Adam Idah F. Celtic b.2001

[weldoninhio]

But all of those are wide players except for Kyogo. I doubt that's how they'll be using Idah. He's been given the 9 shirt but that may not mean anything. I think he has been brought in to be a handful upfront. We disagree on how useful Oh is but I think that's his opportunity, either as an in-game sub for Kyogo or to complement him. Rodgers isn't getting anything like as much from Kyogo as Ange did.

On one hand I think the big pitch at Celtic presents an opportunity for him. On the other, most teams play a low block against Celtic and it's here (in contrast to Ferguson) I've had concerns about Idah. He's just not as adept at sniffing out a chance with a well timed dash to the 6 yard line or pulling back to the penalty spot.

I'd say his athleticism and physicality will cause trouble though.

I've rarely wanted an Irish player's move to work out as much as I want this one to.

A reliable source tells me he's a great character and well-liked in the dressing room.

Celtic should never have sold Giokoumakkis.

[Stuttgart88]

Agree totally

[Eirambler]

It's not lower than coming up against the likes of Azerbaijan and drawing a blank, Bulgaria and drawing a blank, Finland and drawing a blank, or New Zealand and drawing a blank. Any starting SPFL defender would stroll into those senior international teams.

It's a lower standard than any of the groups those games took place within. Besides anything else, most of those countries have far stronger teams than most Scottish Premiership clubs do. Friendlies are just that, friendlies. Similar to pre season games at club level.

Everyone knows the Scottish Premiership is a Mickey Mouse league, a couple of Championship teams, a couple of League 1 teams and the rest are League 2 at best. If he gets a good run in the league and doesn't score goals that will tell us all we need to know about him. The worry though is that he doesn't get the run to prove his standing either way.

[Razors left peg]

I hate the term Mickey Mouse league, for any league. Not everything has to be the Premiership and every single professional in the SPL is a standard of footballer us keyboard warriors could only dream of.

A lot of fantastic footballers have played for Celtic over the years. There are a lot of current international players in the current Celtic team playing for countries more successful than ours at the moment.

Idah has a chance to go see if he can succeed in a new environment, that will be extremely demanding from a fans point of view. Personally Im looking forward to seeing how it goes.

[Eirambler]

Honestly I've played with and against a few former SPL players and you'd be surprised how narrow the gap is between some of them and decent amateur players (I'm not talking Celtic players here obviously, it's the bulk of the league I'm commenting on, the players Idah will be playing against rather than with - it's really not that good).

[Jolly Red Giant]

I hope that getting a good run of games for the next few months will help his game develop in the direction his potential has indicated in the past.

[backstothewall]

I hate the term Mickey Mouse league, for any league. Not everything has to be the Premiership and every single professional in the SPL is a standard of footballer us keyboard warriors could only dream of.

A lot of fantastic footballers have played for Celtic over the years. There are a lot of current international players in the current Celtic team playing for countries more successful than ours at the moment.

Idah has a chance to go see if he can succeed in a new environment, that will be extremely demanding from a fans point of view. Personally Im looking forward to seeing how it goes.

This is true. He's the same age as Virgil Van Dijk was when he joined Celtic. This can certainly be a platform for a very successful career.

[Olé Olé]

Have said it in this thread that I'm disappointed he avoided the Serie A offer and plumped for the Celtic option.

Hardly surprising though. It's a big thing to play for Celtic and hard to turn down. The chance may not present itself again

https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2024/0202/1430170-rodgers-taken-aback-by-idah-attributes/

[Snapshot]

Have said it in this thread that I'm disappointed he avoided the Serie A offer and plumped for the Celtic option.

Hardly surprising though. It's a big thing to play for Celtic and hard to turn down. The chance may not present itself again

https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2024/0202/1430170-rodgers-taken-aback-by-idah-attributes/


You were right to be disapppointed. It may still be a big thing to play for Celtic but it shouldn't be. They are a bang average mid-table Championship standard team playing in a L2 standard league.

[pineapple stu]

In fairness, given the alternative seems to have been a relegation battle in Serie A - another league which isn't what it used to be - I don't think there can be too much disappointment unless people thought a Premier team might be in for him, which was never happening.

He was going nowhere at Norwich. Celtic and Verona may birth be sideways moves but if they get him first-team starts then either will be fine. He has a chance of impressing at Celtic and earning a permanent move to play Champions League next season. I suspect he'll be back at Norwich next season either way, but for now let's see if he can get some game time and work out where the goal is

[Olé Olé]

Assist with a little pass there. Lovely first touch pass from him nearly resulted in a second. He could suit them a lot.

[Stuttgart88]

I thought he did well and made an impact. Kyogo was better after Idah came on. If he’d been on from the start it could have been a different game. He must have a chance of starting on Wednesday now.

[seanfhear]

The battle between Celtic and Rangers is getting very competitive. Brings it's own pressure for all Celtic players.

[Razors left peg]

Starts v Hibs today. Vata on bench

[Buckett]

Scored a peno after 10 minutes

[yurt]

Scores from the spot. Good to get off the mark with his first start even if it is a penalty.

It is the benefit of a striker going to a dominant team, the team is going to get way more chances and more penalties than mid table teams like Norwich.

Hopefully this is just the start of a healthy goals tally come the end of the season in Scotland.

[third policeman]

Scores from the spot. Good to get off the mark with his first start even if it is a penalty.

It is the benefit of a striker going to a dominant team, the team is going to get way more chances and more penalties than mid table teams like Norwich.

Hopefully this is just the start of a healthy goals tally come the end of the season in Scotland.

Had 8 touches in the first half and looking isolated according to BBC.

[seanfhear]

He seems to be a decent penalty taker, even though from open play he doesn't seem to be the most natural of finishers.

[weldoninhio]

It's a lower standard than any of the groups those games took place within. Besides anything else, most of those countries have far stronger teams than most Scottish Premiership clubs do. Friendlies are just that, friendlies. Similar to pre season games at club level.

Everyone knows the Scottish Premiership is a Mickey Mouse league, a couple of Championship teams, a couple of League 1 teams and the rest are League 2 at best. If he gets a good run in the league and doesn't score goals that will tell us all we need to know about him. The worry though is that he doesn't get the run to prove his standing either way.

Well he got a run tonight, and just like in the Championship, he’s looked like he won a competition to play in the game. Lad is gonna sink down the leagues as he gets older. Poor man’s Leon Best.

[seanfhear]

Another penalty for Idah ~ I said he was a good penalty taker !

[Eirambler]

Well he got a run tonight, and just like in the Championship, he’s looked like he won a competition to play in the game. Lad is gonna sink down the leagues as he gets older. Poor man’s Leon Best.

And yet he ends the night as the Celtic hero. Penalty taker for one of the two Glasgow teams must be one of the best jobs in world football, a seemingly endless series of opportunities to take a free shot at the opposition goal.

I expect he'll score a good few goals between now and May, a few from open play and a lot from pens.

[pineapple stu]

Fairly mixed reviews on the Celtic forum in fairness - general (but not unanimous) view is he wasn't great outside the penalties, but they're glad to have someone who can score a penalty at least

[liamoo11]

Fairly mixed reviews on the Celtic forum in fairness - general (but not unanimous) view is he wasn't great outside the penalties, but they're glad to have someone who can score a penalty at least

In fairness celtic were woeful. He missed a few good chances but showed serious nerves to score that last penalty for a vital win. Beats sitting on Norwich s bench

[pineapple stu]

It absolutely beats sitting on the bench, sure

Celtic being woeful shouldn't justify him missing good chances in fairness!

[Razors left peg]

The lad is there 5 mins and has 2 goals and an assist. It's a fine start, room for improvement but you'd swear reading some lads on here that he might as well retire.

And yes he missed some chances, strikers do that sometimes, but overall his movements and positioning were quite good... and showed massive balls to slot home winning pen.

[pineapple stu]

you'd swear reading some lads on here that he might as well retire.
Which posts would those be, RLP?

Strikers miss some chances sometimes, sure. Idah does it a lot though; it's worth a mention, don't you think? Or do you not think an attempt at a balanced analysis is a good thing on a discussion forum?

[SkStu]

Which posts would those be, RLP?

Strikers miss some chances sometimes, sure. Idah does it a lot though; it's worth a mention, don't you think? Or do you not think an attempt at a balanced analysis is a good thing on a discussion forum?

Weldoninho’s post is absolute horsesh!t and not an attempt at balanced analysis. I’d imagine that’s who RLP was referring to, in the main.

[Razors left peg]

Which posts would those be, RLP?

Strikers miss some chances sometimes, sure. Idah does it a lot though; it's worth a mention, don't you think? Or do you not think an attempt at a balanced analysis is a good thing on a discussion forum?

" he’s looked like he won a competition to play in the game"

That's not exactly balanced or accurate on how he played

[Olé Olé]

Hopefully he can get an extended run whereby he scores penalties, provides assists and has a good all around influence on games and eventually he might improve his composure and technique for finishing non penalty chances.

[seanfhear]

" he’s looked like he won a competition to play in the game"

That's not exactly balanced or accurate on how he played Over-done by Weldon ! !

[CraftyToePoke]

Which posts would those be, RLP?

Strikers miss some chances sometimes, sure. Idah does it a lot though; it's worth a mention, don't you think? Or do you not think an attempt at a balanced analysis is a good thing on a discussion forum?

Perfectly clear which post. The competition winner one. Nonsense from a poster who's fluent in it.

He missed plenty tonight, I thought he offered little in open play & got very different headlines due to two penalties, which he had the balls to take & take well. Celtic created an assembly line of chances & he missed all of them, I counted five, some were could have done better some were had to score ones. But he was the reason they got out of jail also & that's the bottom line on it.

[pineapple stu]

Weldoninho’s post is absolute horsesh!t and not an attempt at balanced analysis. I’d imagine that’s who RLP was referring to, in the main.
I'll agree with that one, sure. Though RLP spoke of more than one post/poster

I think at times people here (and there I go doing it now...) try to blow up one extreme view into a wider-held firm view when actually a post like that one is best ignored imo. And blanket defence posts are very similar I think

[Stuttgart88]

Celtic created an assembly line of chances & he missed all of them, I counted five, some were could have done better some were had to score ones.
I remember four, one saved by Marshall where he should have lifted it, one saved by Marshall's feet with a decent effort but he was later flagged offside, one blasted onto the bar (had to score) but again offside and the worst was a total fluff from 8 yards from a lovely low sqaure ball across the box. That was the one that annoyed me the most, a great chance at a crucial time of the game. Scoring it would have really announced his arrival. Instead it planted doubts.

I say "annoyed" because I was praying for him to get a good start and create his own momentum. The penalties probably did that in the end, but he and everyone else knows that they don't show the whole picture.

Harsh assessment but he'll have more chances soon and it's early days.

[weldoninhio]

Weldoninho’s post is absolute horsesh!t and not an attempt at balanced analysis. I’d imagine that’s who RLP was referring to, in the main.

Time will tell. I believe he'll end up a lower league journeyman. Not sure how anyone has seem anything more from him. He's a striker who can't score, bar from peno spot.

[John83]

Time will tell. I believe he'll end up a lower league journeyman. Not sure how anyone has seem anything more from him. He's a striker who can't score, bar from peno spot.
People are hopeful because he played premier league football quite young. Injuries have disrupted his development, and yes he may well not amount to more than you say, but I don't see any reason to write him off yet. If he has an injury-free semester with Celtic now, and plays regularly, it'll be an opportunity for him to show what he can do.

[weldoninhio]

People are hopeful because he played premier league football quite young. Injuries have disrupted his development, and yes he may well not amount to more than you say, but I don't see any reason to write him off yet. If he has an injury-free semester with Celtic now, and plays regularly, it'll be an opportunity for him to show what he can do.

Thats fair enough as an Ireland fan, but as a Celtic fan I'd rather Rocco Vata get minutes than waste time with Idah.

[Razors left peg]

I'll agree with that one, sure. Though RLP spoke of more than one post/poster


Did I? You asked what I meant and I quoted the exact post I was talking about. Don't think I could have been any clearer tbh

[Eirambler]

People are hopeful because he played premier league football quite young. Injuries have disrupted his development, and yes he may well not amount to more than you say, but I don't see any reason to write him off yet. If he has an injury-free semester with Celtic now, and plays regularly, it'll be an opportunity for him to show what he can do.

It's also that he has some great attributes for a centre forward. He's tall, he's quick and he has a decent touch. He absolutely hasn't put it all together yet, and he may never do, but there's another possibility which is that by 24 or 25 things click for him, he learns how to use his speed, size and strength to best effect and he becomes a genuinely top level striker as a result.

[Snapshot]

So he needs more time. Idah has made 166 senior appearances for Norwich and has 22 international caps. Next week he faces St Mirren, followed by Kilmarnock. It'll all come together but he needs more time.

[Razors left peg]

So he needs more time. Idah has made 166 senior appearances for Norwich and has 22 international caps. Next week he faces St Mirren, followed by Kilmarnock. It'll all come together but he needs more time.

He's 22, not unreasonable to think he might get better with age given the amount of experience he has already

[Stuttgart88]

And his career has been interrupted by injuries and infrequent selection.

I'm not super-bullish on the guy's long term level but he has a great chance to develop his game with regular football.

[pineapple stu]

Did I? You asked what I meant and I quoted the exact post I was talking about. Don't think I could have been any clearer tbh
You did - in the part of your post I quoted. "You'd swear reading some lads on here that he might as well retire"

If it's only weldoninho then that's fine. But that was just one over-the-top post (based around a definite kernel of truth), which isn't what your post suggested

[Snapshot]

He's 22, not unreasonable to think he might get better with age given the amount of experience he has already He's played Premiership, Championship and international football but needs St Mirren, Kilmarnock, Livingston and Ross County to improve his skills.

[Razors left peg]

You did - in the part of your post I quoted. "You'd swear reading some lads on here that he might as well retire"

If it's only weldoninho then that's fine. But that was just one over-the-top post (based around a definite kernel of truth), which isn't what your post suggested
Ok see snapshots recent posts for further clarification. Jesus dude, you might also just look at the thread and see for yourself what I'm talking about instead of pedantically asking for every post specifically pointed out

[Razors left peg]

From what I can see, he only started 39 games for Norwich. Not entirely sure the 166 figure is correct… 39 career starts in all competitions across 5 seasons isn’t ever enough to build proper momentum
Injuries have been a big problem for him, always seem to happen at bad times too.

[elatedscum]

Sorry for all the deletes. Having some issue on my phone:

From what I can see, he only started 39 games for Norwich. Not entirely sure the 166 figure is correct… 39 career starts in all competitions across 5 seasons isn’t ever enough to build proper momentum

Update Snapshot: 166 (168) is the number of games he played for Norwich including reserves, fa youth cup and u18s.

115 appearances in total, 39 starts across 5 seasons

[pineapple stu]

Ok see snapshots recent posts for further clarification. Jesus dude, you might also just look at the thread and see for yourself what I'm talking about instead of pedantically asking for every post specifically pointed out
Not pedantry at all. Myself and third policeman had both commented that he hadn't necessarily played well for all that he scored two penalties, and you posted straight after with the below post, which suggests you think any sort of criticism is problematic ("yes he missed some chances, strikers do that sometimes" - a key and consistent criticism of Idah though), and that multiple posters are at it.

If you're clarifying that you were only giving out about one specific post from one poster, then that's fine. But that's not how your original post came across.


The lad is there 5 mins and has 2 goals and an assist. It's a fine start, room for improvement but you'd swear reading some lads on here that he might as well retire.

And yes he missed some chances, strikers do that sometimes, but overall his movements and positioning were quite good... and showed massive balls to slot home winning pen.

[seanfhear]

If fit ~ He'd want to be knocking goals from play, in Scotland playing for Celtic ~ You'd be expected to be knocking goals in, in the Championship if you were playing for a team that has so many advantages against the others ( bar Rangers in Scotland )

This six months ( if he stays fit ) could certainly tell us a lot about his potential level.

[Olé Olé]

It's also that he has some great attributes for a centre forward. He's tall, he's quick and he has a decent touch. He absolutely hasn't put it all together yet, and he may never do, but there's another possibility which is that by 24 or 25 things click for him, he learns how to use his speed, size and strength to best effect and he becomes a genuinely top level striker as a result.

This sums up my views. There have been plenty tall and quick strikers with good touches that struggle for goals in their early 20's and turn into really good centre forwards. Drogba and Giroud are the archetypal ones. I think Idah is worth persisting with.

He's also shown at a few junctures that he is capable of scoring good goals and his scoring frequency is scaling.

I'm all here for it.

[Razors left peg]

How you interpreted it is your own issue. I've been very critical myself of him at times, but I also see a lot of potential in him and I'm happy to see him get a change of scenery to see how it goes and hope it kickstarts him a bit. He's shown flashes of being a good player in the past but he's also very frustrating.