A Decade In Paradise

Paradise - where Celtic dreams come true.​

Looking back on the past decade at Parkhead, I think that we can be very proud of what our great team has achieved. Nobody can argue with six Premier League titles, four Scottish cups and four League Cups as well as a historic run to a European final in 2003. We have witnessed some fantastic players in this time and we are privileged to have seen players of the calibre of Larsson, Moravcik and Lambert. All in all, the Noughties have indeed been one of the most successful periods in our long and coloured history.

The glorious Martin O'Neill era is well and truly underway.​

To begin the decade, Celtic hired self-confessed fan Martin O'Neill to hopefully restore pride after the abysmal Barnes and Dalglish regime which saw Rangers romp to two titles in a row. To say he restored pride would be an understatement as the likeable Irishman secured a remarkable Treble in his first season with the talismanic Henrik Larsson scoring a sensational 51 goals. The fans took the manager and his rebuilt team to their hearts instantly. This was of course helped by the 6-2 mauling of Rangers in O'Neill's first Old Firm game ensuring he would earn his place in Celtic folklore. Rangers never recovered from this massive blow and the Hoops raced away with the league title by a clear fifteen points. Henrik Larsson was again inspirational in both domestic cup finals as Celtic beat Kilmarnock 3-0 in the League Cup final and beat Hibernian by the same scoreline in the Scottish Cup final.
Next season all eyes were on Parkhead as Martin O'Neill added the major signings of John Hartson and Bobo Balde to an already impressive squad. Both men proved to be extremely popular among the supporters and were instrumental in Celtic retaining the league title, this time by an astonishing eighteen points. This is the record number of points achieved by a team since three points were introduced for a win. The only disappointing moments this season were being knocked out of both cup competitions by our great rivals and also the sad departure of the gifted playmaker Lubomir Moravcik at the end of the campaign. We can only look back and wonder what might have been had we signed Lubo ten years earlier or if he had stayed on for the Seville adventure.

A legend waves goodbye.​

Season 2002/03 was to be a momentous one for Celtic and despite the fact that we ended the season without a single trophy, we can take great pride in the team battling their way to the UEFA Cup Final in Seville where the disgraceful diving and play-acting by the Porto team fooled the young referee. Celtic went down to a 3-2 defeat in the end but both of Henrik Larsson's majestic headers will live long in the memory. There were also some memorable moments along the way such as silencing Graeme Souness and his Blackburn side in the "Battle of Britain", Henrik Larsson's effort in Boavista which put us into the final and of course, John Hartson's stunning piledriver at Anfield in the quarter finals to put the tie beyond all doubt. Celtic would only go on to lose the league that season by a single goal and would bounce back in style next year.​

Henrik Larsson - a Celtic legend.​

Celtic went into the next season in the knowledge that it would be Swedish striker Henrik Larsson's last at the club and the new captain delivered once more. Larsson scored 30 league goals as Celtic easily regained their title from Rangers, beating them five times in five games. A true whitewash. It will be hard to forget Chris Sutton's last minute chip in the final game to clinch the record in a hurry. Celtic also wrapped up a domestic Double by securing the Scottish Cup in a 3-1 win over Dunfermline with Larsson and Petrov sharing the goals.
Life after Larsson proved to be difficult as Celtic could not retain their SPL crown the next year, crumbling to a bizzare last day defeat at Motherwell. However, there would be a slight comfort Celtic as Alan Thompson's lone strike against Dundee United in the Scottish Cup final ensured Celtic would not end the season empty handed. Due to the illness of his wife, Martin O'Neill also decided to end his very successful tenure at Parkhead and would be replaced by Gordon Strachan as a new era for Celtic began.​

The Gordon Strachan years begin.​

Strachan could not have had a worse start to his Celtic career as his side tumbled embarrassingly out of Europe to Artmedia Bratislava 5-4 on aggregate. However, he quickly turned it around and began a complete overhaul of O'Neill's ageing side although it would take until next season for his side to fully form. The league title was secured as early as April when a John Hartson strike against Hearts brought the title back to Paradise earlier than expected. Celtic went on to win the League Cup that year too in the "Johnstone Final" beating Dunfermline 3-0 in honour of the sad passing of Jinky, the Greatest Ever Celt.
Next year was just as successful for Scotland's finest as yet another early league title was secured at Rugby Park when Shunsuke Nakamura curled home a beautiful free kick in the last minute to win the league. The Celtic fans quickly took the Japanese genius to their hearts, especially after his unbelievable free kick earlier in the season to beat Manchester United at Parkhead to put Celtic into the last 16 for the first time where they were narrowly edged out by Milan. Jo Doumbe was also the unlikely hero in the Scottish Cup final as his strike against Dunfermline secured the Double.​

Tommy Burns - "a fan who got lucky". He will never walk alone.​

Next season, Scottish football was hit by a devastating double blow as a result of the sad passing of ex-Celt and Motherwell captain Phil O'Donnell and then Celtic great Tommy Burns. Celtic aimed to secure their third title in a row in Tommy's honour and they did it in style recovering from a seven point deficit in April to win it at Tannadice on the last day. Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink's 94th minute header to defeat Rangers brought Celtic back from the brink in a game memorable for Nakamura's astonishing 35 yard volley and Celtic again defeated Rangers in a thrilling 3-2 encounter thanks to a Scott McDonald brace. The tide had turned and the Champions won every game to win the "Title for Tommy".
Unfortunately, Celtic could not clinch a fourth successive title next year as some poor performances against Rangers and Hibs in the run in cost Celtic dear and Rangers clinched the title on the final day. There was some consolation though in the form of the League Cup victory over Rangers when Darren O'Dea and Aiden McGeady grabbed the goals.​

Faithful Through And Through.​

Now as we enter a new decade we can look forward to many more memories to savour under new boss Tony Mowbray. While things have not exactly gone to plan so far this season, sitting second in the league and knocked out of Europe, I am confident that as we enter 2010 we will once again regain the league title if we keep the faith. We are known all over the world for being the greatest fans in the world and now it is time for us to prove this by giving the team our full support and backing when they need us most and here's to the next ten years in Paradise.
Hail Hail.​