Midfield_General

Great game. Rohl slowly pulling Rangers into title contention and showing just what an appalling job Martin did with the same players. But how the fuck is Paul Tisdale director of football at Celtic? That’s hilarious.

It will be interesting to see how long they give him if this current slump continues. While we won’t go down, we’re currently one defeat and goal difference away from being 18th. If we start slipping back down towards the relegation places, lose away at the skates and keep playing this shite football then the crowd could easily turn toxic again, and we all know how this board of cowards and idiots reacts to deflect attention from their own failures when that happens.

So according to German media it seems that the situation with Peretz is: - He’s a Bayern player - He’s been on loan at Hamburg but hasn’t played - Bayern want to terminate the loan, recall him and then loan him to us - The player really wants the move - Hamburg originally agreed to it but have now put the brakes on terminating the loan until they’ve brought in a replacement who can take over as their no. 2 - The player didn’t report for training at Hamburg, but the coach said this wasn’t related to the situation and was because a flight was cancelled which was outside his control So it’s gone from a ‘done deal’, to now being dependent on Hamburg signing someone else or changing their stance.

More genius recruitment work from ‘squad planning is an art’ Spors

We have some decent individuals but too often we don't resemble a team, in terms of the personnel we've recruited, the roles they play, how they complement each other to make a whole, and how and where they are utilised by the manager. We're lopsided, dysfunctional and missing too many key components of a successful team - a reliable goalkeeper, an organising defender and a strong physical presence up front, to name but three.

And in the meantime, let's take a look at how he's utilised one of the few players we have who actually does have standout creative quality and can unlock defences, Leo Scienza, over the important Christmas period: - vs. Oxford: Subbed him off on 55 minutes, with the game in the balance at 1-1 and us needing a goal, presumably to 'keep him fresh for the next match'. We went on not to score any more goals and to lose the actual game we were playing in at the time against Oxford 2-1. - vs. Birmingham: The game he was presumably 'keeping him fresh' for. He dropped him to the bench, so he didn't get on the pitch at all until the 58th minute. So we kept him fresh in order to play him for just over half an hour, by which time we were a goal down and chasing the game. Final score, 1-1. - vs. Millwall: Subbed him off at half-time, with the score at 0-0 and with us needing to find a way to break them down. Presumably to 'keep him fresh' for the Boro game? Final score, 1-1. So this genius's management of our star player, and probably the best player in the division, has seen him only have him on the pitch for just over half the available time he could have been trying to win matches for us, and this visionary 'managing of minutes', against two teams below us in the league and one not in the play-off places, has delivered a whopping 2 points from 9. And meanwhile our only other real standout creative attacking talent, Fellows, is being instructed to spend half his time defending. What a manager.

"Squad planning is an art that only becomes clear at the end" ~ Johannes Spors, August 2025. Well I hope the end comes soon then, because from where I'm sat we're more than half way through and you appear to have built a shower of dogshit managed by a one-trick yes-man with no idea how to change a game.

He hasn't. It's just not working anymore because he literally only has one idea of how to play, never changes it, and opposition managers have access to videos of our games. They've immediately worked out how to nullify it and now he has absolutely no idea what to do.

I don't think Bazunu, Manning, Stephens, Wood or Archer would. Which is why I said it.

A lot of them who started today wouldn't even get into most of the Championship teams above us. If we put Bazunu, Manning, Stephens, Wood or Archer up for sale tomorrow, do you think teams like Coventry, Ipswich, Boro, Millwall would be scrambling to buy them? Because I don't. And that's half today's starting XI. Add in a manager out of his depth and that's why we are where we are, and it's why we're going to stay there.

A mid-table Championship performance from a mid-table Championship team. Boring as fuck and another opportunity for points drifts away. Miles off being promotion contenders.

Can’t be arsed to read the whole thread so sorry if it’s already been said, but one of our main issues at the back is the total lack of anyone who can organise it. Fonte was brilliant at it and instantly made all the players around him better because he continually instructed them and made them work as a cohesive unit. None of our defenders or keepers have that sort of football brain and without at least one player doing that effectively, you’ll struggle regardless of who’s playing and what formation they’re in. Stephens and THB think leadership is shouting and waving their arms. It isn’t. It’s nous and the ability to read the game and organise.

Go back and finish him off* with the jack** (* Not like that) (** Not Stephens, though it's a haunting image)

£50m spent to be bottom half of the Championship more than halfway through the season. Nowhere near good enough, but we are where we deserve to be and there’s no way we’re getting out of this division this season. It’s a horrible, lopsided, dysfunctional team and squad being managed by a novice who’s out of his depth and getting no support. From ownership to manager to coaching staff to players, we are aggressively bang average from top to bottom and there’s no hiding from it anymore. We had a chance to properly reset in the summer, and another one when we sacked Still, and we fucked both opportunities. Now we’re settling in as mid table championship dross, where we’re going to stay for some time, and SR has no one to blame but themselves.

Livingstone vs Celtic: 2-2 after 9 minutes

Zut alors, mais non

Nice thought but unless we sort out our non-league goalkeeper and comedy defence in Jan, Scienza will 100% be gone in the summer after we stay in this division. He’s way too good for this league, will absolutely get better offers and will know it’s his last chance to get a top flight move with top flight money. The club will need the transfer fee too, with the end of the parachute money in sight. So enjoy him while you can. Merry Christmas!

Two weeks 👍

Albert Grønbæk Strong shout

Yes they were! Well done, that's something you haven't got wrong. What's your point? Are you suggesting that because we got promoted with those two keepers in 2023/24 it has some bearing on whether we will get promoted with them this season? Because surely you of all people don't need me to explain the many, many flaws in that argument.

INNNA MOYOYSSSS AADDAMMM

And that's why we're not going up. Our choices are a keeper who is completely unsuited to how we play because he can't control or pass a football, or a keeper who panics his whole defence, is terrified of coming off his line and can't save anything. If only we'd have had some way of knowing they were both rubbish coming into this season. Oh wait, we did, we had three and a half years of watching both of them week-in week-out. Nice one Johannes 👍

The funniest thing about that image is anyone thinking that they're big time because they're in a roped off area of a fucking Pitcher and Piano 🤣

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Forecast Still only 39. CHDAJFU? Probably on a par with Long. Btw - just look at his career stats on that page. Tottenham -> Southampton -> Grimsby Town (loan) -> Eastbourne Borough (loan) -> Thurrock (loan) -> Bromley (loan) -> Gillingham (loan) -> Chelmsford (loan) -> Dartford (loan). Total appearances for Saints: 0. Total appearances for 7 mainly non-league clubs after leaving Saints: 34, with no more than 11 at any single club, even at Isthmian level. That's the player we agreed to part exchange for 7 x Footballer of the Year and 5 x Champions League winner Gareth Bale. I know we were skint at the time and got well and truly Levy'd but Jesus Christ I love this club, I really do