Anthony Ralston

I don't know what threads you read but I would say the general consensus on what I read on Ralston on here alone is over 50% negative. Have a look at the comments in the Hibs game and after the Rangers game at Ibrox, he was being singled out for criticism from loads of people in games we drew 0-0 and which he had a solid performance in. Even when he does well he flaks abuse.

As I said, he gets very little credit and he's a far better player than the majority of our fans give him credit for, it's a fate that guys like Scales and Taylor endure/have endured also.

As I said I always find is bizarre that I live in a world where a lot of Celtic fans can on one hand deem James Forrest a Celtic legend while Anthony Ralston is deemed to be stealing a living as our backup right back.

 

He needs a haircut

giving off Russell M vibes

 

Looking at his wife, maybe that's why he's growing it

 

In fairness to Russell Martin I thought he did a fantastic job with the zombies. Should have been given a lifetime contract IMHO

 

Can I ask what age you are, you seem to be spoil for an argument in a lot of threads...

 

I don't accept that, it's the contrary in fact - there seems to be a lot of people on here who can not tolerate a viewpoint different to theirs and quick switch from the issue to dishing out abuse and insults when I substantiate my positions. I just object to the extremities a lot of our fanbase engage in.

I think fans should try and be balanced and fair with criticism, looking to target one player for any minor mistake while conversely defending their favourite players for glaring errors is crazy IMO and those false narratives should be open to challenge.

 

Ralston has over recent years been up against Wirtz, Musiala, Shaqiri, Vargas, Perišić, Livaja, Zalewski, Zieliński, Leão, Jota (RIP), Ronaldo, Mendes and Modric. Sure he felt the same way at points, but also had some very decent performances against some excellent players.

 

Ok, fair enough.. but we take this thread for example the points you make about Ralston are a fair debate..

But, twice you have a go at Forrest to try and make your point, now our most decorated player in history, scored 16 seasons in a row etc etc.. seems like trolling to me, or juvenile that's why I asked your age. Or maybe you have only seen the twilight of his career. Your user name would suggest no tho.. so maybe just trolling?

 

The only thing Forrest and Ralston have in common is they came through the academy and play for Celtic.

What they have done in a Celtic shirt is wildly different. Albeit, I still wouldn’t call Forrest a legend.

Ralston is * and should be nowhere near our starting XI. He would struggle to start for most teams in our league

 

Completely disagree. James Forrest is hugely overrated by some in this Celtic fanbase - a legend. A guy who was a guaranteed starter for a good chunk of 17 years as a winger in the most dominant team in a fairly weak domestic league and whose return is fairly average in that conext. 2 derby goals in 17 years. 1 goal from open play in European competition proper in 17 years. Only winning 39 caps for Scotland in a period where they were bang average - the rivals for his spot were the likes of Matt Phillips, Matt Richier, Chris Burke, Robert Snodgrass, Oliver Burke, Ryan Fraser, Shaun Maloney, James McFadden etc etc. That screams squad player rather than legend to me.

The fact is other than an 18 month spell under Rodgers, Forrest has been dinstinctively average for Celtic. He is blessed that Neil Lennon had blind faith in him and our board had blind faith in Neil Lennon to have him at the helm for over 6 seasons.

Ralston is a proven backup for us that rarely lets us down and you are one of the extremist eejits I refer to who can't just accept it or keep a somewhat reasonable of balanced view but has to add in this nonsense "He would struggle to start for most teams in our league".

Just do yourself a favour and leave commenting on football to those who actually watch and understand the game. Ralston has been a million miles a better player than Mortiz Bauer, El Hamed, Jonjo Kenny, Saidy Janko, Gamboa and a host of other right backs we've had with the jersey over the past decade and a bit. He's put is some huge games for us, never let us down against the huns like our starting RB has done. So show him a bit of respect.

 

I haven't had a go at Forrest. I haven't said he is * or should be nowhere near Celtic. I just think he is overrated by a section of our fans. I think at best he has been a squad player for us. There are a few things I have mentioned that I think are bang average for a winger who has played for Celtic for 17 years and being a regular starter for a lot of them. It's more pertient discuss this in the James Forrest thread but I just use him as an example of our celebrating and lionising someone fairly medicore while trying to run another player down as not being good enough for Celtic.

Is 2 goals in 17 years against Rangers anywhere near acceptable for a Celtic winger?
Is 1 goal from play in European football proper for a Celtic winger in 17 years anywhere near acceptable?

Its also clear that Forrest has failed to win the trust of any Scotland manager over the course of his career.

Forrest's levels have just been nowhere near that of a Celtic "legend". He's been a decent squad option in reality for us over the past few years and has played a far bigger role than he really should have due to the the downsizing Lawwell and co have imposed on us. He had an 18 months spell under Rodgers where he was electric, outside of that he's been lucky to get the game time he did.

 

I think guys like Scales and definitely Taylor are/were genuinely underrated. Both have/had real weaknesses and their many strengths tend to be overlooked because of that. Boy are we clearly missing Taylor right now!

Ralston is a bit different, he's just clearly not a first-team player and even as a backup, he's not good. He has some surprising strengths that often go unnoticed (he reads the game very well and he genuinely can spot a line-breaking pass better than most of our midfield); but he doesn't have the technical ability to make the most of those strengths. I'd go so far as to say he has easily the worst technique of any fullback in recent memory and I honestly think he would struggle to get into any top-half SPL team because of that. The Scotland game yesterday showcased exactly what I am talking about. Taylor, on the other hand, had lovely technique.

In addition, Ralston's other weaknesses are just so glaring. Like Taylor, he suffers from a lack of pace; unlike Taylor, he has no acceleration either. This means that Taylor could sometimes get exposed against extremely fast wingers in Europe, whilst Ralston regularly gets exposed against moderately non-slow wingers in the SPL. That is a huge difference! Almost any time you play Ralston, he has no choice but to stand off his winger and let them cross: it's infuriating. This is not because he doesn't know how to position himself (he actually understands the positional aspects of the game better than any RB we've had since Lustig IMO), but rather because he has a very realistic and accurate assessment of his own ability to stop any vaguely competent winger from walzing past him.

For these reasons, Ralston and Taylor are not really comparable and I could say similar things about Ralston and Scales. Can you imagine Ralston winning a MOTM in the CL, let alone 2? Finally, comparing Ralston to Forrest is so untenable that I genuinely don't know if you were serious.

Having said all that, I think Ralston will be a manager some day. He does see things that most players don't.

 

I agree his record v Rangers is very poor something I've criticised him for before.

However, his record, longevity and mentality to achieve what he has for us is incredible really.

Legend is probably a word that gets banded about too often, but he has become our most decorated player, ever! Its understandable why he receives that platitude.

My issue is why you've felt the necessity to criticise Forrest to make your point about Ralston.. its not a viable comparison.

 

Ralston has his limitations no doubt but he has plenty of his strengths.

He's good in the air
He's strong in the tackle
He's able to defend one on ones well
He has a good cross on him and can play balls down the channel very well
He covers very well at the back post

He has his limitations technically and he's not the quickest but at domestic levels I don't see that exposed much at all on the domestic scene. He is a solid, reliable and servicable option - a proven one at this point. I've lost count of the number of derby games he has stepped into over the past 6/7 years at the last minute or sprung from the bench with huge pressures attached and he's stood up and performed. He gets a really raw deal from our fans.

 

I don't believe I have at all criticised Forrest. I didn't call him useless or say he should be nowhere near Celtic. I said he's nowhere near the player some fans paint him to me - that's not criticism - that is a balanced opinion supported by facts that I believe add weight to my opinion. A lot of James Forrests returns for Celtic are way below what you'd expect of a winger with the minutes he's had for a club with our dominance.

 

Genuine question: how old are you? No offence intended and I'm not trying to be patronising; I'm just honestly wondering how clearly you can remember Forrest in his younger days.

 

I could ask the same of you.

I can remember Ross Wallace too, Jamie Smith, Shaun Maloney, McGeady. I can remember Tony Watt's 2 goal debut and his first few months where he looked a proper talent.

McGeady was by far and away a level above all of them for me, nobody came close to his ability and how he carried Celtic in a very dour Strachan era.

Other than an 18 month period under Rodgers, I've never seen anything from Forrest that would suggest he was a vital player or a protaganist for us. How do you rate 2 goals in his entire career v Rangers and 1 goal from play in European proper football.

How do you think we managed to hold on to him all these years? Why do you think he never established himself in the Scotland side?

 

He's not great in the air for a defender.
Yes, he's strong in the tackle. Agreed.
Defending one v ones is literally one of his biggest weaknesses. Not sure how you can possibly have that as a strength.
He sometimes has a good cross on him and plays good balls and sometimes not. IMO this is because he spots these things really well but often lacks the technique to pull it off. Again, there were good examples of what I mean yesterday.
He does indeed cover well at the back post. Again, I agree that he reads the game extremely well.

 

You can indeed ask the same of me. I'm 48, mate. I notice you didn't answer my question.

 

He's very good in the air. He defends his back post much better than AJ for my liking who regularly gets caught under the ball.

He's played 7/8 games for us this season - when he was skinned for a chance? I've lost count already this season how many times Tierney has for example.

His crossing is better than AJ but he obviously doesn't have AJ's mobility and running power to get into those advanced positions as much but in the one season where he has got decent minutes in the past few years, he hit double figure G/A in the season.

He's perfectly adequate as a backup RB. I don't see us getting much better who will be happy with those minutes Ralston is getting. Other than Neil Lennon who is a terrible manager, most managers who have worked with him really seem to rate what he has got and how he carries himself - Rodgers, Ange and Clarke.