Glasgow Celtic

[CelticBhoy]

Told you we'd do it Salty old son.

We are too good at home!

The sweetest thing . . . . sing along.

[SantiSuk]

Told you we'd do it Salty old son.

We are too good at home!

The sweetest thing . . . . sing along.

Excellent result, pulled off with some patience and style. Well done.

[CelticBhoy]

This result is exactly what Celtic needed, but more for Lennon than the team.

This will give his confidence a huge boost and bring out the manager in him.

He must be feeling great after this game as he picked the right team . . . . at last.

Good on him. He deserves a lot of credit today.

[salty]

CB, here's a good analysis of the game.

http://www.tictactic.co.uk/

[Billy The Kid]

Oh God, I love Stokes, Matthews and Commons. Stokes dribble in the near end was marvellous. Delighted for Lennon, he had been unfairly criticized in the past. Loves the way he joined the celebrations.

[salty]

Celtic drawn with Barcelona (again), AC Milan and Ajax.

[smokie36]

Celtic drawn with Barcelona (again), AC Milan and Ajax.

Group of death but some great ties. Enjoy!!

[hullupullo]

Celtic Pukki drawn with Barcelona (again), AC Milan and Ajax.

[CelticBhoy]

Celtic drawn with Barcelona (again), AC Milan and Ajax.

Can't wait. Bring it on . . . . . . all of them!

And you'll be watching them at a sensible hour too, Salty old son. Enjoy.

[CelticBhoy]

Celtic drawn with Barcelona (again), AC Milan and Ajax.

Can't wait. Bring it on . . . . . . all of them!

And you'll be watching them at a sensible hour too, Salty old son. Enjoy.

Group of Death? The liveliest group, I'd say .

[CelticBhoy]

Great start to the Celtic Quick News site today:

Celtic join Barcelona, Milan and Ajax in the Champions League’s only group of former champions.

We beat Barcelona and Milan the last time we played each of them, and eliminated Ajax from the same competition last time we met 12 years ago. This is an incredibly difficult group, but it is the job we wanted this time yesterday.

[salty]

Yes very happy to be involved after looking very iffy after the 1st leg. I may be incurring the wrath of CB, but right now I would bite the hand of anyone who offered us 3rd place.

[CelticBhoy]

Yes very happy to be involved after looking very iffy after the 1st leg. I may be incurring the wrath of CB, but right now I would bite the hand of anyone who offered us 3rd place.

I hear you Salty, I really do old son. You're just keeping it real.

Your small negative posts will always be overshadowed by my

larger positive posts thus producing more wins in the long run.

Probably the fact that you see more 'Tic games than myself

allows you to be more judgemental of our Bhoys. I wish I saw

more of them live, but I don't think I could hack the pressure.

[carmine]

I think you did alright in the draw. No excuses in the round robin lads

[salty]

Dundee Utd 0 Celtic 1

After the champagne of Wednesday night this was like flat beer. Most of what little action there was came early on.Stokes was wide with a volley and Van Djik had a good effort just wide.Dundee U had a header from Goodwillie too near Forster and a excellent save by the goalie from a terrific free kick.

The second half was a cure for insomnia until Celtic roused themselves in the closing stages. Stokes should have got a penalty late on but in the 87th minute he took a free kick outside the area and curled it over the wall and in off the post. Lustig was carried off on a stretcher early in the 2nd half and I suspect may be out for a while.

[CelticBhoy]

I'm lovin' this story:

Swedish superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the latest in a long line of footballing greats to praise the unique atmosphere here at Celtic Park when he described his experience here with Ajax back in 2001 as “beautiful and awesome."

“It’s probably the best I have seen on the pitch” said the striker, now with Paris Saint-Germain, in a recent interview in his homeland of Sweden.

He joins a long list of famous figures from the world of football to speak in glowing terms of Celtic Park and our supporters, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho and Franz Beckenbaeur.

AC Milan and Italy legend Paolo Maldini said, “Every professional footballer should seek to play at least one game at Celtic Park. I have never felt anything like it."

And current Barcelona playmaker and World Cup winner Xavi also expressed his appreciation of the atmosphere in Paradise,

"The atmosphere generated by the fans in Celtic’s stadium for our visit was the most impressive I’ve ever witnessed," he said.

"The grounds of Liverpool and Manchester United are good and the hostile feeling of playing against Real Madrid in the Bernabeu is also excellent, but the atmosphere against Celtic was the best."

Lofty praise indeed from some of the world’s greatest. Here’s hoping their associated clubs – Ajax, AC Milan and Barcelona - experience similarly rapturous receptions, as we look forward to welcoming the biggest sides in club football to Celtic Park once again in our UEFA Champions League group.

[Billy The Kid]

I'm lovin' this story:

Swedish superstar Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the latest in a long line of footballing greats to praise the unique atmosphere here at Celtic Park when he described his experience here with Ajax back in 2001 as “beautiful and awesome."

“It’s probably the best I have seen on the pitch” said the striker, now with Paris Saint-Germain, in a recent interview in his homeland of Sweden.

He joins a long list of famous figures from the world of football to speak in glowing terms of Celtic Park and our supporters, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Alex Ferguson, Jose Mourinho and Franz Beckenbaeur.

AC Milan and Italy legend Paolo Maldini said, “Every professional footballer should seek to play at least one game at Celtic Park. I have never felt anything like it."

And current Barcelona playmaker and World Cup winner Xavi also expressed his appreciation of the atmosphere in Paradise,

"The atmosphere generated by the fans in Celtic’s stadium for our visit was the most impressive I’ve ever witnessed," he said.

"The grounds of Liverpool and Manchester United are good and the hostile feeling of playing against Real Madrid in the Bernabeu is also excellent, but the atmosphere against Celtic was the best."

Lofty praise indeed from some of the world’s greatest. Here’s hoping their associated clubs – Ajax, AC Milan and Barcelona - experience similarly rapturous receptions, as we look forward to welcoming the biggest sides in club football to Celtic Park once again in our UEFA Champions League group.

It is a pity that Celtic are not involved in the premiership, That would have taken Celtic to another level with the likes of the top clubs like United, Liverpool and Chelsea. The standard they are playing in Scotland is very low. Used to be great in the seventies and the eighties, not anymore. I was very disappointed over the UEFA , Cos Cetltic had to go through three rounds to get into the Champion League, They were super last seaon and never got recognised for this year Champion League, compared to Arsenal who came fourth last may only had to play one round. UEFA is a Disgrace to Scottish Football.

Edited September 5, 2013 by Billy The Kid

[CelticBhoy]

^ Have to agree with you there Billy . . . . but think of

all that lovely dosh generated from those extra games.

[CelticBhoy]

CELTIC XI…3
Larsson 10 pen. Van Hooijdonk 73 Brown 81

STILIYAN XI…5
Berbatov 1, 39, 58 M. Petrov 16, Byrne 89

Yet again, Celtic supporters have proved they are special. On a Sunday afternoon in September, a remarkable sell-out crowd of 60,000 gathered in Paradise for a charity match and to salute Stiliyan Petrov.

It is hard to imagine any other football club holding such an extraordinary event, but Celtic fans are proud of their club´s charitable foundations and they never forget their heroes, particularly in times of need.

From the first moment Stan was diagnosed with leukaemia in March 2012, they rallied behind the brave Bulgarian, whose courage and positivity in his fight with such life-threatening illness has simply been inspirational.

Now, thankfully, in remission, this was the Celtic fans´ opportunity to pay tribute to a wonderful footballer and a wonderful person. And that they did.

Players from both sides – a Celtic XI and Stiliyan XI – received a rapturous reception as they entered the pitch but the loudest cheer was reserved for Stiliyan who was accompanied by his children, Stiliyan Jnr and Kristiyan.

As the Bulgarian took the acclaim of the crowd, they burst into a stirring rendition of You´ll Never Walk Alone. It was a poignant and uplifting start to a memorable occasion in Paradise.

In the 19th minute, the referee allowed a pause in proceedings as supporters rose again en mass to applaud the former Hoops midfielder and chant his name.

And once the 30-minute mark was reached it was time to raise the roof again as he exited to the bench to be replaced by English internationalist Gareth Barry.

With five minutes left on the clock, Stan re-entered the fray, this time wearing the Hoops. And at full-time he addressed the Celtic Park faithful to sound his appreciation.

"First, thank you very much, all the support and everything you have done for me throughout my career," he said.

"Today you showed the world how special this place is. You made it special for me, my family and these players and thank you for standing by me."

The main beneficiaries of the event were Stan´s charity foundation and the Trussell Trust, who run Foodbanks across the country. A number of other good causes will also be assisted through the work of Celtic Charity.

Amid the show of support for Stan, there was also an entertaining game of football on show for the capacity crowd to enjoy as a number of the Bulgarian´s former team-mates, high-profile players and celebrities gave up their own time to take part in the contest.

Martin O´Neill and Kenny Dalglish returned to the dugouts for the Celtic XI and Stiliyan XI, respectively, while the likes of Henrik Larsson, Chris Sutton, Lubo Moravcik, Neil Lennon, Paul Lambert and Johan Mjallby strutted their stuff in Celtic Park once again.

Helped by a hat-trick from English Premier League star, Dimitar Berbatov, it finished 5-3 to the Stiliyan XI. But the main winner on the day was charity. And the star of the show was Stiliyan Petrov.

CELTIC XI: Louis Tomlinson, Tom Boyd, Tosh McKinlay, Jackie McNamara, Joos Valgaeren, Bobo Balde, Henrik Larsson, Morten Wieghorst, Chris Sutton, Pierre Van Hooijdonk, Jorge Cadete, Tommy Johnson, Brian McClair, Bobby Petta, Martin Compston, Didier Agathe, Neil Lennon, Stiliyan Petrov, Rab Douglas, Stevie Graham, Warren Brown, Jordan Sailsman, Lubo Moravcik, Johan Mjallby

STILIYAN XI: Shay Given, Radostin Kishishev, Freddie Bouma, Marian Hristov, Chris Kamara, Nicky Byrne, Robert Pires, Dimitar Berbatov, Jamie Redknapp, Gabriel Agbonlahor, Hristo Yovov, Paul Lambert, James Allan, Martin Petrov, Gareth Barry, Stiliyan Petrov, John Bishop, Habib Beye, Carlos Cuellar, Spencer Matthews, John Terry

[Billy The Kid]

Mr Lennon, Please Buy Berbatov, Best of Luck to Petrov of your battle against Big C. "You Will Never Walk Alone"

[salty]

A recording of the game is on a satellite channel here this evening. Will make sure to watch it.

[SantiSuk]

".....It is hard to imagine any other football club holding such an extraordinary event ...." .... when you are deliriously excitable and one dram too many

[CelticBhoy]

A recording of the game is on a satellite channel here this evening. Will make sure to watch it.

I've tried to find it on Youtube to no avail.

How was it Salty? Quite an event I'm sure.

[salty]

Yes great occasion. I tended to fast forward a lot but it was nice to see the old faces again and other celebrities.

[salty]

Hearts 1 Celtic 3:

A comfortable win in the end for the Bhoys. They had far more possession in the 1st half but Hearts restricted them with some determined defending. Forster had to push away a dangerous free kick and Commons meeting a cross volleyed well over. Celtic went ahead from a controversial penalty after 19 minutes following a corner. The ball broke from Stokes against the outstretched hand of

Hamill as he was challenging. It was a harsh decision. Commons scored emphatically. If Celtic were lucky then they were unlucky 10 minutes later when Stokes finished from close range after a Commons cross. He was given offside though he could well have been just onside. Matthews had a strong effort blocked and scrambled away. Shortly after the Welshman was denied when through by a superb covering tackle which left him injured and a doubt for the CL game in Milan on Wednesday.

Hearts had more of the play in the early stages of the 2nd half and they leveled it after 58 minutes. A close range effort was blocked to Holt and he fired in an equalizer from the edge of the box. Celtic were far too slow to close him down and he beat Forster who was possibly unsighted as he attempted to block with his foot. Celtic took over again and regained the lead in 65 minutes. Commons headed on for Stokes who timed his run perfectly and finished past McDonald into the roof of the net. Pukki came on for Commons after 74 minutes and the Finn clinched it in the 86th minute. Stokes made one of his runs towards the end line. His first effort to cross was blocked but the ball ran kindly for him and he was able to scoop the ball across goal. Showing good awareness Pukki was at hand to head to the far corner as goalkeeper and defender were covering the near post.

[CelticBhoy]

Fine report and a fine score.

Cheers fot that, Salty old son.

[Billy The Kid]

Stokes was marvellous again. He will a star this season.

[jonnyscot]

I've had a wee check and I think the nites game is live on rte2 if I'm not mistaken, but unsure if I can access that from Los without a speed slowing VPN, I tried today and can watch the news on rte's player but unsure whether the game will be blocked for users outside UK,,, or Ireland, anyone tried viewing the footsie from the rte tv player?

[salty]

AC Milan 2 Celtic 0.

Defeat in the San Siro to two goals in the last 10 minutes. Celtic had plenty of the play against a poor AC Milan but showed little imagination in the last third. Balotelli had a fierce-some volley after 4 minutes but luckily Forster was able to block it away to safety following a poor clearing header by Ambrose Soon after he had to advance to block another dangerous situation. At this stage it looked as if Milan would murder Celtic but the Celts began to hold the ball better and get more of the play.. Celtic got a free kick in the area in the 16th minute but the Milan players charging from the goal line were able to block Mulgrews effort for a corner. Forster made another good block from a close range angled header in the 20th minute. Celtic were making some progress down the right through Matthews but he made little use of it. Milan shot just over after a deflection off Matthews. Stokes made a good turn but away from goal and shot wide from an almost impossible angle when he should have tried to find the inrushing Commons. Celtic survived some late pressure to go in at HT 0-0.

Celtic made a bright start to the 2nd half but Lustig in a good position made a dreadful cross. Samaras had a decent effort which just went wide. In 62 minutes Muntari missed an easy chance when he headed over but Celtic were having a bit more of the play. Matthews made a good run and a few minutes later Brown from a good position was too slow to pull the trigger and was blocked. Boerrighter and Pukki replaced Matthews and Commons with 15 minutes to go and Celtic still looked comfortable. Stokes had a free kick which hit the top of the bar with 12 minutes to go but then in the 82th minute Zapata got too much room and his effort was going wide but it deflected off a less than alert Izaguirre to go inside the post with no chance for Forster. 3 minutes later a typical piece of stupidty from Brown saw him booked and concede a needless free kick for an off the ball foulon Balotelli. He took a superb free kick from which Forster made a terrific save but the Milan players were far quicker to react and Muntari had an easy task to finish.

So another away defeat and the my feeling is Milan were very poor on the night and Celtic could have got a draw. But we are very short in attack and I cannot see the Bhoys scoring many goals. Next game against Barcelona at Parkhead. Surely lightning cannot strike again this season.

[Billy The Kid]

Was disappointed that Celtic came home empty hand, I thought Celtic was fantastic but useless with the final ball. Celtic will beat Milan back home. Barcelona next at home, The Most important 3 points to get.

Still proud of Celtic.