A team like Celtic takes a lot of flak at times like this, the league is a 'cakewalk', we have more money than the rest of the teams in the full of Scotland put together and according to universal opinion we should breeze every match. When we win 1-0 there is an outcry, as we recently saw when we had three 1-0 wins in a row . There is a certain type of pressure that comes within Celtic Football Club that is unique in world football.​

We are the only club in the world with the expectation on its shoulders to go into their domestic competition and win a treble, every year and when slip ups like Morton happen all * breaks loose. The argument goes, if everyone else is so poor, how can we lose? On the other side of the coin, we have fans going to Parkhead on European nights expecting a win against the likes of Barcelona, one of the greatest teams to ever play the game (well we done it last season, how can't we do it again?)​

It is a situation that borders on the ridiculous and that is where we encounter a problem, with the frenzy about the January transfer window happening in front of our eyes in all its glory, mad £37m bids being played out on Sky Sports News for players like Juan Mata. We as a club have an expectation on our shoulders to find very unique players, players that can follow our legends and bear the weight of the support on their shoulders:​

The man who could do it all​

It takes a unique player to be able to keep their level of performance at its heights week in and week out, the consistency to be able to play for a massive club and have a winning mentality while trying to entertain fans in a league that is hustle and bustle, physical and bereft of space - Neil Lennon and the scouting staff need to find a player who not only does it week in and week out in our domestic football but find that man who will raise his game and go toe to toe with those at the height of the game in Europe. ​

We've had countless examples of players coming into a Celtic side and being able to do it in one or the other, the likes of Jiri Jarosik, Miku and Samaras have far outshone their rather poor domestic performances in Europe, they've been the type who could walk amongst the 'higher' level of footballer but when we crashed back down to the realities of the domestic game, they had a habit of going hiding. ​

While we've had many players that could do it in the SPFL and couldn't raise their level to that of the European game. Going forward as a club we are looking towards building a more European side, it is a very thin line that Neil Lennon is walking while signing players, those with ability need to back that up with mentality and that is a quality that is hard to measure outside of the cooker pressure that is Celtic. ​

With 5 days to go in the transfer window and 2 signings in so far, with Neil and the Scouts striving for more, being spotted all over Europe it is a very interesting time for the club. A time that we will only find out if we have used it wisely come the Champions League Qualifiers and hopefully the Champions League proper come next season. ​