Evening Times

CELTIC'S players are on their close-season break wondering what the future will bring for them under a new manager.
For a handful, the hope is it can only improve as everyone prepares to embrace the challenge of impressing Tony Mowbray as Gordon Strachan's successor.
And there is no doubt Mowbray will already have started the job of scanning the team-sheets and studying the stats charts to determine the men who can cut it under the new regime.
Top of that list will be Aiden McGeady, whose turbulent relationship with the outgoing boss threatened to undo the significant progress the Republic of Ireland midfielder made in the first three years of Strachan's tenure.

Indeed, McGeady claimed the Player of the Year crown in season 2007-2008 after finally coming to terms with the job description handed to him by the man who took over Martin O'Neill in 2005.
The initial vibes were not good, as McGeady was left out of the starting XI in the first few months of Strachan's reign, his unwillingness to track back and do the dirty side of the job cited as the reasons.
When the penny dropped, and the intensive one-to-one coaching clicked, McGeady emerged as a first pick every week, his undoubted skills finally being given the platform of application they needed to be shown to best effect.
Unfortunately for the 23-year-old - and everyone else at the club - McGeady allowed himself to slip back into old habits following his individual and collective successes, which included a lucrative new, long-term contract this time last year.
His verbal attack on Strachan after a home draw against Hearts last December led to a two-week suspension and substantial fine.
It also opened the door to a possible swift departure for the player who had been at the club since he was a schoolboy, a possibility that polarised a support once besotted by the skill McGeady brought to the Parkhead stage. However, the expected bids did not materialise, and Celtic never had to face the question of whether to sell.
By the time the season drew to its close, McGeady had starred in the Co-operative Cup Final and was back in the team almost every week, with the notable exception of the final Old Firm game at Ibrox where his past record in that cauldron was deemed reason enough to leave him on the bench.
He has been challenged to find maturity to match his ability. And, even with Strachan gone, that will remain his goal if he is to get back on the upward curve his career enjoyed before it hit the skids last year.
If McGeady can succeed, who knows, in time he might even look back on the lessons he had to learn under the previous manager and recognise the debt he owes.
McGeady was not alone in convincing himself he was getting a raw deal under the last management regime. Massimo Donati went public with his displeasure, moaning that Strachan did not even speak to him after he had been jettisoned from his plans.
Sadly, this said more about the underlying problems with the Italian than it did about the manager as the opportunity was always open for the former AC Milan man to do his talking with his feet.
Instead, he found himself even further out of the first-team picture which had appeared to benefit from his inclusion when he arrived in the summer of 2007.
It might be too late for the 28-year-old as his character flaws have been exposed. But if he can show a bit more backbone, Mowbray could elect to give him another chance to reverse a slide which threatens to take his career back to the lower reaches of Serie A.
Glenn Loovens could have mixed feelings about the departure of Strachan, given that the man signed from Cardiff last August had finally got a run of games just as the season was ending.
That opportunity arrived when Stephen McManus had to succumb to the injuries he had been carrying for several months. Strachan had been reluctant to split the McManus/Caldwell partnership which had been the fulcrum of the defence for more than two years.
But he always believed Loovens would become a serious figure in the side, and reminded everyone that the Dutchman was still only 25 and nowhere near his prime.
Like every player, Loovens wants to play now. With a new man at the helm, he might find it easier to achieve that aim.
Likewise, Marc Crosas will have been sorry to see the manager who brought him from Barcelona move on after just one season under his charge.
But the young midfielder will have his fingers firmly crossed Mowbray is not as reticent to use his particular passing skills when the team hits the road.
Crosas will need to be ready to show from the off that he has developed strength, both physically and mentally, in the year he has been fighting for his place in the Celtic side.
Koki Mizuno is another whose lightweight build has worked against him.
But with his countryman Shunsuke Nakamura no longer here to mentor him, the 23- year-old will be expected to stand on his own two feet and make his play to fill the boots of the departed star.
Considered by many good judges to be the most technically skilled player in the squad, Mizuno has to show consistency in the flashes he displayed last season.
Cillian Sheridan has been getting more first-team games, but only because he was allowed to go to Motherwell on loan for the second half of last season.
The rapid progress the lanky Irish striker had made in his first 12 months as a senior player had slowed, and his confidence suffered as a result.
Strachan considered him one of his long-term projects, and retained high hopes his natural ability to find the net could be brought to the top level. Sheridan must now convince the incoming Mowbray this faith was not misplaced.
This aforementioned half dozen will certainly not be alone in counting down the days until training under Mogga begins in just three weeks.
Shaun Maloney, Willo Flood, Paddy McCourt, Scott Cuthbert, Paul Caddis and a clutch of others now have to meet the challenge of showing they can improve on last season.
Mogga dawn is coming Bhoys.

 

i think tony mowbray will get rid of a couple of our wide players he likes to play football through the middle direct and fast one touch football, i also think he will ditch jan and sammy and bring through young ben hutchison to play upfront with skippy and buy another striker i think he will keep robson brown donati and crosas as well as mccourt maloney and mcgeady i think he will buy another centre half and a left back and i can see mcmanus having to fight for his place back.

 

mcgeady goes against everything mogga likes in a player, he hates pre-madonnas and loves passers

 

Hutchinson, imo, wont make it at celtic. Hes decent but hes lazy

 

He will not get rid of mcgeady he will maybe change his style of play before he does any thing!!!!

 

Yes theres no way he will get rid of mcgeady.

 

Hopefully hes open minded enough and not set in his ways,we should always have a plan B C D,If you always play in the same certain style the opposition will become aware and plan around it,none of our opposition should not be able to predict the style of football we'll play against them,be it wide or through the middle, technical or free flowing.

 

Man utd paid £30m last year on berbatov who's decent but lazy imo so give hutchinson a chance rather than jvoh or his partner in crime samaras i wouldnt even class them as decent.

 

agreed on jvoh or samaras...they should be let go but replaced by players with some experience. Hutchinson wont make it at parkhead

 

we all said the same about henke after his first game did we not ? give the boy a chance he can run like a whippet in built like a shithouse and has a good first touch something NONE of our strikers have in the first team at the moment. you canny say he won't make it until he is given a run in the team. i think he will be very useful and will be something different for skippy to play with instead of two big lanky goorks who can canny bring a ball down or knock it into the right area half the the time. have faith !! thats what wrong with our club we are too fast to say he's no good enough sell him when half the boys have not had a run in the team....just look at shay given he was classed as an out and out dud !!

 

I'm pretty sure that every fringe player will be given the chance to impress.
If they don't rise to the challenge when another manager is installed, then they never will.

 

I reckon he'll ditch JVoH and probably Sheridan. Hopefully, that'll mean investment up front. It's a player of Hutchinson's ilk that we need in upfront. Whether that means he'll play him, or buy like him, time will tell. I'd imagine he'll ditch Hartley for sure, from midfield, with two or three others to also be replaced by his own guys. I'd say we're sorted for 'keepers and he might stick with what we have, in central defence. From the way the WBA fans are going on, it would seem Cech would be a better buy than Robinson, who's desperately trying to engineer a move. We have the spine of a decent squad, littered with players Mowbray has bossed before. That would suggest that Caldwell and Brown are safe on the teamsheet. I genuinely think that all the team is needing is a couple of decent strikers, a LB and a manager with better interpersonal skills, who listens, rather than dictates.

 

I actually think there's a possibility Samaras could have a good season next season. Samaras' main strengths are his movement and the bit of speed he has. I think these attributes will be well used in the kind of football Mowbray wants to play. Sometimes Sammy IS shocking but he can also be good too. I would keep hold of him for the time being.

 

What if the board tell Mogga that if Aiden is not in his plans he can sell and keep the money for transfers? Possible £5-8 million on top of what he has now. Hypothetical situation, thoughts?

 

said on ssn that he will have 7 million to play with, on top of the money generated from sales this could me an exciting summer.

 

Ah but will he get the cash from sales?

 

i think Mowbray will keep McGeady and see him as an integral part of his first 11

 

I think Mowbray will try to reduce the age of the current team, he has a history of working with young players & helping them reach their potential.
I think in his first season he'll keep guys like Robson, Naylor & a few others around for experience, but in general the younger players like Crosas, McGeady, Maloney Sheridan & possibly Samaras will benefit from Mogga's style of play & technique.
Fringe players like McCourt, Mizuno & Killen will probably see this as their opportunity to try & make an impact into the first team.
As far as players coming & going, I would expect most of the current squad to stay, at least in the short term, others may move by january if they are out of the picture, I'm sure Mogga is well aware of our short comings last year, so I would expect a left back, possibly another centre half, midfielder or two & a striker to arrive before the transfer deadline.
I'm optimistic that Mogga will get Celtic playing fast, attacking, attractive football & will bring through & nurture young talent, whilst being able to get a bargain in the transfer market.

 

Thats better than what I thought, they should have gave him more money but at least he gets the money from sales such as donati etc

 

I think he'll keep most of the current squad until he can see what they can do first hand,hopefully some players will step up next season and prove that they are actually good players (eg Donati) like Petta did under Mon and Mick did under Strachen.