"My job is to bring better players to the club to help the existing players that we have," said Tony Mowbray towards the end of last season as West Brom manager.
“You can't go and change all ten or eleven players and bring in some world stars, we haven't got the finance to do that but I think that we have some very talented boys at this club.
“If we can keep going and add one or two per season I think that we won't be far away in the end and hopefully have a team that the fans can enjoy watching and be proud of supporting.”
TONY MOWBRAY INTERVIEW
Those words from Tony Mowbray could easily be interpreted as his application for the Celtic job!
Two weeks after the departure of Gordon Strachan it seems very likely that Tony Mowbray will be appointed as Celtic manager.
A discrete process to appoint a new manager has been carried out in a new age where alongside the guesswork of traditional media internet rumours have been appearing daily and sometimes hourly with a Friday frenzy claiming that a new 'dream-ticket' of Mark McGhee and Henrik Larsson were posed for the gig.
A few others would have been looked at but after Davie Moyes ruled himself out it was probably a straight contest between Mowbray, Owen Coyle and Roberto Martinez.
For various reasons I think that Mowbray would have just edged that contest ahead of Coyle, Burnley's promotion and the timing of Strachan's departure (during the match that won Burnley promotion!) ruled Coyle out with Martinez a more interesting and exciting option than media darlings McGhee and Craig Levein.
We were never going to get the perfect manager but only Martin O'Neill has arrived at Celtic with a better pedigree than Mowbray.
He was a shock choice to become Hibs manager in 2004 when Alan Kernaghan was expected, in his first season he took the club to third place in the SPL lifting the hangover of a CIS Cup Final defeat to Livingston whilst developing Derek Riordan, Scott Brown, Gary O'Connor and Gary Caldwell into Scotland players and transferred on to bigger clubs.
Realising the limitations of Hibs he moved to West Brom and stabilised the club after Premiership relegation to win promotion in his first full season in charge playing good passing football that had the West Brom fans excited and enjoying their football.
I have my reservations over being relegated last season sticking to principles, being pragmatic and adapting to circumstances is an essential part of management and possibly with a few adjustments West Brom could have survived alongside Stoke and Hull.
That is now in the past for Mowbray, he's 99% certain to be the new Celtic manager and will hopefully have learned some important lessons to be implemented at Celtic.
As a player Mowbray was at Celtic when the playing style drew praise without winning silverware under Liam Brady and Tommy Burns.
His time at Celtic ended without any medals although a bizarre booking against Partick Thistle, possibly after arguing with Chic Charnley, earned him a suspension and cost him his place in the 1995 Scottish Cup win over Airdrie.
Playing good exciting, entertaining football shouldn't be at the expense of winning matches and trophies in the grim SPL of 2009.
For years we've been buying up the best of the SPL and as recently as January of this year held a seven point lead over Rangers.
Despite winning the SPL Rangers remain in serious financial difficulties with at least six wages to be shed during the summer alongside raising money from the sales of any combination of Kris Boyd, Allan McGregor, Madjid Bougherra, Pedro Mendes and Steve Davis.
Mowbray has a big challenge in lifting players who've taken criticism for almost a whole season and getting them ready for very difficult Champions League qualifiers whilst hitting the ground running in the SPL.
That's part and parcel of the challenge of managing Celtic and everything about Mowbray the manager and person suggests that he is well capable of taking it in his stride.
The Match-of-the-Day critics gave West Brom a pounding last season but Mowbray responded sensibly to their comments while sticking up for the way that he sees how the game should be played.
Answering back at his television studio critics Mowbray added: “I don't let the criticism effect me to be honest, people get paid to give comments and generally they have earned the right to do that.
“They've had fantastic football careers and won lots of trophies, I totally respect their opinions but the bottom line is that I'm the manager of West Bromwich Albion and I'm bringing my own philosophies to the team. That's what football is.
“There are lots of different ways to play the game, some want to keep possession of the ball and move it around and some go back to front asking defenders questions with 6 foot 4 centre forwards coming down on top of them.
“You make choices in this game and live and die by them. What I think is that you make your choice, stick with it and believe that it's right and I'm doing that.
“It would go against the grain for me to just start going direct and getting the ball into the box and fighting for the second ball.
“I feel that I have a responsibility to improve footballers and make them better to give them an opportunity to take their careers as far as they can.
“When I watch football I don't see many top teams hooking the ball over their shoulders and playing long balls into the box and fighting for scraps.
“I see thoughtful, clever, technical, gifted footballers playing, passing and moving and trying to get the ball into the box.”
Saturday, 6 June 2009
Tuesday, 2 June 2009
Derek Whyte: "When you play at this club it's like a tattoo on your skin, it never leaves you, it's with you for life and that's a great feeling."
It was great to catch up with Derek Whyte at the Tommy Burns match.
CLICK HERE for full interview
Derek spent six eventful years at Celtic, winning two championships and two Scottish Cups before moving on to Middlesboro and Aberdeen before finishing his career at Partick Thistle where he had a spell as joint manager alongside Gerry Britton.
Seventeen years after leaving Celtic he still loves the club as much as ever, the bond is there amongst players past and present and the lure of playing again at Celtic Park as strong as ever, even in the tragic circumstances of a match to commemorate the life of a former team-mate.
Tommy Burns played in front of Derek when he broke into the first-team but before then Tommy and Danny McGrain had already been working with him, showing him the ropes and preparing for the unique demands of playing for Celtic.
Derek went on to make over 200 appearances for Celtic under Davie Hay, Billy McNeill and Liam Brady before moving on to Middlesbrough where he spent five seasons playing in the Premiership and First Division.
"When you play at this club it's almost like a tattoo on your skin, it never leaves you, it's with you for life and that's a great feeling," sums up Derek's views on playing for Celtic.
CLICK HERE for full interview, the sound quality isn't quite the best but I'm working on that
CLICK HERE for full interview
Derek spent six eventful years at Celtic, winning two championships and two Scottish Cups before moving on to Middlesboro and Aberdeen before finishing his career at Partick Thistle where he had a spell as joint manager alongside Gerry Britton.
Seventeen years after leaving Celtic he still loves the club as much as ever, the bond is there amongst players past and present and the lure of playing again at Celtic Park as strong as ever, even in the tragic circumstances of a match to commemorate the life of a former team-mate.
Tommy Burns played in front of Derek when he broke into the first-team but before then Tommy and Danny McGrain had already been working with him, showing him the ropes and preparing for the unique demands of playing for Celtic.
Derek went on to make over 200 appearances for Celtic under Davie Hay, Billy McNeill and Liam Brady before moving on to Middlesbrough where he spent five seasons playing in the Premiership and First Division.
"When you play at this club it's almost like a tattoo on your skin, it never leaves you, it's with you for life and that's a great feeling," sums up Derek's views on playing for Celtic.
CLICK HERE for full interview, the sound quality isn't quite the best but I'm working on that
Sunday, 31 May 2009
Celtic reach final of Hong Kong 7's
Celtic face Rangers at 6.45pm Hong Kong time in the final of the annual 7 a side tournament.
Ryan Conroy's goal against the Australian national team in the semi-finals earned Celtic their final place while Rangers beat Aston Villa in the other semi final.
The Celtic side, coached by Willie McStay, beat a Hong Kong select, under the name of Citizen, 3-1 in the last eight thanks to a double from Mark Millar and another goal from Conroy.
In their previous match Celtic beat local side Kitchee 2-0 with Millar and Paul McGowan the goalscorers.
Celtic are making their tenth appearance in the tournament which covers all levels of football from under-16's through to veterans.
Included in the Celtic squad is Cillian Sheridan, Niall McGinn and Milan Misun.
Details on the tournament aren't easy to find but this site seems to be covering it
Ryan Conroy's goal against the Australian national team in the semi-finals earned Celtic their final place while Rangers beat Aston Villa in the other semi final.
The Celtic side, coached by Willie McStay, beat a Hong Kong select, under the name of Citizen, 3-1 in the last eight thanks to a double from Mark Millar and another goal from Conroy.
In their previous match Celtic beat local side Kitchee 2-0 with Millar and Paul McGowan the goalscorers.
Celtic are making their tenth appearance in the tournament which covers all levels of football from under-16's through to veterans.
Included in the Celtic squad is Cillian Sheridan, Niall McGinn and Milan Misun.
Details on the tournament aren't easy to find but this site seems to be covering it
Managerial merry-go-round madness
Thankfully the recent pain of watching Celtic throwing away the title to a woefully inept Rangers side has been eased by the departure of Gordon Strachan.
What happens next is the big guessing game, and guessing game it surely is with internet message boards as likely to come up with the answer as any old fashioned traditional media.
Without doubt only Dermot Desmond decides on who manages Celtic, Peter Lawwell gets on with the legwork and John Reid delivers soundbites for reassurance.
On past evidence Desmond prefers to recruit from England which makes Davie Moyes, Tony Mowbray and Owen Coyle the obvious contenders with Roy Keane a very interesting dark horse.
The sounding out process will have been underway for a while, no one ruling themselves in or out and knowing that being linked with Celtic won't do them any harm in future contract negotiations.
Personally I think that Mowbray is the favourite but there are similar cases to be put up for most candidates with three of those four being former Celtic players and Coyle a very obvious Celtic fan if not quite in the Chic Charnley mould!
A new direction is urgently required at Celtic but curiously I think that just three first-team signings are required to create a team capable of winning next season's SPL with some ease.
Those signings start at left-back, the position Celtic have been screaming out for for two years or four transfer windows in real money.
A competent, steady-eddie type would do nicely, shouldn't burst the bank and provide some welcome stability to the defence with enough central defenders to pick a solid combination from to complement Andreas Hinkel on the right.
Two strikers to compete with Scott McDonald and a fully fit, and confident, Shaun Maloney would make a world of difference while Scott Brown and Aiden McGeady can form the basis of a strong midfield backed up by others such as Marc Crossas, Barry Robson and Paul Hartley with hopefully Mark Millar and Simon Ferry making first team inroads.
The new manager will also inherit Scott Cuthbert, Paul Caddis, Cillian Sheridan and Paul McGowan who have been spared the last five months at Celtic whilst enjoying regular first-team football in the SPL.
It's unrealistic to expect all five to make a first team impact next season but when Strachan arrived he couldn't have anticipated the contributions of McGeady, Maloney and Stephen McManus in his first season.
We have a more than capable squad for winning in Scotland for the new manager to inherit. Adding some variety to the style of play, some belief and new faces to that squad will work wonders.
Realistically the Champions League is unlikely next season, our main pleasure is likely to be watching a woeful Rangers side recreate the campaigns of the mid 90s when giants like Auxerre and Grasshoppers were assured of easy points with Christian Gross once famously describing Rangers as a team of holidaymakers.
Our concern however is Celtic and after the straightjacket approach of Strachan the support is crying out for some entertainment mixed with success, elements that can be achieved together.
The new appointment is eagerly anticipated with a new direction required, one that is successful and pleasing on the eye without having to be Brazil 1970ish.
Reaching out and communicating with supporters is a key element, there are enough channels available to the new manager through the club website, Celtic TV and the Celtic View for the manager to get his message across without digging a hole for himself with childish run-ins with the traditional forms of media.
All sorts of names have been guessed at in newspapers with some happy to cover five or six names in the one piece illustrating that outwith a very small circle, possibly consisting of only three men, no-one else really has any idea of how Celtic are going about the recruitment process.
Without any genuine leads some have turned to criticise the Celtic support with the old chestnut of 'Celtic-minded' coined by Jock Brown I believe, the favoured way to put in some sly digs at the support.
Celtic fans like people who understand the club, Henrik Larsson, Jock Stein, Wim Jansen and Danny McGrain weren't born and raised as Celtic supporters but quickly realised the unique importance of the club to thousands of supporters near and far and knew that being at Celtic was more than just a nice line on their cv.
Almost all of Martin O'Neill's players quickly realised that Celtic was a bit different and special, Alan Thompson is often seen at Celtic matches, I doubt if he holds Aston Villa or Bolton in the same regard.
Does Chris Sutton follow Chelsea and Blackburn as closely as Celtic? Does John Hartson keep tabs on Luton and Arsenal the way that he watches Celtic?
Celtic are different from others in a way that's hard to describe, impossible for the sceptical outsider to realise.
Some crucial decisions are coming soon at the club, a new leader and direction to emerge which will hopefully point the club back in the right direction giving the supporters the same feeling as the Larsson inspired O'Neill years or the highs of Champions League qualifications under Strachan.
What happens next is the big guessing game, and guessing game it surely is with internet message boards as likely to come up with the answer as any old fashioned traditional media.
Without doubt only Dermot Desmond decides on who manages Celtic, Peter Lawwell gets on with the legwork and John Reid delivers soundbites for reassurance.
On past evidence Desmond prefers to recruit from England which makes Davie Moyes, Tony Mowbray and Owen Coyle the obvious contenders with Roy Keane a very interesting dark horse.
The sounding out process will have been underway for a while, no one ruling themselves in or out and knowing that being linked with Celtic won't do them any harm in future contract negotiations.
Personally I think that Mowbray is the favourite but there are similar cases to be put up for most candidates with three of those four being former Celtic players and Coyle a very obvious Celtic fan if not quite in the Chic Charnley mould!
A new direction is urgently required at Celtic but curiously I think that just three first-team signings are required to create a team capable of winning next season's SPL with some ease.
Those signings start at left-back, the position Celtic have been screaming out for for two years or four transfer windows in real money.
A competent, steady-eddie type would do nicely, shouldn't burst the bank and provide some welcome stability to the defence with enough central defenders to pick a solid combination from to complement Andreas Hinkel on the right.
Two strikers to compete with Scott McDonald and a fully fit, and confident, Shaun Maloney would make a world of difference while Scott Brown and Aiden McGeady can form the basis of a strong midfield backed up by others such as Marc Crossas, Barry Robson and Paul Hartley with hopefully Mark Millar and Simon Ferry making first team inroads.
The new manager will also inherit Scott Cuthbert, Paul Caddis, Cillian Sheridan and Paul McGowan who have been spared the last five months at Celtic whilst enjoying regular first-team football in the SPL.
It's unrealistic to expect all five to make a first team impact next season but when Strachan arrived he couldn't have anticipated the contributions of McGeady, Maloney and Stephen McManus in his first season.
We have a more than capable squad for winning in Scotland for the new manager to inherit. Adding some variety to the style of play, some belief and new faces to that squad will work wonders.
Realistically the Champions League is unlikely next season, our main pleasure is likely to be watching a woeful Rangers side recreate the campaigns of the mid 90s when giants like Auxerre and Grasshoppers were assured of easy points with Christian Gross once famously describing Rangers as a team of holidaymakers.
Our concern however is Celtic and after the straightjacket approach of Strachan the support is crying out for some entertainment mixed with success, elements that can be achieved together.
The new appointment is eagerly anticipated with a new direction required, one that is successful and pleasing on the eye without having to be Brazil 1970ish.
Reaching out and communicating with supporters is a key element, there are enough channels available to the new manager through the club website, Celtic TV and the Celtic View for the manager to get his message across without digging a hole for himself with childish run-ins with the traditional forms of media.
All sorts of names have been guessed at in newspapers with some happy to cover five or six names in the one piece illustrating that outwith a very small circle, possibly consisting of only three men, no-one else really has any idea of how Celtic are going about the recruitment process.
Without any genuine leads some have turned to criticise the Celtic support with the old chestnut of 'Celtic-minded' coined by Jock Brown I believe, the favoured way to put in some sly digs at the support.
Celtic fans like people who understand the club, Henrik Larsson, Jock Stein, Wim Jansen and Danny McGrain weren't born and raised as Celtic supporters but quickly realised the unique importance of the club to thousands of supporters near and far and knew that being at Celtic was more than just a nice line on their cv.
Almost all of Martin O'Neill's players quickly realised that Celtic was a bit different and special, Alan Thompson is often seen at Celtic matches, I doubt if he holds Aston Villa or Bolton in the same regard.
Does Chris Sutton follow Chelsea and Blackburn as closely as Celtic? Does John Hartson keep tabs on Luton and Arsenal the way that he watches Celtic?
Celtic are different from others in a way that's hard to describe, impossible for the sceptical outsider to realise.
Some crucial decisions are coming soon at the club, a new leader and direction to emerge which will hopefully point the club back in the right direction giving the supporters the same feeling as the Larsson inspired O'Neill years or the highs of Champions League qualifications under Strachan.
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