posted Aug 20, 2008

Well, as usual there's a whole lot of shoite being spouted here. It amazes me that so many people can be so collectively stupid. Let's talk about Strachan's "shocking admission" and try to put it in context people please. Strachan buys a guy who played for 5 years at Goodison then was signed by REAL MADRID, hands up all of those experts on this board who knew it was a bad decision to sign a player like this...no one? Now hands up all those who, like me, thought this was a frikken coup of a signing? Now fast forward to after the player sucked HARD for a couple of seasons and the manager has to get rid of him because he's costing us an arm and a leg we could be spending on someone else, without saying to any club that might be interested in him "HE'S CRAP". Again, hands up all of those people who when trying to sell a house tell prospective buyers that the roof leaks and there's cockroaches infesting the kitchen...no one? So how come is it that when Strachan tries to make the best of a bad situation by NOT admitting publicly that the guy is garbage, its a "shocking admission"? There was neither bad judgement shown in signing him in the first place, nor is it bad judgment now to sell him and not shoot ourselves in the foot by blaming the player overtly. Get a grip bhoys, this is not constructive.

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posted Aug 20, 2008

Signing a player who has specialised as an attacking midfielder in the free role as part of a three man midfield, for the position of holding midfielder in a two man midfield IS bad judgement.

It doesn't matter how you dress it up, it's bad judgement.
Gravesen is NOT a bad player, and Strachan is NOT a bad manager.

Had Strachan sourced and played Gravesen in his natural position and set up the rest of the team to support his strengths, then we would have seen a different outcome.
But he didn't, he bought him for a specific role that he had NEVER actually performed except for a couple of unsuccessful attempts at it in Madrid.
At Everton he played in front of Lee Carsley, for Denmark he played in front of Stig Tofting - both traditional DM's. It should not require a degree in rocket science to work out that he isn't, wasn't and will never be the player Strachan wanted him to be.

It is the same bad judgement that has seen him buy Scott Brown to play in a midfield two when he developed and excelled in a central midfield trio - as the spare man.
Barry Robson was also bought after starring as the spare man in a central midfield 3. Robson has adapted well to playing in a central two, as has Paul Hartley adapted reasonably to being the DM when he signed as an AM.

Spotting a pattern yet?!

If a manger has dogmatic ideals and is rigid in his formation and tactics, then he needs to buy players that suit them AND have experience of them.
Why waste time trying to shackle a players' natural abilities, when you could source players that already have the ones you need?

While he has other positive traits as a manager, central midfield and central defence seem to be Strachan's Achilles Heel; what worries me at times, is that I don't think he knows that himself!

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posted Aug 20, 2008

So jakesbrother, what you're saying then is that Strachan IS actually a bad manager? He's apparently dogmatic and rigid, and buys players specifically to play them out of position because of his sheer bloody-mindedness and inability to admit a mistake in a poorly judged purchase. Of course one could spin that as buying the best he can afford and hoping that they can adapt to where they're needed. Its a question of perspective really and I'm hearing the usual pointless, un-constructive Strachan bashing.

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posted Aug 20, 2008

I, like most people, thought Graveson was a great signing.

I think the most worrying thing at Celtic was GS admission that he is not in charge of transfers.

How can we prevent another purchase of players who dont fit if the man who chooses the system doesnt choose the players.

Celtic have only had 2/3 good purchases under GS and another 2/3 decent enough ones

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posted Aug 21, 2008

i dont understand why anyone actually thought graveson was that good a player. he had one good 6 month spell at everton which earned him the move to madrid. so in effect he has played well for 6 months of the last 7 yrs or so. he just isnt a very good footballer.

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posted Aug 24, 2008

Bye Bye Grav.

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posted Aug 24, 2008

What a wonderful signing he would be for Dundee Utd. Replacing Robson, who had he stayed would have taken Utd to 3rd last season. If WGS had known at that time, which he no doubt did, that TG wouldn't play for him again, he could have set up a loan situation that would have been best for all, instead of acting like the manager he despises most, SAF, and freezing out a solid professional. Alas a perfect world does not exist, the Old Firm will continue to gobble up anything that even 'smells' like potential from the other teams in the SPL, and we will continue to fight over thescraps of a EUFA Cup spot with no real chance of doing any better. Hamilton just better hope they keep their great youngsters past August 31 at least, to give them a chance of making up enough points to have a chance at safety when the best of their players have been swiped away in the January transfer window by a desperate Old Firm manager (insert who ever is in 2nd place) doing their best to show some spark in the second half of the season to keep the fans off their backs... Where did all the talk of the Old Firm joining the English league go??? A similar setup to that of Cardiff/Swansea etc surely would suffice, and we could enjoy a true Scottish Premier League, albeit with a Champion's League 'qualifier' as the ultimate prize... THAT and moving to a 2/3 division system, with a larger Premier league and similar sized 1st/2nd divisions, and the great work being done in Scottish football could truly bear fruit, and improve exponentially! Rid us of the "Irish-Celtic" and the "English-Rangers" and in doing so the suffocating imperialism which they ooze from every one of their 'corporate box' orifices, and let Scottish football breath once more! I don't hate the Old Firm, and would watch their progress with pride as a Scotsman, as I find myself doing currently in the Champion's League, but Scottish football is a small (and in the most part) a semi-professional setup, no-where near equipped to challenge the Champion's League quality squads that we find atop our footballing tree. This shouldn't be a move that is put forward by them on their terms, but a movement that all other teams in the Scottish Football League, together with the SFA, should be putting forward, searching for an outcome that would best suit SCOTTISH FOOTBALL. Not the Old Firm. THE ONLY OTHER VIABLE ALTERNATIVE, and this would seriously diminish the Old Firm's ability to challenge in Europe, is to introduce a salary cap into Scottish football. OK This post is obviously not mainly about Grav... but in a way it is.

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posted Aug 25, 2008

"So jakesbrother, what you're saying then is that Strachan IS actually a bad manager?"

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No!
I'm saying he's dogmatic and rigid in his tactics. Know another three managers?
I do - John Stein, Bill Shankly and Alex Ferguson!!
You can add Wenger and Benitez to that list as well.

Not bad managers are they?

Being rigid and dogmatic in his tactics simply means Gordon Strachan limits his own options - on top of the limitations that Celtic finances already place on him.
As mentioned the similarities between Ferguson and Strachan's man-management are astounding - ironic considering how much WGS hated being bossed by Ferguson!!

That means I'm simply saying WGS could be a BETTER manager - but then who couldn't?

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posted Aug 27, 2008

I think there's some good points raised here.

I saw Gravesen at the time as the missing link and thought it was an excellent coup at the time. Sadly it hasn't worked out. I still remember him being absolutely fired up for Man U and then giving away two dreadful passes.

But you still have to look at strachan's signing policy. Celtic are heading into the old firm game with Samaras (a flop at man city), Maloney (decent talent who made a bad move to Villa) and chasing a striker from Northampton.

Celtic have undoubted talent in midfield but there are still question marks around the backline and the forward line.

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