Paul Tisdale appointed Celtic’s Head of Football Operations

Just sounds (or lack of) and feels like every other upstairs appointment we make.

Make a wee song and dance about how excellent in his field he is, how he's taking a high profile position within the club. Then hear * all.
Fans question what's going on and where the transparency is, what our model and forward plans are, what's the direction of the club and our short to medium term goals.
The club stay quiet. Half the fans are split cursing their names, the other half insist on yet more time and another transfer window for someone, somewhere in the depth of the club to step up and do something proactive and forward thinking with a modern approach to rubbing a FOOTBALL CLUB! (Note, not just a business).

We've got about 13-14 weeks of fans arguing with each other about the transfer dealings and our preparedness for the new season.

Who we sign, who takes responsibility for the signings, it's a guessing game at times, but one thing I can almost guarantee, through multiple decades of how this club has now been run, we will be let down and questioning those in charge yet again come September the 2nd.

And that includes questioning who the * Paul Tisdale is and what he's actually doing for a wage at the club.
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Surely, it doesn't take a rocket science to work out what our short to medium term goals are? To continually be successful on the pitch, by being dominant domestically and to make consecutive inroads in Europe? Maybe getting into the play offs during our Champions League campaigns? I'd say continual Champions League participation, though with the hope of getting into the play-offs?

Or are you talking about the goals in terms of recruitment? Surely again, it's not rocket science? We want to sign the best players we identify and are willing to break the transfer record for players if we see logic to do so? Again, I thought that would be pretty easy to work out?

Fans * and moan. Fans will always * and moan. *, some Liverpool fans are * and moaning right now. It's the way of the world. It's football. Most of the * and moaning in here come from the same individuals who lie and wait for the club to make mistakes(which every club does).

I'd rather a Head of Recruitment/Sporting Director/Director of Football or whatever name you want to call it was out of sight and out of mind. Goes about his job quietly and effectively. Tisdale has been in the job for what? 8 months? He's had one transfer window where we bought a player we all wanted in Jota, brought back a cult hero on a precontract in Tierney and decided to bring in a stop gap signing with bags of experience in Schlupp to cover us at left back. Not a terrible start to his tenure by any stretch. So, what more do you want to know? You want a list of the players we are willing to sell and the list of players we are looking to buy?

You're talking about transparency. I don't think the club actively hide our strategy or our goals. They literally talk about it every single AGM and nearly every single financial record is brought out with a list of things they actively try and do. If Tisdale fails to buy the right players or fails to identify the right players moving forward, he will be out on his * the same way the last two have.

The club made clear mistakes in the past. Lawwell clearly took on a far more controlling role when it came to recruitment and that's one of the reasons why Rodgers walked out the door the first time around. The first window he was back, he clearly pointed out that he worked with Lawwell Jr and Dudgeon but took a backwards step so that he could learn and work with what he had. He came out and publicly said that during a press conference. Not long after, Lawell Jr is out the door.

Rodgers has to take responsibility for the signings we make now and the signings we have made since 2024, along with Tisdale and the scouts. I don't think the signings have been bad, by any stretch. Do we need more? Definitely but so does every club in world football. This season has seen progression while losing some huge names in the squad.

 

Can he appoint scouts? I'd like to see an expansion of that part of the staff. We should definitely have a dedicated scout for Korea and Japan.

 

Yes and presumably there to form the structure they work in, and have the data they collect easily accessible, searchable, centralised.

it’s hard info to confirm but after a google and from second hand info, we still have the barest of bare for our scouts.


The most frustrating thing is we had all this in place, John Park built it, * Congerton was disastrous we had 50 plus * scouts/scouting consultants paid not full time but to feed as info from players across Europe. A database for the info gathered easily searched for what we were looking to sign. He came in said he can do something better and * dismantled it. Before putting anything in place. He never did do whatever his super better system he claimed before he left. And by then, he’d * us the 50 plus network of scouts and contacts built over a decade, we had 3. And 4 scouting managers to manage them at one point.


But thats like 7/8 * years ago. And we are still pretty much the same place as then. The most frustrating thing is Ange came in, had knowledge of markets and players that nailed our transfer business. And rsther than say thank * thats bought us time to put something in place, we instead said it’s sound Ange knows what he’s doing.

 

What's needed is improved transparency, exactly who is responsible for exactly what on the sporting and side of the club, how does it link into the business side and who makes the decisions.

But we never get that, why - because then fans can then hold individuals and collectives to account.

More than that, we'd also know what really goes on in terms of the business side interfering/limiting the sporting side - ie Dermot signing guys like McCarthy, Lawell signing a 'million wingers', micro haggling on players like McGinn and generally taking far too long to conclude new signings due to ineffective/lame duck chief executive who has to check every penny with Lawell before he does a thing.

What happened to the transfer window review promised by Brendan after the last 2 ending so badly?

Where the * is this guy Tisdale, why don't we ever hear from him? Is he allowed to speak.or just a patsy for the blazers to continue the same old approach?

The blazers will never pull the curtain open, it would expose their failings. That would never do.

 

Mark Lawwel and his mate left ‘mutual’, they got booted out. Rodgers won the battle to get Lawwell’s son to *.

And the summer window? That was distinctly different than the previous. We spent over £30m for one. This season we have bought the 3 most expensive players in our history with the outlay on Idah, Engels and Jota.

And aye, net spend was zero but we usually just take the profit not put it into the team.

Rest of that post but is absolutely * nailed it but. Spot on

 

I agree with you but the club have never shown transparency with their transfer dealings so I don't see them starting now.

 

Not with transfer dealings, that should be as quiet as possible, that’s professional to do IMO. Transparency on how we’re structuring the club for recruitment, transparency in roles that people are in what it involves. Tisdale, it’s much like DoF from what I gather but he isn’t above the manager, which I like if that’s it.

But then there’s Darren O’Dea and Driscoll performance managers, Jay LeFevre Chief Scout.

Mark Lawwell and the other guy who left were both Scouting Managers.

Like, what the * are peoples roles? This is stuff I desperately want asked at our AGM’s. But instead there’s usually about 10 questions to accuse Celtic of not doing anything about masonic refs. * me right over that. We’ll have someone do a snide wee dig at Rangers, and all be happy and not actually address anything you want to know as a shareholder

 

Allegedly he spoke at one of these super secret fan forums the club did, I have no idea if that is true or not? I also have no idea how someone gets invited to one of those.

I remember Rodgers done one about this time last year and rhymed of positions he wanted targeted for last summer. I think bar a winger they got filled.

 

Ever thought about writing to the club to ask?

 

If he goes about his business quietly and efficiently this Summer I've no issue with not hearing from him.

Nicholson is the one who should be explaining the vision and goals of the club.. through media and fan engagement events. The AGM doesn't provide that, at all.

Head of Footballing Operations to me is a title that allows the Board to keep control whilst alluding that we're modern thinking. We need someone to come in with previous experience, a DoF to look at every facet of our structure. To given full autonomy to make the changes to youth structure, scouting, sports science, coaching recruitment, facilities and putting clear goals in place for the short, medium and long-term. And sharing part of that vision with us(some aspects should absolutely be kept confidential)

I've said we can judge Tisdale after this summer, but he's hamstrung to an extent in the way we're ran as a club.

 

Don't think there's any real argument that there are structural issues at the club. Board is full of auld guys who are absolutely miles out of touch with modern football. The fact the majority of them think the sun shines out of Lawwell's * tells you how out of touch they are.

Slightly worrying for us is that although there will be plenty of moonbeams and bullshit with the Huns takeover, it's highly likely the people behind 49ers will get the structure of the club right and is likely where they will invest decent cash. Mite not be short or even medium term but them modernising scouting/recruitment and overall running of the club is something that could see them eventually close the gap on us given we have shown a ridiculous lack of appetite do to do likewise.

 

Why should anyone have to?

The engagement from the board is a disgrace, has Nicholson ever given a press conference setting out his vision for the Club? He's looking like a patsy..

Occasionally listen to Talk Sport they regularly have CEOs from Brighton, Brentford etc or owners even from EPL clubs, coming on and setting out their vision for the Club. We don't do anything like that, but we should be coming on Clyde/BBC Scotland etc and engaging.. and media is only once aspect. Fan engagement is nonexistent. The AGM is careful staged not too be too awkward..

We get lots right as a Club but there's so much modernisation required in so many ways.

It will likely take another league defeat before we start to see any changes and that will undoubtedly happen, sooner rather than later if we don't start making the changes needed.

 

Why should he have to? The club set out their visions in their club strategic plans at statements - it's all there to read online.

With regards to us "needing" modernisation - I'm not saying you're right or wrong, but you'll need to elaborate? So many folk just make blanket statements like this without actually going into any detail with thoughts or facts...

 

No one has to. But if it's not asked at the AGM, then writing is just another option.

Nicholson spoke about his vision for the club at the annual Celtic coaching convention.

 

Annual Celtic coaching convention? I'd imagine that would only hit a few, was that publicised? What did he say?

 

Strategic plan statements? Where do we find them? Again, why should we be rooting around trying to find them, do they have his signature at the end?

Hes invisible mate come on ffs.. hes CEO

The modernisation required for me:-

Tisdale is Head of Footballing Operations - I guess we'll find out in the summer but the last window we allowed one of our main STs to depart and didn't replace him, not the best start.

I want a DoF who is experienced in that role, has been a success at other clubs. Tilsdale is not that.

We need to look at all aspects of the Footballing Operation.

Youth set up - Neglected for too long, jobs given to ex-players not on Merit, we should be hiring experience. Look at the amount of decent prospects we've been unable to retain. Darren O'Dea was appointed pathway manager, what credentials did he have for that role? The B Team participation in the Lowland League, running out against * opposition on * surfaces at * venues, no wonder we can't retain our youth.

Scouting/Recruitment- haphazard and with limited success. I mean the LB situation wasn’t sorted when KT left and is only being sorted on his return I actually thought we'd turned a corner under Ange, when he and Nicholson brought in real quality. That's looking more and more like Ange and his knowledge. It needs to be much much better. Rodgers has openly criticised our recruitment strategy or lack of it in both spells. Still, nothing happens.

The Board are reluctant to give anyone autonomy to make the changes needed. And yes we've been successful, dominate.. if we want that to continue we need modernise, no doubt.

But, like I say we'll likely wait until it's too late and have to react instead of be proactive. I mean is anyone confident we'll get our business done early in time for the CL Qualifier?

And that's before we even consider the things they can do better to engage with us.