WGS attacks Mowbray

Gord bless WGS. That is the most positive thing I have heard in ages. Spun into something negative by the press. Showed class and loyalty even beyond the job. I will never understood fans who didnt see what a quality wee guy he is. He is right. I have been following for 30 years and not that many players have been technically better ball players than McGeady, Maloney and Naka. Only Lubo and Di Canio spring to mind Its pure fantasy to say we usually had better ball platyers because for most of the 30 years I have watched we havent and we could only dream of tricky wee skillful players.

As for Mowbray. All I will say is 3 in a row (1 game off being 4), 3 CL runs, 2 last 16s, several cups. A bad workman blames his tools.

 

markybhoy tell me this ,as i have followed celtic all my life ,,the question is who da fuc is wgs sounds like abbriveasion for [*] c ye slan ps good post :bbpd:

 

If Strachan thinks our players are so technically brilliant then let's see him get up here with some of Middlesbrough's millions and buy a few of them. Then Tony Mowbray can set about bringing in players who can handle a wee bit of justified criticism and who are capable of playing the type of football Mowbray, I and many other Celtic fans want to see.

 

Fair play to WGS for defending himself... I felt that it was out of line what Mowbray said and although I do like TM I think that he has to learn to shoulder some of the blame for poor performances himself and not redirect it towards his players...

I wish WGS all the best and I hope that he does well at Boro.

 

He was talking about more than 1 season. He had Naka and McGeady for 4 seasons and Maloney (in two bits) and Broony for 2 seasons. Over the period all players were very important to some real success and wonderful nights in the CL and/or SPL. The chances are Mowbray will never equal that with or without these players that he is moaning about. His moaning about player quality (even if its not ideal) just doesnt wash because these players in various combinations have done far far better in Europe at a higher level and also were no worse than Mowbray has them playing in the SPL (and crucially won 3 out of 4).

WGS is right to praise these guys and there are many others who at times have been crucial to our trophy hall. OK they were incosistant but I would be proud of them too. You could add other players who frustrated at times but who were xrucial in games in the CL and SPL like JVOH (how many crucial goals!!!), Artur of coarse (CL games especially). Even more unsung guys like Hartley, Naylor and Skippy were absolutely crucial in CL games and together these guys pulled off some incredible and unlikely CL success.

This is not refering to you Dannitghirl but anyone who interprets that interview as WGS having a go is thick as mince BTW. Actually read it. WGS is very tactful and only stands by his players who fans tend to forget all chipped in with performances that contributed to our success.

 

Agreed good post!

 

At the end of the day, it is 2 mens differing opinions and styles.
No big deal.

 

Thing is Mowbray is fixing something that is not really broke, maybe needing minor repairs but not broke. He keeps saying its broke but its is laughable for him to say a squad is not good enough when many of them were involved in SPL success, CL wins etc in the past while he is making us go down like the Titanic in Europe and struggling in SPL games above mid table. OK the players fcked up in the last couple of months of the 4 year reign but I refuse to judge them on that. Otherwise, ugly or not, they did the job better than any team since Steins.

I think Mowbrays problem is that he has a vision and that is more important to him than being pragmatic and winning and he is willing to dismantle a uniquely successful (other than the late stumble) squad who really knew how to win. They may not have been the dream ticket in terms of samba football but they knew how to win more than any other team in the last 30-odd years. Only the result matters in the end. For Mowbray to write off this and say they are not good enough makes no sense although he will get many fans who agree with him. Yes, we need improvements at CB and CF and we have lost a couple of really decent players in the summer but many of these players know a lot more about winning than Mowbray does.

 

I really liked wgs when he was manager and he did make some quality signings boruc, nakamura etc but mabe someone shud mention the likes of dion dublin and adam virgo 2 him........ lol

what yous think?

 

The fact that Strachan considers Brown a player with technical ability says it all.

 

I have been a bit disappointed in the manner in which TM has aired his greivances in public, about some of the players. The classy thing to do would have been to take the 1st half of the season, assess his squad, keep his counsel confined to his staff & the board, and deploy the scouts accordingly. This would mean no comments to the players or reporters. Better to cop a bit of flak for a few months, (which he has been getting anyhow), take it on the chin and not go public. Once the transfer window opens, be ready for business. Actions speak louder than words.

There are a number of benefits in doing things this way:

1. Keeping the players focused on the task of performing & winning football matches.

2. Not alerting the wider footballing community of our intention for wholesale change. If other clubs are aware he is looking to bring in a quantity of players, they are morre likely to bump up asking prices.

3. Offloading players he doesn't like, and not just giving away free transfers. Again if clubs know we are looking to bring in wholesale change, then they are aware there will be a number of players available for sale, they are less likely to meet Celtic's valuation.

4. The weight of expectation now. What happens if he is only able to bring in 1 or 2 players? Or only offload 1 or 2? Will that be viewed as a failure? Throughout the history of the January transfer window, Celtic have not conducted a great deal of business, preferring the 'end of season' window. Yes, there have been notable exceptions, Hinkel, Hartley, Robson & Samaras spring to mind, but a majority of the signings are not done in January. This was also true during O'Neill's tenure.

5. The current strife that 'that other team' currently are in could also impact on our plans. I don't think it should, but it is open to speculation. I'm not privy to the manager's intentions - or the boards for that matter - but I am sure the matter is being discussed in a serious manner by the likes of Lawwell, Desmond, Mowbray, etc. It would be irresponsible not to.

6. Like it or not, 'that other team' are still likely to be our closest competition, come the end of the season. This may change, and we will have to wait to see how events at Ipox evolve, but nothing can be taken for granted. I'd love to see the likes of Hibs or Dundee Utd being able to retain their best players and push on in the second half of the season, but history would suggest otherwise.

By TM making these criticisms and comments, it opened a can of worms, once said was always likely to provoke comment from a guy like WGS, and more importantly, at a time when 'that other team' are imploding, giving a story for the 'meeja' to turn their attention to us, deflecting it away from the meltdown across town.

it also leaves the possibility that if TM next batch of signings don't work out for whatever reason, or are on par with WGS signings, will the goodwill & patience of the fans continue, if there isn't a markable improvement in the performances on the pitch?

Then there is the possibility he has shown a glass jaw to criticism, that he can't help but respond to by affording blame elsewhere. As the manager, he is ultimately held accountable for our successes and failures. Is it possible that he may be liable to be exposed by future criticisms, if something down the line emerges, as it is always liable to do? For better or worse, this was something WGS never get sucked into, playing the 'meeja's' game by their rules.

I beliieve that TM has the potential to be a fine manager for years to come, but as there has already been a series of threads on this forum, calling for his removal, that this confidence is not universally shared throughout the Celtic support.

The stronger and more united we are, all the more enjoyable it will be to watching the bluenoses squabbling.

 

100% agree with everything you have said

 

Gunt I don't have a problem with GS stating they are good players, he signed them and worked with them so I would expect no less.

However, many of the games were not enjoyable to watch, maybe he enjoyed watching training but plenty of fans didn't enjoy watching the matches, especially last year when we weren't getting the results, the previous 3 (well 2 as I enjoyed his first season) we were getting the results which compensated for the poor performances.

A lot of our players are mediocre - there's just no denying it, due in a large part to GS having to slash the wage bill. He did manage to get more out of the players than TM is currently getting, except for last season where he didn't get the most out of the same group of players probably because we have such limited talent.

McGeady and Maloney may be good ball players but they are inconsistent, you never know which version will turn up.

 

we will see how many we want rid of he puts a offer in for

 

First of all, leave my * pet budgie out of it. He has had a traumatic week with the new cat and everything.

Secondly, if someone was talking about my family or friends i would have a quiet word.

Thirdly, yes he should shut the * up because he knows more than most that the hun press here dont five a * about Celtic or what he thinks and will print anything they think will divert attention away frrom the huns and undermine us.

So, he bought players that are * and feels that he needs to speak out.

He is the only * apart from the players themselves and you who thinks otherwise. we are clearly way way short of any level of technical competence, again you and Strachan may disagree, but anyone who knows what a football player should be able to do then watches us will see that Mowbary and the vast majority of Celtic fans are in agreement are lacking in quality.

Would i rather hear mowbary say they were great like Strachan did when they were truly and utterly * last year?
No!

If the players are too precious to take the truth then * them.
We need men at Celtic Park who can play and if they cant play they should be chased.

Strachan has left us with a pool of * and feels that it is an attack on his judgement.

It is.

Strachan your judgement tactics and acquisitions on the whole were *. You had luck, then it ran out and the worst Rangers team i have seen won the league.

We want football, his players cannot play it to a high enough level. deal with that gordon, for it is the truth.

And finally i dont hate Strachan, I like him, i just dot delude myself he was a great manager or bought good players. Did I mention Ive just had my hair cut? Looking good!

Maloney and McGeady were not his players and Naka came after he sent the scouts to see someone else.

 

WGS basically followed the old fightclub style where you keep everything negative in-house and give the press nothing. I personally think Mowbray has a bad dose of verbal diarrhoea/incontenance. He is a motor-mouth. Again this is something he has in common with Barnes and I dont think the parallel stops there.

 

I agree with most of this.

Part of the reason certain players aren't taking too well to Mowbray's criticism of their individual mistakes and inept performances is because Gordon Strachan swept them under the rug and tried to con the fans by denying their existence. Unfortunately for Strachan the majority of fans could see what was really happening before their eyes and started to get * off with him telling them black was white.

If these players we have aren't capable of playing a passing style of football when the players Mowbray had at Hibs WERE, then what the * does that say about them!?? We have worse players than Hibs had 4 years ago?? * that, I don't believe that for a minute.

I think these players have got set in their ways and into a habit of thinking winning ugly is enough. And it's not. The players should be capable of better and should be receptive to Tony Mowbray's new ideas and try to make them work. This would be much more helpful than spitting their dummy when the manager rightly pulls them up for costly mistakes they've made.

Like I say, come ahead Gordon and buy some of these wonderful players you think you had and then we'll see what Tony Mowbray can do with the money. I think he'll improve things noticably if he is given that opportunity.

 

There is no doubt Brown has ability, he showed that last season, but his form is what is suffering. It happens to all players.
I think he has to show a bit more of the Brown of last season before he plays in the first 11. We all know what he is capable of.

 

Whats the criteria to make a player "yours"?

 

i havent a bad word to say about wee g! but any quality we did have? has almost disapeared just now! the football being played these past couple of months has been * poor! so im not too sure where all this so called quality is??