craig

Get in !!!!

Injury time.....

Come on the Well !!!!

Big Boab got sent off after 51 mins! So the Tims have struggled against 10 men for 40 mins - and in the whole game they have only had 3 shots on target !

Frankie was going to do the preview for Fraser Gribz - the wee man did his best to get it done !! Get in Motherwell !!!!! Better than a winning horse in the Grand National !

You miss one important ingredient in that though..... will the chairman actually release the funds if we do sell said quality player ?? That as yet is unproven, the only true example we have of selling a quality player for sizeable funds recently is Alan Hutton - and his sale was right at the end of the transfer window, leaving the management little time to make any replacements. We will see in the summer if the funds will be available from Hutton's sale - and even then, if we DO spend, some will say we are spending the Euro run cash, not the Hutton sale cash. The other thing that is missing is that you say with the cash we "will bring in 3 or 4 quality replacements" - the issue I have with that statement is that you can never guarantee that the replacement is quality - look at Graveson and Hesselink - our East End friends were salivating over them and look how they turned out - we have our own examples of course in Capucho et al. When you have a player on your books who oozes class like Cuellar, as a fan you don't want to lose your best players but you also, to an extent, are concerned that the replavement will not live up to the same standards. That said, given the financial position of the club it would be very difficult to turn down a 10 million pounds profit from one player, regardless of his quality.

I think though that the problem WS has is a product of the success he has seen. We all are quite happy with the position we are in from a perspective of challenging. However, many of us are disappointed in the performances. Where WS' problem comes from is - because we are challenging on all four fronts he now probably feels the need to play his strongest team, and because he hasn't used the fringe players before now he most likely feels he cant throw them in at the business end of the season, rightly or wrongly. I can appreciate the position he finds himself in, we are in a position of strength in the league so it is difficult to change the team when you have used the same players throughout the campaign. I actually think that much of WS' selection of his best 11 stems from Tynecastle earlier in the season when he rested BF and we got soundly pumped. From then he has picked what he thinks is his best 11, regardless of form. Had we been sitting in 2nd place and not challenging for the league, and had we been out of the UEFA I could see him playing more fringe players and tinkering with his team and line up. It is very difficult to tinker with your team when you still are challenging for FOUR trophies. On top of that..... I am convinced he has more than just a glance on winning the domestic TREBLE this year - he won't want to jeopardise that by tinkering with the team.

In what way do you think it is fishy BD ?

Just got a message from RFC on my desktop saying that Cousin might actually make the game at Tannadice on Sunday - the specialist will make a decision tomorrow. If he is passed fit I reckon he will get a fair bit of playing time as I can see him being the one chosen to lead the line in Lisbon.

That was my first thought too - looks to me like an obvious ploy to win back the fans - could it be Chesney's last stand ? Imagine if they made him manager when Chesney throws the toys out the pram....

Seems they have taken the bigot onto the coaching staff !! http://www.sportinglife.com/football/scottishpremier/news/story_get.cgi?STORY_NAME=soccer/08/04/03/SOCCER_Celtic.html Neil Lennon jumped at the chance to return to Celtic and admitted it was a "phenomenal" feeling to be back with the club he loves. The former Hoops captain accepted an invitation from manager Gordon Strachan to join his coaching staff, and Lennon will be on the frontline from the start in his second spell in Glasgow. His place among the coaches on the bench for Saturday's Clydesdale Bank Premier League clash with Motherwell has been confirmed. The man with the enormous passion for the Parkhead outfit, with whom he won five SPL titles until leaving for a fresh challenge in England last summer, has now kicked his last ball in competitive football. The combative midfielder had been playing with Wycombe, bossed by fellow Hoops legend Paul Lambert, in League Two. But there was no stopping Lennon from heading north when the offer to rejoin Celtic came in. The 36-year-old said: "I am overwhelmed at being offered this chance to return to Celtic, a place where everyone knows my heart lies. "Obviously, it was a tremendous honour to play for Celtic and to captain the club. Returning to Celtic and being part of the coaching set-up is simply phenomenal. "I would like to thank Gordon for this opportunity and I look forward to doing all I can to play my part in achieving further success for the club." The former Northern Ireland international joins a coaching staff which includes assistant boss Garry Pendrey and first-team coach Tommy Burns. Burns is currently battling cancer for the second time but still coaches at the club and will continue to do so when his treatment programme allows. Lennon arrives without a coaching pedigree but his leadership and motivational qualities are in no doubt. He first joined Celtic from Leicester in 2000 for �£5.5million, joining former Foxes boss Martin O'Neill in Glasgow. Five years later he was appointed captain by Strachan in 2005, one of the former Southampton manager's first tasks after taking over from O'Neill. Lennon led Celtic to back-to-back championships, and to the last 16 of the Champions League last season, before leaving to join Nottingham Forest, who he left in January. In all, he won five SPL titles, four Scottish Cups and two League Cups with Celtic. As well as the Champions League achievement, Lennon also played a key role in Celtic reaching the 2003 UEFA Cup final. He has no doubt whatsoever the time is right to steer his career towards a potential future in management, and leaving behind his playing career became an easy decision. Lennon said: "It was an opportunity I couldn't refuse. Chances like this only come around once in a lifetime and I'm flattered to have been given the role." Strachan's side trail Rangers by six points in the SPL, and their Old Firm rivals are poised to unseat them as Scottish champions barring a late-season twist in the title race. Second-best was never enough for Lennon, and Strachan is relishing the return of his former skipper, and said: "Neil is someone who I am proud to have worked with previously and is a man who I have great respect for. "Neil has made a huge contribution to Celtic over a number of years and has been a major part of the club's success in recent times. "We were disappointed to lose Neil and he is someone who I was very keen to have back at the club. "With his qualities, Neil will be a very valuable addition to our (coaching) team and we are very much looking forward to working with him."

Do you like ANY manager Jon ? :fish: I think the point is.... Wenger really does come away with stuff that makes you scratch your head in bewilderment - but so do MOST other managers, Benitez being the latest last night. SAF does it frequently too. I haven't seen the incident but both goals last night were poor from a defensive perspective. Arsenal will struggle as long as they need to play Senderos at the back....

Samaras looked like he was doing an "Al Jolson" - for anyone who knows who Al Jolson is.....

Frankie- mucho appreciated !! Have been pretty busy with work, and the family just got back after not seeing them for 3 weeks. My bad, and apologies Gribz ! Sorry all, won't forget the Celtic one - thanks again Frankie !

Come on Gav, don't be silly - Benitez isn't biased towards his own team, it is only Wenger that is like that, right Jon ? You have to laugh at the hypocrisy though of some people (aye, you Jon...) trying to defend the statement from Benitez when, had that been Wenger, he would have been a for the exact same statement......

So Jon.... let's take a wee look at statements given by managers after your recent diatribes against Wenger. By YOUR OWN reckoning Arsenal were denied a stonewall penalty. Benitez' reaction ? "I have seen the replay of the penalty appeal. But in England that sort of thing is not given, because it was not clear." Now.... surely by YOUR reckoning this means that Benitez is blind ? Or just an ignorant manager for not agreeing with things which are obviously clear cut ?

Advantage Liverpool but not by much - this game is still very much in the balance.

I wish - too much work on the screen at the minute - you know, the workers amongst us and all that - ya lazy fooker Jon ! :fish:

You saying Torres and Ronaldo are pish ? Kidding !!!

My machine is running so freaking slow !!!

Just like Boyd eh Jon ?

Ahhh shite - did I speak too soon ? No biggie, Arsenal have won away from home against much better teams than Liverpool this season !

Arsenal Arsenal Arsenal !!!!! GET IN ! GIRUY Jon (he says in the hope the Pool don't find the net tonight !!)

Back on topic - looks like Chelsea are through to the semis

Mia Hamm is married to Nomar Garciaparra - a major league baseball player, who gets paid a boat load of money. Decent player too !