Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo

What are you on about?????

 

No, it is not. It is an opinion and a minority one at that I would say.

 

I’m not going to go through his list of signings individually because I fail to see the point. I’m not arguing that he has never made a bad signing.

Again, your picking individual transfers and ignoring the fact that every manager has a record littered with signings that didn’t work out. It makes no sense to criticise Lennon for falling into the trap of not being infallible.


This is the Celtic side he inherited that formed Mowbray’s last game in charge:

• Zaluska
• Wilson
• Braafheid
• Thompson
• O'Dea
• N'Guemo
• Ki Sung-Yeung (Fortune 60)
• McGeady
• Keane
• Samaras
• McGowan

That is one of the worst Celtic sides in recent memory. Keane was a loan player and returned south, and Lennon had to sell our most valuable assets in Boruc and McGeady to fund a full squad rebuild.
He carried out that rebuild better than any of us could imagine.

The next rebuild wasn’t as dramatic, and he inherited some very good players and a winning side. Nevertheless, our goalkeeper and back line consisted of basically Gordon/Bain, Simunovic and Ajer....we had no right back, and had to sell our star left back to fund a rebuild. We were left so heavily depleted on the defensive side, and completely bereft of any scouting department, so much so that this season could’ve been written off as a time to rebuild. Instead, we were on course for another treble, and finished top of our EL group.

The absolute best thing about Lennon is his eye for a player imo. He’s one of the key reasons our recruitment is held in high esteem across the footballing world.

 

So what u are trying to say is that if ANY manager won back to back trebles that their failings wouldn't be ignored. Well when someone wins EVERY trophy the are in domestically there's not a lot you can criticise really. Yes maybe the style could be better or a bit more flamboyant but it's hard to do that. Yes there was grumbling about Rodgers system being too rigid, too much set it stone but the result of 2 back to back trebles and an Invincible season is really hard to pick bones of. The only place that would be easy to criticise was Europe and especially his second season and the doings against Barca and Munich being really poor

 

How about instead of telling other folk what they are "trying to say" you concentrate more on what you are writing yourself then you wouldn't have every * in this thread picking holes in your pish ? Your only looking at the bad signings and ignoring the good ones is clearly nonsense.

In terms of what you are claiming as fact.

1 Rodgers won 7 trophies in a row. Lenny is currently on 3 in a row. The league was/is all but won so who is to say when football starts again he won't equal the 7 trophies in a row ?
2 You claim Rodgers will always get cut more slack than Lenny ? By who because as I say that certainly seems to be a minority decision on here and amongst Celtic fans.

 

I cant and won't argue that he had a rebuild in his first full season and his initial signing did come in and do a job, although a shocking night in Inverness did show a real weakness in central defence, Big Danny was always a worry, something that he managed to resolve with the likes of Virgil, Efe and Mulgrew. But after the initial 2 years of signings we started to see far too many gap fillers and real puzzling signings especially around his last 12 months we seen the likes of


19 Holmbert Fridjonsson, £100,000 from Fram Reykjavik, Jan 2014 [BBC]
20 Teemu Pukki, £3m from Schalke, Aug 2013 [BBC]

11 Derk Boerrigter, £3m from Ajax, Jul 2013 [BBC]
22 Steven Mouyokolo, free from Wolverhampton Wanderers, Jul 2013 [BBC]
17 Amido Balde, £1.5m from Vitoria Guimaraes, Jun 2013 [BBC]
26 Viktor Noring, (loan) from Trelleborgs FF, Jan 2013 [STV]
05 Rami Gershon, (loan) from Standard Liege, Jan 2013 [BBC]

 

When a teams winning the domestic treble, going unbeaten, selling the Hydro out in 2 hours then repeating the treble again I don't think I heard much complaints. As I said 2nd season in Europe would be the main gripe I would imagine so no matter how bad his signings were, winning is the be all and end all, FACT. But if you aren't winning everything and making a lot of very poor signings there will always be questions asked, No??? Lenny is his previous time in charge never won a treble, even when going into cup finals overwhelming favourites v Kilmarnock and 3 semi finals v Hearts, St Mirren and Ross County putting paid to his chances so would always be open to criticism, again No?. Any manager that arrives at Celtic is under pressure to not only win but win everything and with a style that the fans like. Rodgers won everything in his first season with some good flowing football. By the second season the cracks were showing a bit, too rigid in his formation, teams getting a game plan to combat it. Yet still managed another treble and again something that has never happened at our club back to back trebles. Again had to be critical, No? So that why I said Rodgers got cut more slack because, Europe apart, he had done what he was tasked to do and that was follow up on his first season success. Lenny is a more experienced manager and seems to be a bit more focused in bring in the younger players in the squad, something he didn't have maybe the opportunity or resources to do. All I want to see a more careful and balanced plan in recruitment than in his previous spell it all seemed very chaotic and hit and miss.

 

My mates a Rapid Vienna fan & he said they used to always say “Aww naw, no Boli Bolingoli-Mbombo on anaw noo” when he came on.

Never filled me with much confidence.

 

Kamenar and Noring were on loan 3rd choice keepers.

 

You can’t just exclude them because it suits your argument,,,,,,,,oh wait......

 

it’s you that wants to ignore signings that were hugely successful. You’re all over the place.

 

Is it??

 

I didn’t exclude them. They were brought here for a reason and that reason was to be 3rd choice goalkeepers. We never paid a fee. They were there incase we needed them and thankfully we didn’t.

 

Not Aimed at you.

 

@Scott smyth the only manager in the last 40 years to have a better signing record than Lennon is MoN and he did so at a time that we had the 4th highest wage bill in the UK and could spend £6 million on players (Sutton, Lennon, Hartson) If you disagree with that then name me one better?

Has Lennon signed some stinkers? Aye, as has literally every manager in World Football. Stein did (my Granda tells me anyway) Ferguson did, Mourinho did, Klopp did.

With our strategy of signing diamonds in the mud to polish up and sell on for profit, you are always going to have duffers but that doesn't detract from the outstanding players he has found including Ballon D'Or nominee and the current best defender in the World.

Frimpong for £300k. Elhamed for £1.2m. Julien who has been a rock for us.

At least be objective please. Don't exclude players just because it strengthens your argument.

 

28 Leigh Griffiths, £1m from Wolverhampton Wanderers, Jan 2014 [BBC]
25 Stefan Johansen, £2m from Stromsgodset, Jan 2014 [BBC]
19 Holmbert Fridjonsson, £100,000 from Fram Reykjavik, Jan 2014 [BBC]
20 Teemu Pukki, £3m from Schalke, Aug 2013 [BBC]
06 Nir Biton, £700,000 from FC Ashdod, Aug 2013 [BBC]
11 Derk Boerrigter, £3m from Ajax, Jul 2013 [BBC]

05 Virgil van Dijk, £2.6m from FC Groningen, Jun 2013 [BBC]
17 Amido Balde, £1.5m from Vitoria Guimaraes, Jun 2013 [BBC]


18 Tom Rogic, £400,000 from Central Coast Mariners, Jan 2013[BBC

04 Efe Ambrose,£1.5m from Ashdod, Aug 2012 [BBC]

01 Fraser Forster,£2m from Newcastle United, Aug 2012 [BBC]

23 Mikael Lustig, free from Rosenborg, Jan 2012 [BBC]

14 Mohamed Bangura, £2.2m from AIK, Aug 2011 [BBC]
67 Victor Wanyama, £900,000 from Germinal Beerschot, Jul 2011 [BBC]
02 Adam Matthews, free from Cardiff City, Jun 2011 [BBC]
06 Kelvin Wilson, free from Nottingham Forest, Jun 2011 [BBC]
46 Dylan McGeogh, free from Rangers, Jun 2011 [BBC]
15 Kris Commons, £300,000 from Derby County, Jan 2011 [BBC]
32 Tony Watt, £100,000 from Airdrie, Jan 2011 [BBC]

10 Anthony Stokes, £800,000 from Hibernian, Aug 2010 [BBC]
26 Fraser Forster, (loan) from Newcastle United, Aug 2010 [BBC]
03 Emilio Izaguirre, £600,000 from Motagua, Aug 2010 [BBC]
05 Daniel Majstorovic, free from AEK Athens, Aug 2010 [BBC]
33 Beram Kayal, undisclosed from Maccabi Haifa, Jul 2010 [BBC]
88 Gary Hooper, £2.4m from Scunthorpe, Jul 2010 [BBC]
04 Efrain Juarez, undisclosed from UNAM Pumas, Jul 2010 [BBC]
27 Daryl Murphy, £1.5m from Sunderland, Jul 2010 [BBC]
16 Joe Ledley, free from Cardiff City, Jul 2010 [BBC]

21 Charlie Mulgrew, free from Aberdeen, Jul 2010 [BBC]



That list there is clear of free or loan players that did next to nothing for us.

The free’s would have been modest wages probably with appearance linked bonuses ( not many got them)
some of the loans would have been shared wages. the list looks better now doesn’t it.

The wasted £10-12million players against the £16.5 million on first team picks.

There are approx £16.5 million outgoings to include VVD, Wanyama, Lustig, hooper, Forster, Izzy, Commons, Griffiths etc.
VVD sale wiped out more than that amount.
Do you see where I’m going with this?

 

Probably not.

 

So, just to get this back on track, what could we realistically expect to get for Mr Boli if we do manage to offload him at the next transfer window?