ICT v Celtic: Post-match thoughts

Neil Lennon’s team selection today was influenced largely by two factors: a raft of injuries depleting his options and the looming Champions League qualifier second leg against Helsingborgs. However, with a starting XI which had an average age of just 23, Celtic secured a very credible three points, scoring more goals than they ever had previously at the Tulloch Caledonian Stadium.

As happened in midweek in Sweden, Celtic raced into an early lead which settled the team. Wanyama – who gave the sort of assured and mature performance that has come to be expected from him, despite his tender years – rose to head home a nicely-weighted Adam Matthews corner after four minutes.

The second goal was assisted and scored by the two teenagers making their full debuts for the Hoops. Receiving the ball from Wanyama, Filip Twardzik cleverly found Tony Watt with the outside of his foot and the young Scot nutmegged King before bearing down on Ryan Esson’s goal and coolly finishing.

The two youngsters, who starred in last season’s NextGen Series, acquitted themselves very well in their first 90 minutes for the senior team and showed they can play at this level. Twardzik looked intelligent in his movement and passing, while Watt proved a real handful for the new-look Caley defence. Both are certain to get more minutes this campaign, having made their debuts earlier in the year.

Celtic continued to dominate after the break and the third goal came from another man who put in a very good shift, but it was no less than expected from last season’s player of the year: Charlie Mulgrew. The Scotland international, and captain for the day, was solid and composed throughout, and it was no surprise to see him rattle the bar with a free kick from distance in the first half. His goal came from another set piece, one clearly prepared on the training ground. After a discussion with Twardzik and Matthews, Mulgrew trotted into the box. The Welshman feigned to swing the ball in but instead rolled it square for Mulgrew to slot beyond Esson on the run.

Tony Watt later added a poacher’s finish after good work by Emilio Izaguirre to give the Bhoys a four goal cushion and allow Lennon to start thinking about the Helsingborgs game.

Forrest replaced Hooper on 65 minutes. Bangura came on for Matthews shortly afterwards and Joe Chalmers made his debut on 76 minutes, allowing Izaguirre a rest. The contest was over, however, and none of the reinforcements made much of an impact on the game. Bangura’s quest for a goal and to convince the Celtic faithful continues without having made any progress.

Two late Ross Draper goals took some of the shine off an otherwise emphatic Celtic win. The Glasgow side had somewhat switched off; minds were perhaps drifting indulgently to Wednesday night’s vital game, but, all things considered, Lennon probably won’t lose too much sleep over this late lapse.

Lustig should have done better to prevent the first and Chalmers lost his man for the second but the former had a decent game on the whole, while the latter can be forgiven on his debut.

The two other players who came into the Celts’ starting line up that haven’t been accounted for yet, Paddy McCourt and Kelvin Wilson, did well enough without being outstanding. It will have been a welcome 90 minutes for both, especially the Northern Irish international who hadn’t started a game since January.

Heads and hearts can now, legitimately, turn to the Helsingborgs game, when Lennon will hope to call upon Rogne, Samaras, Brown and Commons, who all missed out today – the latter two as precautions. James Forrest will also be in contention to start after being reserved for a substitute role against the Caley Jags.

Wednesday is arguably Celtic’s biggest game of the season so far. It’s been too long since the Celtic Park roar greeted an opponent in the UEFA Champions League group stages, but that dream is now within touching distance for this young group of players.

Celtic v Aberdeen: Post-match thoughts

Celtic ran out onto the pitch as reigning SPL champions to kick off the 2012/13 league season but the game itself failed to match the excitement of the pre-match fireworks.

Celtic looked far from their best, perhaps partly down to feeling the effects of a tough European game on Wednesday night and partly to still lacking match fitness early in the new season.

James Forrest and captain Scott Brown missed out with minor injuries and their absence was keenly felt; Celtic lacked the energy and drive they bring to the team and the pace and directness Forrest provides in the final third is something that no other player in the squad really offers.

In the middle of the park Joe Ledley and Beram Kayal, facing up to Aberdeen’s trio of Osbourne, Hughes and Rae, failed to dominate and take a hold of the game. Kayal, who we are so used to seeing boss the midfield, looked a shadow of himself.

Celtic’s midfield looked much stronger when Wanyama was moved forward from centre back following the introduction of Kelvin Wilson for Samaras after 55 minutes. The 21-year old Kenyan imposed himself on the game in a way that Ledley and Kayal had not, displaying the qualities that have seen him linked with Arsenal and Man United in recent days. Neil Lennon will surely now find it hard not to include him in the midfield on Wednesday in Helsinki.

Signs of rustiness were evident too in the striking department as Hooper and Stokes were not able to demonstrate the link-up play that made them such a deadly partnership in the last two seasons. Stokes was replaced by Murphy with 13 minutes remaining but in his brief cameo he showed little to suggest he might have a more regular role to play this season.

A player accustomed to cameo appearances, Paddy McCourt, was thrown on after 70 minutes, replacing Kayal, as Celtic searched for the opener. The Northern Irish international, however, did nothing to earn the chants of ‘don’t sell McCourt’ that chorused round the stadium regardless.

As disappointing as Celtic were, however, goalkeeper Fraser Forster had a very quiet afternoon with Aberdeen managing just two efforts on target, despite the pre-match talk about new attacking signings Johnny Hayes and Niall McGinn who ultimately had to spend more time tracking back than troubling Celtic’s full backs. Centre back Thomas Rogne was one of the few players in a hooped jersey to impress, helping to nullify the threat of Scott Vernon who was moved wide part-way through the first half by manager Craig Brown.

Celtic’s most threatening player throughout was Kris Commons who drew a couple of good, low saves from Jamie Langfield. It was fitting then that it was Commons – incidentally the only Scot in Celtic’s starting XI today – who won the match, although it came in rather fortuitous circumstances and Langfield will not want to see many replays of his blunder that allowed a cross-come-shot to sneak past him at the near post. Commons’ return to form and fitness is a real boost for Celtic coming into this campaign after a disappointing 2011/12 season.

Aberdeen will rue the loss of what could have been a hard-earned point but Celtic will feel they were the better side and be glad to get their 125^th anniversary season off to a winning start in the league.

Improvement will be necessary come Wednesday for Celtic but, given that today was sandwiched in between those two very important European games, Lennon will be pleased just to pick up the three points and move on. 

Hooper for England?

In what will likely be the main UK sports story of the day, in England at least, tomorrow Roy Hodgson will announce his squad for Euro 2012. Naturally, much debate has been had over who should be on that plane to Ukraine but no one can say for certain yet who will be going.

An outside shout for a place amongst the forwards could be Celtic’s Gary Hooper. The 24 year old has scored a highly impressive 51 goals in 86 games whilst helping the team to a Scottish Cup and SPL title in his two seasons in Glasgow.

With Wayne Rooney probably the only striker who is a nailed on choice there are places up for grabs in the forward line. Danny Welbeck, Daniel Sturridge, Andy Carroll and Peter Crouch will be among those hopeful of a call, while Grant Holt has been suggest by some as a possibility too.

However, Gary Hooper offers something different. Diminutive yet strong the Harlow born striker is a predator in the box. He was simply born to score goals and does so with ease and joy. One of Hooper’s greatest qualities is his efficiency in front of goal; whilst always being amongst the top scorers he is not one who needs a lot of chances to find the net.

To exemplify this let’s compare his stats with those of Nikica Jelavic. The Croat striker took more shots in half a season at Rangers than Hooper did in the full campaign and yet the Englishman outscored him by ten SPL goals. Jelavic, of course, joined Everton in January and is proving to be a fantastic signing.

Hooper finished this season with 24 league goals (29 in all competitions), five of which came on the final day when he ran riot against Hearts before Celtic lifted the SPL trophy. If there is one English striker who is flying and high on confidence right now then it is Gary Hooper.

The biggest factor counting against Hooper in his bid to be considered for international selection, just like it was for Alan Thompson before him, is that he is playing in Scotland – a country that England managers have continually looked down upon. Of course the SPL as a whole cannot be compared to England’s Premier League but it is folly to suppose that there are no quality players playing there.

Hooper has outscored every other English striker (apart from Rooney) this season and is the only one currently celebrating being a champion. That must count for something. The importance of a winning mentality and of being able to play well under pressure must not be underestimated, especially when making the step up to international football.

The demands of playing for Celtic cannot be stressed enough. You are quite literally expected to go out and win every game and Hooper, as the principal goal scorer, has handled this burden well, continually coming up with the goods and at crucial times.

In the interests only of making a comparison and with all due respect to Grant Holt and Norwich, who have done fantastically this season, their only ambition would have been to survive and anything beyond that is a bonus. For Hooper’s Celtic a second place finish would have been a failure that would have cost the manager his job. It’s a different kind of pressure. A pressure to win, always.

What are England’s ambitions this summer? Will they be heading to Poland and Ukraine hoping to return with the trophy or will they accept a decent showing and going home with nothing?

Of course that is not to say that taking Gary Hooper over players playing for teams of a lesser standing within their own divisions will necessarily bring England greater success but the mental demands of playing for Celtic would stand Hooper in good stead for the pressures of carrying England’s hopes.

Despite all this many will still laugh off the suggestion of Hooper playing for England as long as he’s playing in the SPL. However, he has scored goals for Celtic in European competition (three in seven appearances) and also has a habit of scoring in one of the highest pressure games in the world, never mind for Celtic, with five goals in ten games against Rangers. These are big games that many players with far bigger reputations than Gary Hooper have struggled in but Hoops has scored some of his best goals in Glasgow derby games.

A lot of his goals are close range instinctive finishes but he can also score from further out, from the spot and with his head. He knows how to use his body, possesses a decent turn of pace and has great control in the box.

If Hodgson picks his squad on form, not reputation, then Hooper will be on the plane. He has the ability and if the new manager has the guts to give him a chance then England may reap the rewards.

Imagine it’s the latter stages of the tournaments, in extra time, and the game is heading for the “dreaded” penalties and the ball falls in the area to an England striker… Are there many people you would feel more confident in than Gary Hooper to stick it away?

Player watch: Baba Diawara

Marítimo 2-1 Benfica, Taça de Portugal, 2/12/2011.

Baba Diawara’s name has been mentioned in connection with Celtic since the end of the summer transfer window, when it was widely reported that only work permit problems prevented him completing a move from Madeira to Glasgow.

Since then Baba has been in great form for Marítimo and leads the goalscoring charts in Portugal with 9 in 11 in the league and 11 in 14 in all competitions.

Since the alleged collapse of his move to Celtic there have been speculations that Celtic may come back in for him in January, that they will have first option on him in that window and even that a deal has already been agreed. With this in mind I decided to take a closer look at Marítimo’s Senegalese number 9, having only previously seen him in highlight clips or part of a match, so I watched his club’s cup game at home to Benfica tonight to do a bit of scouting.

Baba plays as the focal point of Marítimo’s attack, a typical number 9 in many ways, and maintains a central position for the majority of the time, being the lone striker in a 4-3-3 system.

It is evident that he can be an outlet as a target for long balls and on numerous occasions he was asked to win a high ball, and he often did so, sometimes winning a free kick off the defender in the process. He displayed that ability of a good centre forward who knows who to play his defender, how to back in without conceding the foul but winning one instead. He appears strong but not monstrously so.

Although Baba is comfortable with his back to goal and challenging aerially, he also is more than capable of making a run in behind the defence and has the pace and timing to do so. On a couple of occasions against Benfica he made an intelligent run but the pass was just overhit.

He also displayed an ability to receive the ball as the furthest man forward, hold it up and then have the composure to play it on, keeping the attack moving. A number of times he came deeper to link play up, but only when necessary and not out of a desire to be needlessly involved, nor in a way that left the attack deficient. He was usually quick to move the ball on, simply and calmly, before making a forward run.

Baba appears an intelligent player, particularly in and around the penalty area. He knows how to take up a good position and use his body too. A couple of times he won the ball in the box when he didn’t appear the favourite and was then able to shield it from defenders and lay it off to a team mate. On another occasion a clever dummy on his part at the edge of the area presented a team mate with a decent chance.

What surprised me slightly tonight was that Baba himself didn’t have a chance on goal, bar a couple of blocked shots. This can partly be attributed to a lack of service and the fact that Marítimo were facing top opposition in Benfica but it must be said that Baba doesn’t seem the type of player who will fashion a chance out of nothing for himself. That’s not necessarily a big criticism as many goalscorers are similar (one that springs to mind is Sporting’s Ricky van Wolfswinkel). He can link up play well, lead the line, provide a focus for the attack and lay on chances for others but without good service he likely won’t produce goals himself.

Tonight wasn’t his night on the goal front (although it was certainly a fantastic result for his team) but he still put in a good shift and impressed me. I could see his qualities, although I was a little disappointed I didn’t get the chance to assess his finishing skills. What was encouraging, though, is that I could see he was getting in good positions and still being of value to the team, and clearly, given his record this season, he does know how to put chances away when he gets them. 

Would Baba Diawara be a useful addition to Neil Lennon’s Celtic squad? I think he would. He offers something a little different to what is already there. Although Anthony Stokes has performed admirably as the lone striker in the last couple of European games it is not a role that is entirely natural or suited to him. Gary Hooper is a fine poacher and penalty box striker but can’t be expected to win many aerial balls and has previously proved ineffective when asked to lead the line alone. Georgios Samaras is tall and physical but tends to drift out wide and into the channels and likes to run at players. Recent evidence suggests that the Greek forward’s most effective role may be on the left, rather than central. I’ve not seen enough of Mo Bangura to make a proper judgement but he does not appear to be a “number 9” either, more someone who likes to run the channels and take a man on. Baba stays central, receives the ball and plays it on, bringing others into play. He can be a target man and more besides. He can drop deep and run in behind too.

Bringing in a fifth first team striker might be overkill, and I do not want to downplay the merits of the four at the club right now, but I think Diawara is different enough that he would be of use to the squad and offer something Celtic don’t have right now. It may be that if he comes in, someone else will have to move on but if that is in the name of progress then that’s football.

One stumbling block, should Celtic wish to sign him, is his recent form. If no deal has already been agreed or no fee already set then Celtic may find his price has soared beyond their reach since August, and they are certainly not the only club who have been linked to him.  

Match Report: Porto v Braga

Two late goals weren’t enough for Braga as Porto clinched a crucial 3-2 win at Estádio do Dragão thanks to a double from Hulk and one from Kléber.

The game was an open one and the visitors perhaps shaded the opening half hour, creating the better chances, but it’s no lie that goals change games and that’s what happened in the 37^th minute. An inviting James Rodríguez cross was met by Hulk whose header flew over and beyond advancing Braga keeper Quim and into the net.

From then on it was Porto who were in the ascendency, and shortly after the goal it was only good awareness from Quim that prevented a possible second; the Portuguese veteran racing out of his box and performing sweeping duties after a ball in behind left his defence struggling. Earlier he had also denied Hulk with his feet after the Brazilian cut inside from the right channel and fired in a low shot.

However, Braga had chances too, usually with Alan as the inspiration. In the 16^th minute he carved open the Porto backline with a pass that sent Lima racing through but his fellow Brazilian dragged his shot wide from outside the area.

Moments later Alan sent in a teasing low cross from the right but Maicon did well to make a vital interception at the back post.

Around ten minutes later Alan, again, sent over an excellent low ball from the right but the sliding Lima couldn’t get a decent enough connection on it and the ball looped over.

Porto began the second half in relative control and in the 57^th minute good defending from last man Paulo Vinícius denied James a chance on goal. About five minutes later a Maicon header brought out a decent save from Quim but the assistant’s flag was raised anyway. Shortly afterwards Quim again saved a close range header, this time after Cristian Rodríguez connected with fellow substitute Souza’s cross from the left.

Alan, so influential in the first, had faded into the periphery in the second half but he popped up in the 72^nd minute to produce a good save from Helton after the ball had been worked to him on the right following some good combination play down the left flank between Paulo Vinícius and Hélder Barbosa, who had just replaced Paulo César.

However, Porto appeared to have sealed the game in a four minute double salvo beginning with a fantastic strike from Hulk in the 78^th minute. João Moutinho in possession on the right played the ball inside to Hulk, slightly right of centre, outside the area, and the forward swiftly bent his shot high into the far side of the goal, sailing beyond the outstretched Quim. It was a great goal and the Dragão erupted in appreciation.

Hulk was involved in Porto’s third as well – but not before the offside flag denied him a hat trick – and this time he was the creator; bursting into the area on the right towards the byline, he cut the ball back to provide Kléber with a relatively straight forward finish.

There was drama yet in this match though and Hulk once again played a central role. The 25 year old, tracking back inside his own penalty area, brought down Braga right back Leandro Salino in an ill judged challenge from behind in the 89^th minute, resulting in a penalty and a yellow card. Lima confidently dispatched the penalty.

In the first minute of additional time Lima scored again, sweeping a Paulo Vinícius cutback in first time from just inside the area after Alan’s neat pass had released the full back.

However it was too little too late for Braga as Porto saw the match out to see the final score mirror that in last season’s corresponding fixture. The result sees Porto remain level on points with Benfica who beat Sporting 1-0 yesterday at Estádio da Luz in the Lisbon derby. Sporting lose ground and are now four points behind the leaders, with Marítimo one point behind after their 2-2 draw at Nacional.

   

Team GB football team Part II

To follow on from my previous post (which, as explained therein, was written some time ago) I will begin by reiterating my beliefs that a) football should not be an Olympic sport and b) that the UK should not enter a joint football team into the London 2012 Olympics. From these viewpoints I have not altered. It may have been a subject I was already slightly weary of when I wrote that piece but even now it is still something I feel strongly about.

Why does it matter so much to me that Scotland retains its footballing independence?

As a proud Scot and a football fan the only national team I could ever truly support is Scotland. I simply could not feel the same way about a UK team; it would ruin international football for me. I do not feel British nor do I identify with the notion of Britain or Britishness in any way. To me the United Kingdom is a political entity and nothing more. Scotland is a nation and hence my nationality is Scottish – despite what my passport says.

However, I would certainly not describe myself as a nationalist (I am indifferent to the idea of Scottish independence politically) and I say none of this out of disregard for the rest of the UK. I am happy to witness the success of all UK athletes at the Olympics (although, admittedly, it is not an event that inspires fervent passion in me) and in the past I have willed on Tim Henman at Wimbledon and backed Matthew Syed in table tennis competitions.

But these are individuals, football is a team sport and my team is Scotland. I believe the Scottish Football Association have legitimate fears that if Scottish players feature as part of Team GB at the Olympics it could put our national team’s future at serious risk. We have always had our own football team and to gamble that over a meaningless, age restricted tournament seems like grave foolishness.    

I have little doubt that FIFA would quite like to unite the UK teams, our independent status is viewed by many outsiders as a privilege and one that some would have no qualms about taking away. A united footballing UK would grant FIFA more power too as no more would the “home associations” have such dominance on the International Football Association Board or such influence within FIFA itself – where they are guaranteed one of the eight Vice-President spots. On the specific issue of how Team GB could affect the Home Nations’ independence FIFA have sent out mixed signals and have in no way offered a guarantee that we would not be putting it in jeopardy were we to compete united at the Olympics. And even if they were to offer one, would anyone trust them?

The FAW (Football Association of Wales) and the IFA (Irish Football Association) have similar anxieties to the SFA which I, of course, empathise with. In the past fortnight photos have emerged of Welsh players Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey sporting the Team GB football kit. I’m sure the sight of these images will have made a few Welsh supporters feel uneasy, and not just because the shirt in question is rather hideous. I’d bet the players don’t quite grasp either the gravity of the situation or the strength of feeling amongst their own supporters. These things must be explained to them, and I believe Gary Speed has indicated that he will talk to the Welsh players about it – hopefully Craig Levein does likewise with the Scotland squad.

No Scotland internationals, to my knowledge, have been as forthright in stating their willingness to play as part of Team GB as Bale and Ramsey have but some players, including Rangers youngsters Gregg Wylde and Kyle Hutton, have conceded they would be open to the possibility.

I can only hope that between now and whenever Stuart Pearce selects his Olympic squad that the SFA makes its stance crystal clear to Scottish players, makes them aware of the dangers and advises them not to be selfish and to not rank personal ambitions ahead of a nation’s passion.  

Team GB football team Part I

The debate over the appearance of an all UK football team at next summer's Olympics seems to pop up every now and again and may get more intense as London 2012 draw nearer.

Here is what I wrote on the subject in January 2009:

Football should not be an Olympic event.

At least that should be as far as the argument should go, however, the reality is that for some implausible reason or another it is and certain people seem determined for 'Team GB' (an inaccurate moniker by the way as it excludes its Northern Irish athletes) to enter a football team in the London 2012 Olympics. I would question the sanity of whoever raised this idea initially as surely they could have foreseen the huge can of worms that it has opened. There are too many irresolvable issues and debates at the heart of this on political, nationalistic and logistic levels and the simplest thing to do would be to acknowledge the fact that football isn't a high profile Olympic event and not bother with the whole farce that is detracting from the efforts of those in other disciplines that are rightfully an integral part of the Olympics and are therefore more deserving of Olympic attention.

Not entering a UK team in the Olympics would also please all the club managers who may have had players taken from them for the start of the league campaign. The timetable clash between Olympic football and domestic football is another argument for its futility. Furthermore, uniquely at the Games, Olympic football has age restrictions, with only a limited quota of players aged over 23 permitted, which only serves to add to the notion that it really is no more than a sideshow that irritates clubs, disinterests fans and, evidently, causes unnecessary discussions.

The Olympics are there for the world’s finest athletes to prove themselves on a prestigious global stage but football has its own platform for this end in the FIFA World Cup which truly brings together the best footballers on the planet and conjures up one of the most popular sporting events around. So, considering this, is it really necessary for football to tag along at the Olympics in a compromised format?

It seems though that by this stage the madness has descended to such an extent that football is here to stay as an Olympic event. However, with the European Championships having preceded it that very summer, interest will, as ever, be low in Olympic football in 2012.

And yet the campaign for British inclusion in it will rage on, led principally by Englishmen who one suspects are secretly hoping for concessions to be made to allow England to solely represent the UK in men’s football as they have already been given permission to do so in women’s football. In any case these people hold no fear of the Home Nations losing their privileged independence in FIFA’s eyes because as the largest of these nations any joint British team would, logically, be comprised in the main by English players.

As a Scotsman I admit that given the choice between an all England team or a British select being chosen to represent the UK at the 2012 Olympics I would be more at ease in seeing the all England team take to the field as I do not wish to see any unnecessary precedent set which may now seem insignificant but could in years to come be cast back up to seize our national footballing identity from us.