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Luca Connell

Discussion in 'Ex Players' started by Valhalla, Jun 29, 2019.

Discuss Luca Connell in the Ex Players area at TalkCeltic.net.

  1. Peej Gold Member Gold Member

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    Aye as much as we can point to dembele and Édouard as a sign of what Celtic can do, the flip is guys like connell and O'Conor etc who come here maybe a year younger than the likes of dembele but seem to never be afforded the chance, even a year or two later.

    They'd be better off having stuck to championship level and getting a good run of games.

    It will make some young players cautious if they are signing a deal here on the principle that they are reserves for a year and not "promised" the first team starts that bigger names got at 19.

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  2. Maestro 08

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  3. Peej Gold Member Gold Member

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    Can agree with the timing of covid didn't help for end of last season to give some of these lass game time @St.Matt it's a shame.
    Fear we may lose one or two this window and again next window if we can't offer them some sense of first team action.
    My biggest worry is the dembele one, he's surely for to be itching and near ready for the team in the next 6-12 months and with the hype around him and interest elsewhere, we risk the head being turned.

    Fine balance, as you say a lot on the line this year.

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  4. Ryanmcg84

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    He will never be a regular for us at centre mid. The way we play domestically he'd essentially be a left midfielder in a 4 or a 5. From what iv read he had all the qualities to play there other than his pace, which I know nothing of.
    Far better shifting him slightly left than about * bottom 6 and championship clubs for a few years before being released
     
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  5. Foley1888

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    The above is very true although Connell did seem to be involved in the preseason friendlies then got an injury which kept him out for a period. On the flip side look at Frimpong who came in as a complete unknown probably with a lower profile than both Connell and O'Connor but got a chance and took it, that might actually be part of the reason why O'Connor struggled so much to get any chance.

    I do like what I saw of O'Connor in the Man Utd reserve videos, he looks solid in defending and good on the ball. It was strange it didn't seem to work at Partick but they did try bringing in a lot of young inexperienced guys to their defence in January.

    If neither are to be overly involved in the first team then I would be looking to loan them to another SPL team to get a run of games and properly assess them. I think Afolabi is a little different in that he was released from Southampton and did get game time on loan at Dunfermline but to be close to making the grade here you would need to be scoring for fun in the Championship and really standing out.
     
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  6. Westlondonscot Gold Member Gold Member

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    I can see him getting game time where Hayes may have got some. He is quite versatile and can fill in when you need him.
     
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  7. The_Bhoy

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    If that’s the case and you don’t think he’ll make it in his preferred position with us he’ll never play for us then. He’s not fast enough to play wing back bud
     
  8. Scott smyth

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    One player everyone seems to be missing out is Kerr Mcinroy. He lost most of last season due to a bad knee injury, which he's now over. Was on the fringes last season before it and he's one that they were very impressed with. Central midfielder, box to box and scores goals do has a decent skill set. I see he's away with the 1st team so hopefully may get some time. Ps he's the one with the bald head at training
     
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  9. Foley1888

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    i am sure Kerr mentioned in an interview that Lenny had pulled him aside after he suffered the injury and offered him a lot of support as he went through similar early in his career.

    I hope he has a good preseason and gets his chance.
     
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  10. Dublin Celt

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    Frimpong was more or less immediately brought into first team while oconnor was soon made captain of the reserves, they were signed literally within an hour of each other on deadline day. it is clear frimpong was seen by Lennon as first team material before O'Connor. I was fairly deflated with Duff's comments about O'Connor as a pundit before oconnors international debut. The guy is exceptionally highly thought of within Irish circles and even man united circles but he hasnt got a sniff of it here. I thought duff as an ex international currently at Celtic should have been shouting this guy's name from the rooftops when asked about him but was fairly short in his answers.

    On one hand people want young talent signed up like connell O'Connor and developed but we have a rag ball rovers reserve football and then they get maybe fired out to play bog ball football while mediocre championship players saw them in two. It can't be easy for a young lad leaving Ireland moving to Manchester and then suddenly arriving in Glasgow , play a few sporadic friendlies with the reserves and then get sent out to a team who he probably never heard of. It's a balancing act, our best chance of getting a world class level player is through youth set ups or snapping them up at young ages and bringing them into a first team set up. There is no way Luca connell and Lee oconnor were told come to Celtic we will put you in the reserves for the next two years and you might get a few months here or there out on loan down the line. If that's what Celtic was sold to them as they wouldn't be here. As per positional positions for connell he is a left footed box to box, probably a light version of McGregor, can't see him having the pace for any wide position.

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  11. Foley1888

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    I have not seen enough of either of the two play to form a judgement. On Frimpong I am sure it has been said he surprised a few when coming in and forced his way into first team selection. Also I doubt anyone coming to Celtic who is involved in a EPL academy would come here if they didn’t think they had a chance of breaking into the first team but at the same time some of that is on them to force their way in.

    As you say and O’Connor were both signed at the same time, one has had a great year and the other has had a frustrating time.

    I don’t think loaning O’Connor or Connell to Partick or a Championship club is a good move and as you have pointed out the current reserve set up is hopeless in terms of games and a schedule.

    The first preference if they are good enough would be to have them in our First team squad, Connell is getting that chance to prove himself in preseason. So where not ideal and maybe a loan to the English Championship would be a better option if there is any interest, I do think if they are unlikely to get first team minutes here they would benefit from time at an Aberdeen or Hibs over sitting in our reserves. It worked out not bad in the end for Christie.
     
    Last edited: Jul 13, 2020
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  12. Dublin Celt

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    Before they even had trained Lennon when being interviewed said frimpong will be immediately training with the first team while oconnor will join the reserves. We both agree they both need football. I would have hoped O'Connor could be a bolter for game time at RB especially if we played 3 5 2 and elhamed played more frequently at rcb. Lee O'Connor is every bit a good a player as frimpong in my opinion, while frimpong beats him for pace I personally feel O'Connor is a smarter player and better defender, both are very technically good. I do agree though a loan for connell and oconnor could be beneficial but at this stage I feel it needs to be an spl team rather than anything lower. Difference for Christie than O'Connor and connell is Christie is Scottish so surely easier to settle at other Scottish clubs on loan

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  13. Foley1888

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    With from the limited of what I have seen of O’Connor mainly videos rather and in the odd game I would agree with you. He looks a very intelligent player and a solid defender, who is strong in the tackle and comfortable on the ball.

    I think both him and Frimpong look different styles, where Frimpong is pace, quick feet and very attacking while being reasonable in his defensive duties, O’Connor looks like a more natural defender who still has the quality on the ball to get forward and join in with the attack. I remember reading when we signed O’Connor someone who had been involved with the Man Utd youth set up saying he could play holding midfield due to his footballing qualities. I am not suggesting playing him there but that gives you the impression of an intelligent footballer who reads the game well. I hope to get the chance to see what he can do sooner rather than later in a first team Celtic shirt.

    Connell is the same he came with a good CV having already played games in the Championship and being touted as a big talent. Centre mid is probably the hardest part to break into our team at the moment but given the volume of games this season in quick succession he may well get a chance to show what he can do especially if Ntcham or Rogic are sold.

    I am all for if we are going to be recruiting young talent to give them a go as hate to see them waste away in the reserves. The same goes for others like Kerr McInroy mentioned above, Scott Robertson, Karamoko Dembele, Welsh, Deas and any of the others who show up but I know not all of them will be able to get a chance at the same time, so a loan to at least an SPL team would be a logical next step for those that are not going to get first team opportunities.
     
    Last edited: Jul 13, 2020
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  14. Dublin Celt

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    I fully agree with your post, O'Connor played centre mid in the under 19 euros last summer, he looked good but both duff and now Stephen Kenny have seemed to say he's a right back going forward

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  15. Ryanmcg84

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    Fair enough then. If he's not got the pace then it's prob not position for him, has many of the other qualities you would look for from a wing back from what you read about him.

    Central midfield is just so packed it's difficult to see any youngster breaking through. Particularly when you consider that our last 2 managers seem determined to play Brown and McGregor every game with very little thought on rotation or fatigue.
    Outwith Brown the 4 main guys are all at their peak or younger. So it's unlikely there's gonna be much progression for the younger guys and if we were to sell any of the 4 they would go for big money which would mean fans would demand money spent on a replacement.
     
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  16. The_Bhoy

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    Yeah mate, totally agree. I think a lot of times we actually just sign youngsters who have promise because it’s either a good deal, or we just don’t want to miss the chance of getting them. I.e bringing 4 RB’s in last Summer, 2 of them being youngsters. And think the same with Luca, no way was he breaking into that team immediately although the lack of game’s was no excuse cos he’d played at Bolton. Think it was just another case of a moment/signing we couldn’t miss
     
  17. Scott smyth

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    I think that Frimpong has something that Oconnell doesn't and that's attacking skills. Jeremy is a bit of a one off in that he's more like a wing back than maybe a defensive player. LBH everyone was taken aback by his attacking skills and imo was a breath of fresh air in the sense he liked getting at teams and getting to the bye line. And that's something we were sorely missing seeing that Johnston, Shved, Arzani all missed most of the the season and Moi isn't a real out and out winger. Oconnell was well rated at Utd, but then so was Janko !!!! Oconnell has time on his side and maybe we will see him being involved when we change shape to a 442 or 4231 depending on opposition
     
  18. Ryanmcg84

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    Yeah it's better to take the chance on these youngsters when they are available for cheap and hope they develop the way we hope rather than not and then regret it a couple of years down the line.

    Mccarthy, Mcginn and Roberton would be the obvious examples of one's we missed out on.

    We do need to be smarter with the loan system tho. Guys like O'connor and Connell would more than hold their own and majority of Premiership sides and would likely be standouts. Loaning O'connor to a * Partick Thistle team battling relegation from the championship was a total waste.

    Hopefully with money being tighter for clubs this year will allow us to get these guys into suitable clubs in Premiership.
     
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  19. The_Bhoy

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    I agree we can’t afford to miss out on them, but that kind of explains why some dont get a chance maybe; they’re brought in by the club and maybe the manager just doesn’t see them in their plans. We definitely don’t take use of loans as we should. I don’t agree with what Chelsea do in terms of buying players and never playing them once in the first team, just loaning out for years. But they make great use of the system and still earn good money from players who won’t ever feature in their first team. Us loaning out for instance robertson for 1/2 years and him doing great at Morton (but looking just not good enough to oust calmac or broony) could get him a 1/2 million move to the championship in England. That’s obviously not a lot of money in the grand scheme of things. But if we couldn’t see robertson making the step up permanently with us, loans during his contract would be better than what we usually do of releasing them for nothing or allowing their contracts to run down and earning no return.

    next season due to a lack of finances for teams in Scotland specifically we should be looking to loan out 10 players I think. I don’t believe with how * our reserve teams fixtures are each year due to no adequate set up, that we should have any player over the age of 18 in that team. Any older should be on loan or with the first team if they’re good enough.
    A resolution to all this is having a colts team in the league set up we play in with a max promotion of the championship. Think we’d produce much better players if this was the case who are ready to make the step up to play with us. Works for all the other too European teams who do this. Don’t quite get why Scotland as a whole isn’t on board with this happening to improve the youngsters we all produce.
     
  20. Nialler

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    There are a lot of annoyed football heads in Ireland with the state of Celtics underage system. Lots of young lads here love Celtic and would join because of that over other chances else where. I am sure it is sold that way aswell as I have friends who were over there. The Lee O'Connor situation is absolute garbage and I have heard quite a few people say they will talk youngsters out of moving up to Glasgow and they would choose league one over it. LEAGUE ONE!! anyway it is a sad state of affairs where the English clubs are treating Irish lads better than Celtic. Lincoln City is a preferred option over Celtic in 2020, A lot of the Ire is for Dermot Desmond and Lennon. There are quite a few top lads at Shamrock rovers who he is obviously well connected to, one is a generational talent in my opinion and even though I am a Celtic fan I am praying he doesn't go to Glasgow. It is like a black hole for Irish youngsters. Lee O'Connor is good enough for Celtic and should be around the first team. He was in the united squad before they spent huge money on Wan Bissaka. But only suited for Celtic reserves and PT? Look around at the rest of his 21's team who he was a leading player for and it is clear Celtic don't have a notion of what they are doing underage and it is ruining their reputation here. The most capped youngster underage, made his international debut and was loved at utd. Lets send him to Partick Thistle? I usually just lurk here but I am fuming about this situation with quite a few lads. We have a tonne of youngsters there and I am confident their development is ruined or at least totally stagnated.
     
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