1. Having trouble logging in by clicking the link at the top right of the page? Click here to be taken to the log in page.
    Dismiss Notice

Ryan Christie

Discussion in 'Ex Players' started by LloydsGamble, Aug 28, 2015.

Discuss Ryan Christie in the Ex Players area at TalkCeltic.net.

  1. Thommo92

    Joined:
    Sep 9, 2012
    Messages:
    2,938
    Likes Received:
    234
    Location:
    London
    Fav Celtic Player:
    Tierney
    Best player on the park for me, exceptional.
     
  2. Gyp Rosetti Gold Member

    Joined:
    Apr 30, 2010
    Messages:
    52,893
    Likes Received:
    38,673
    Location:
    Govan
    Fav Celtic Player:
    Rogic
    Fav Celtic Song:
    Celtic symphony
    Bhoy was everywhere today, his energy is something else.
     
    Crilly, jimbobers and Rydo1888* like this.
  3. McChiellini..

    Joined:
    Jul 30, 2012
    Messages:
    103,487
    Likes Received:
    75,077
    Location:
    Looking down on the mutants..
    Fav Celtic Song:
    For those who are in love.....
    Grafts like *..

    Wasn't his effective best today on the ball in my opinion but his work rate makes up for it and more..
     
    jimbobers likes this.
  4. Henrik 07 Gold Member Gold Member

    Joined:
    Oct 6, 2012
    Messages:
    160,756
    Likes Received:
    88,535
  5. Scotia Gold Member Gold Member

    Joined:
    Apr 11, 2007
    Messages:
    26,304
    Likes Received:
    19,624
    Location:
    here and there
    Fav Celtic Player:
    you wear the hoops thats good enough
    Fav Celtic Song:
    over and over
     
    Crilly, Rydo1888* and Dannybhoy81 like this.
  6. Slaw Gold Member Gold Member

    Joined:
    May 18, 2008
    Messages:
    37,150
    Likes Received:
    8,286
    His engine is insane. Where does he get the energy? He never stopped sprinting today.
     
  7. Marty McFly Whoa, this is heavy

    Joined:
    May 11, 2014
    Messages:
    39,691
    Likes Received:
    38,171
    Location:
    Hill Valley
    Fav Celtic Player:
    Broony
    Fav Celtic Song:
    Celtic Symphony
    His vo2 max must be off the scale. Unreal fitness. I get knackered just watching the lad.
     
    Crilly likes this.
  8. Ciaran_67

    Joined:
    Jul 25, 2013
    Messages:
    6,172
    Likes Received:
    2,709
    Location:
    Glasgow
    Fav Celtic Player:
    Jan Venegoor of Hessilink
    How can someone run like that for 90 mins? Unreal levels of fitness
     
    Hammy89 and Crilly like this.
  9. Slaw Gold Member Gold Member

    Joined:
    May 18, 2008
    Messages:
    37,150
    Likes Received:
    8,286
    Genuinely baffled. I'd love to see the figures for how much ground he covered.
     
    Hammy89 and Crilly like this.
  10. Ciaran_67

    Joined:
    Jul 25, 2013
    Messages:
    6,172
    Likes Received:
    2,709
    Location:
    Glasgow
    Fav Celtic Player:
    Jan Venegoor of Hessilink
    I’m even trying to think about the top top level players. Is there anyone who is running like than for 90 mins? I can’t really think of anyone I’ve seen off the top off my head.
     
    Crilly likes this.
  11. JC Anton Get yer, hats, scarfs badges & tapes

    Joined:
    Jul 26, 2010
    Messages:
    50,816
    Likes Received:
    35,391
    Still not convinced he's a 10..
     
  12. The Prof Administrator Administrator

    Joined:
    Feb 28, 2010
    Messages:
    64,023
    Likes Received:
    42,900
    Location:
    Say Hello To My Little Friend ....
    Fav Celtic Player:
    Jinky

    Certainly no after that * haircut. :67:
     
  13. Crilly

    Joined:
    Aug 9, 2014
    Messages:
    5,233
    Likes Received:
    3,335
    Location:
    Dublin
    Kante.... can't think of many tbh
     
    charlietully likes this.
  14. celtic warrior

    Joined:
    Aug 29, 2007
    Messages:
    15,552
    Likes Received:
    7,101
    I know we've seen it and there is plenty of footage to see it but by * this guys touch and control its underrated.

    Was just one moment I think in the second half we were building an attack and the ball gets played to him at pace whilst he's running at pace and he just flicks into the path of Eddie?

    The attack didn't lead to anything as I'm sure who got the pass was then hounded on at the edge of box.

    But * me that little flash was * sublime, top qaulity stuff
     
    Whoflungdung and Maestro 08 like this.
  15. Henrik 07 Gold Member Gold Member

    Joined:
    Oct 6, 2012
    Messages:
    160,756
    Likes Received:
    88,535
    From the moment the ball arrowed into the Murrayfield net, Ryan Christie has refused to look back.

    It's little wonder why, nor is it in his make up to do so.



    Since his 2015 arrival, the Celtic midfielder has had to wait, wait and wait a little more for his chance.

    But now, on an October afternoon in Edinburgh, he's had enough of all that.


    Now it's time for something else.

    A place in the Betfred Cup Final awaits but Hearts are holding the holders, having already beaten them earlier this season.

    Christie has flitted in and out of the side but one popped Olivier Ntcham hamstring and a swing of his left boot later, everything changes


    Forced down the long road to the first team over three years, Celtic's slow burner suddenly explodes.


    A side-footed strike finds the top corner, Celtic win 3-0 and it's pure catharsis for the No.17, a turning point on this long road - without which there will have been no story to tell.

    Christie grew up in Inverness and that's where he received his formative football education.

    Dad Charlie, a former Celtic reserve player, took it upon himself to form an U-10 side at Caley Thistle, where he was still involved as a player-coach.

    The club didn't yet have one and he wouldn't have his boy poached up the road by Ross County.

    He was one of 60 kids that were eventually whittled down to just 16, a group which then entered Caley's academy setup.

    But the young Christie displayed an intelligence far beyond that of his peers and was soon playing up a level.

    From a young age he had very good game knowledge and game awareness," his dad tells Record Sport .

    "I think as a coach that's one of the hardest things to teach a youth player.

    "Ryan had that from a young age, he watched a lot of football on TV.

    "And the fact that I'd played meant he'd seen a lot of games."

    When the time came, his road into the Inverness first team was the very antithesis of what lay ahead at Celtic.


    John Hughes replaced Terry Butcher as boss in December 2013 and requested youth team training be scheduled so as not to clash with the senior squad, allowing him to get a look at players coming through.

    Within a minute of his first visit, Hughes had made his mind up.

    "Who's that?" he asked coach Scott Kellacher.


    That's Ryan Christie, Charlie's boy," came the reply.

    The 17-year-old didn't know it yet, but as of Monday he'd be training with the first team from now on.

    Before the month was out, he'd debuted, of course, against Celtic.

    Appearances were fleeting at first but tussling with the likes of Graeme Shinnie on the training pitch was enough for now.

    Christie's dad maintains if you make demands from him, he'll respond to you.

    So that's what Hughes did.

    "We used to test him during 7-a-side in training," he said.

    "If he got knocked or fouled we'd shout 'play on!'. He'd just get up, look at you, laugh and get on with it.

    "We were testing him for that reaction - he's nobody's mug.


    And the boys looked after him. They really respected his technical ability and him welcomed in as part of the team.

    "They understood he was someone who could take us where we wanted to go."

    That somewhere was Hampden, two years later.

    Christie, now a vital member of Hughes' side, shone as Caley upset Celtic in the Scottish Cup semi-final - you know, the one with the Josh Meekings hand ball that never was.

    But not even the most infamous of refereeing decisions could detract from the Highlanders' young playmaker.

    Hughes let slip to Christie Snr ahead of the game he planned to pin his boy up against Emilio Izaguirre, believing he could wreak havoc as the underdogs went after the Treble-chasing Hoops from the off.


    It worked, with Christie and Shinnie in inspired form.

    Caley went on to defeat Falkirk in the Final and suddenly the cat was out the bag.

    Celtic, stunned by this skinny kid from up north who seemed to just glide away from everyone in his path, sat up and took notice.

    When Christie helped himself to a goal and an assist at Parkhead four months later, Ronny Deila and John Collins' were in Hughes' ear after the game.


    he former Caley manager said: "I pulled Ryan before the game and said: 'I'm going to leave you on the bench and see where we are at half-time, but no matter what, you're going on at half time.

    "'I know Celtic are looking at you, and the stage will be yours'.

    "He went on in the second half and he was magnificent.

    "After the game I went and looked at JC and Ronny, and that's when Ronny asked all about him."

    They weren't the only ones.

    Hughes received a call from Eddie Howe at Bournemouth, hinting that a bid might be in the post.

    Whether it ever arrived or not was ultimately irrelevant, because as soon as Celtic firmed up their interest that was it.



    There was already an affinity - Christie's dad had been on the books at Parkhead and he himself was among the masses when Tony Watt slotted past Victor Valdes in 2012.

    Aged 20, he signed a four-year deal but was immediately loaned back to Inverness, only to be recalled in December with a knee injury.

    It made hitting the ground running near impossible and he was on the fringes by the time Brendan Rodgers arrived in 2016.

    Christie made just seven appearances as winter break rolled around and despite the manager's insistence he remained in his future plans, something had to be done about the here and now.

    He travelled with Celtic to Dubai and it was there the next, and perhaps most important diversion on this journey, was sealed.

    A chance meeting between Rodgers and Derek McInnes, whose Aberdeen were also in the UAE for warm weather training, put the wheels in motion.


    And it was at Pittodrie that he came of age.

    Flourishing in the role of the team's main creative outlet, Christie took on a level of responsibility that would serve him well in seasons to come.

    The slight physique was also on the way out thanks to endless, punishing hours in the gym.

    And then there was the influence of McInnes and Tony Docherty, making those demands he so readily responded to.

    However, it was a loan move that was both fulfilling and frustrating.

    "I could see in his face and in the back of his mind, he wanted to prove himself at Celtic," his dad recalled.

    "I said: 'Look Ryan, you need to get game time, you're going out on loan for the right reasons'."

    But it was difficult watching Rodgers' all-conquering side from such close proximity, difficult not being allowed to even play against them, to show what he could do.


    When Tom Rogic fired past Joe Lewis to put the final, historic touch on the Invincible Treble, Christie had fled to America with his girlfriend, just to escape it all.

    When he reported to Lennoxtown that summer, the prospect of another loan was met with trepidation.

    His family, they themselves inwardly pondering if it was ever going to happen for him, counselled further patience.

    "He started the next season at Celtic but Aberdeen were desperate to get him back. They were actually quite keen to buy him but Celtic didn't want to sell," his dad said.

    "He was a wee bit apprehensive about going back out on-loan. He had an in depth, long discussion with Brendan Rodgers and he said: 'You're definitely part of my plans. But I want you to go out and get more game time'.

    "Ryan saw the benefit in that but he felt he was ready for Celtic then.

    "It's probably been proved right, getting that full season under his belt."





    The phrase Rodgers later used was Christie needed "minutes in his legs" and he again returned from the North East a more robust, rounded footballer having made 58 appearances in total for the Dons.

    But yet, the uncertainty lingered another summer in which he almost joined Hibs. In fact, it didn't really go away until that day at Murrayfield.

    Goals, assists and trophies - including a Betfred Cup Final winner against, naturally, Aberdeen - have followed but the most impressive thing about Christie is perhaps what's between his ears.

    Not even that harrowing clash of heads with Dom Ball at Hampden, which shook his dad to the core, required three hours of surgery and ruled him out of the Scottish Cup final, could dampen an unshakable resolve.

    Before Celtic's first outing on this summer's pre-season trip to Austria, little more than a glorified bounce game against local side SC Pinkafeld, Christie was on the phone home the night before, high as a kite at the prospect of even the most low-key return to the pitch.




    There's a single-mindedness and an appetite that perhaps sets him apart from those who made similar moves at similar times but never quite scaled the heights - the Scott Allan's and Gary Mackay-Steven's of the world.

    His old man, repeatedly stressing he doesn't want to sound like a broken record, keeps tracing it back to one thing.

    "His attitude again, I know I keep going on about it," he said.

    "He'd laugh if he heard me because as I don't give him plaudits. People used to tell me I was too hard on him.


    But I take my hat off to Ryan. He lives his life the right way, applies himself at training.



    I've spoken to senior players and staff at Celtic. He's got a strong mindset. I know him better than anyone else on the planet and he deserves it."

    Going on about it? Perhaps, but he's certainly not wrong.
     
    Last edited: Sep 11, 2019
    jimbobers, paulie67, Crilly and 5 others like this.
  16. Marty McFly Whoa, this is heavy

    Joined:
    May 11, 2014
    Messages:
    39,691
    Likes Received:
    38,171
    Location:
    Hill Valley
    Fav Celtic Player:
    Broony
    Fav Celtic Song:
    Celtic Symphony
    Cool story bro
     
  17. Whoflungdung

    Joined:
    Feb 22, 2019
    Messages:
    2,310
    Likes Received:
    1,576
    Fav Celtic Player:
    Ryan Christie
    Fav Celtic Song:
    SOldiers song
    Great story, a well grounded intelligent lad from a good family, always had the ability and I predict will be consistently a very top Celtic player worth millions......cut him and he bleeds green and white......................
     
  18. Slaw Gold Member Gold Member

    Joined:
    May 18, 2008
    Messages:
    37,150
    Likes Received:
    8,286
    This comment popped into my head when watching Ireland v Switzerland the other day.. James McClean and Ryan Christie have got to be the two hardest working footballers on the planet :giggle1:
     
    charlietully likes this.
  19. Dan Breen

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2019
    Messages:
    4,318
    Likes Received:
    2,341
    Fav Celtic Song:
    Grace
    Guess we will have to wait for Aussie Tam to get back up to speed before we can afford to rest Ryan.
     
  20. Hammy89 Gold Member Gold Member

    Joined:
    Apr 10, 2008
    Messages:
    18,025
    Likes Received:
    20,556
    Location:
    Paradise
    Fav Celtic Player:
    Larsson, McNamara, Moravčík, Boruc and Boyd
    Fav Celtic Song:
    YNWA, Fields Of Athenry and The Celtic Song
    The world's greatest scientific are currently trying to prove if Christie even needs rests.