts down to number, time and topic. Yer some boyo but then again, you are a Rossie so logic doesn't come into it.

He's obsessed.

Pitiful really that he only felt the courage to have a few snipes at me when he thought I was gone.

Harry Loughran having to retire from gaelic football at the age of 26.

Will be a big loss for Moy.

Huge loss to the Moy. He certainly knew where the goals were. He was never able to get a run of games for Tyrone due to injury, it's a case of what could have been for the county.

Sad to see any players football cut short at what should be their peak years. I wish him well and hope the injury isn't to bad that in impacts more than football.

+1

For a man who played probably little over 100 mins of Championship football for Tyrone. He had some very big moments in them.

Very unfortunate with injuries along the way.

Harry Loughran having to retire from gaelic football at the age of 26.

Will be a big loss for Moy.

Surely the board know that Kennedy will send the fans over the edge and season ticket renewals could become very problematic. Even if Kennedy wins the Scottish Cup and the 8 games left he should not get the job.

Let him go off elsewhere and prove himself.

Questions for those deciding not take the vaccine. Have you been asking, no, probably pleading (as I'd assume most Covid anti-vaxers are doing it re safety issues) with friends and family not to take it too (you'll be wanting to keep them safe, like yourselves) ? And, in your opinion, should the rest of us not take it during this vaccine roll out?

Everyone should make their own mind up. Not my business to tell others what to do, nor is the right of zealots to impose their will on other people either.

[R1]

Looking at the CL path for next season with Celtic.

They would have three qualifying rounds to have navigate with Celtic entering the 1st qualifying round.

R1
Celtic
PSV (currently 2nd in the Dutch League)
Besiktas (currently 2nd in the Turkish League)
Rapid Vienna (currently 2nd in the Austrian League)
FC Midtjyland (currently 2nd in the Danish League)
Sparta Prague (currently 2nd in the Czech)

Celtic will likely be seeded for this round. Three winners will progress to next round

R2
3 teams who progress from above
Braga (3rd in Portuguese league)
PSG* (currently 3rd in France)
CSKA (2nd in Russia)
Shakthar (2nd in Ukraine)
Antwerp (2nd in Belgium)

Celtic won't be seeded in this round. 4 winners progress to play off round with two ties and the two winners qualifying for the CL.

PSG look like the outlier there but will probably finish in the top 2 anyway.

Outside of that it will be tricky for Celtic but they certainly should not be in awe of any of those sides.

A potential path of

Rapid Vienna
Besiktas
CSKA

is more than doable.

What if they get Sparta Prague first who have beaten them 4-1 home and away this season... then they're goosed!

Are they?

You picked two sides pushing for CL spots this year.

The point I made is if the board aren't showing any ambition they'll end up with one of the names you don't want.

Of course it depends on the boards ambition. We have both the resources and reputation to attract a top manager but it depends if the board are serious about improving Celtic

As for Everton and West Ham.

I highly doubt either will be in the CL next season.

Neither will Celtic

Why do you say that?

First of, they have to keep Hibs off second spot, and secondly they have to qualify through the early stages.  Form would suggest they will struggle, optimism will not do it

They are 12 points ahead of Hibs with 8 games left. They have second spot sewn up.

I would say Celtic are probably 4x more likely to be in the CL next season than Everton or West Ham.

Hibs win their game in hand and its 9 points... Again Celtic's form and if they play Rangers twice that's a loss of 6 points, do they play Hibs in the run in?  Be interesting

For that to happen Hibs would need to get 13 more points than Celtic in their last 9 games. If Hibs went on a 9 game winning run they would still need Celtic to drop 14 points and Hibs are not going on a 9 game winning run.

2nd place is done and dusted for Celtic.

You picked two sides pushing for CL spots this year.

The point I made is if the board aren't showing any ambition they'll end up with one of the names you don't want.

Of course it depends on the boards ambition. We have both the resources and reputation to attract a top manager but it depends if the board are serious about improving Celtic

As for Everton and West Ham.

I highly doubt either will be in the CL next season.

Neither will Celtic

Why do you say that?

First of, they have to keep Hibs off second spot, and secondly they have to qualify through the early stages.  Form would suggest they will struggle, optimism will not do it

They are 12 points ahead of Hibs with 8 games left. They have second spot sewn up.

I would say Celtic are probably 4x more likely to be in the CL next season than Everton or West Ham.

[R1]

Looking at the CL path for next season with Celtic.

They would have three qualifying rounds to have navigate with Celtic entering the 1st qualifying round.

R1
Celtic
PSV (currently 2nd in the Dutch League)
Besiktas (currently 2nd in the Turkish League)
Rapid Vienna (currently 2nd in the Austrian League)
FC Midtjyland (currently 2nd in the Danish League)
Sparta Prague (currently 2nd in the Czech)

Celtic will likely be seeded for this round. Three winners will progress to next round

R2
3 teams who progress from above
Braga (3rd in Portuguese league)
PSG* (currently 3rd in France)
CSKA (2nd in Russia)
Shakthar (2nd in Ukraine)
Antwerp (2nd in Belgium)

Celtic won't be seeded in this round. 4 winners progress to play off round with two ties and the two winners qualifying for the CL.

PSG look like the outlier there but will probably finish in the top 2 anyway.

Outside of that it will be tricky for Celtic but they certainly should not be in awe of any of those sides.

A potential path of

Rapid Vienna
Besiktas
CSKA

is more than doable.

You picked two sides pushing for CL spots this year.

The point I made is if the board aren't showing any ambition they'll end up with one of the names you don't want.

Of course it depends on the boards ambition. We have both the resources and reputation to attract a top manager but it depends if the board are serious about improving Celtic

As for Everton and West Ham.

I highly doubt either will be in the CL next season.

Neither will Celtic

Why do you say that?

You picked two sides pushing for CL spots this year.

The point I made is if the board aren't showing any ambition they'll end up with one of the names you don't want.

Of course it depends on the boards ambition. We have both the resources and reputation to attract a top manager but it depends if the board are serious about improving Celtic

As for Everton and West Ham.

I highly doubt either will be in the CL next season.