this is McGeadys time to step up as he is the only decent player left with that team
duff has gone to **** and keane is a good premiership player but not in the same class
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this is McGeadys time to step up as he is the only decent player left with that team
duff has gone to **** and keane is a good premiership player but not in the same class
McGeady press conference from yesterday:
http://www.celticfc.net/channel67/presser.aspx
Starts off with questions about Ireland.
He won SPL young player of the month for the 2nd month running.
Thanks for that link, seems like a genuinely nice guy.
Latest icons.com entry:
Quote:
Monday 16th October 2006
I don't want to miss the Benfica game
I am still slightly troubled by the ankle injury that I suffered whilst training with Ireland last week. I just went over on ankle and that kept me out of the game against the Czech Republic in Dublin last Wedneday and Celtic’s match with Dundee United at Tannadice at the weekend. It’s sore when I am kicking the ball and twisting and turning. So I’ll have a fitness test on Tuesday morning, before the Champions League match with Benfica.
It was sore on Sunday and then not really much better today. When I’m twisting and turning is when it hurts - and that is a key part of my game. So if it is going to hinder me there is no point in playing. It is similar to the injury that Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink has got although not quite as bad.
My injury came along after I had made my first competitive start for Ireland; away to Cyprus. That wasn’t a great game to play in - we lost 5-2 - but I had been looking forward to the Czech match as I think I was going to be playing in that one as well.
I thought I played all right against the Cypriots although there were things I could have done better. The team as a whole didn’t get off to the best of starts and we gifted them a few chances. Cyprus are not a bad team. They’ve got a couple of decent players who play for Olympiakos but we should still be beating them.
It would be disappointing if I were to miss the match with Benfica; these are the games in which you really want to play. I know that they’re a good team from last year, when they put Manchester United out of the Champions League, so we know what we’re up against. Benfica will be looking to get a few more points since they’ve only got one so far and that means it’s going to be tough. A win for us would be great and would really set us up well at the halfway point in our group.
I think the fans will be right to expect us to attack in this game - we’ll be going all out to win the game. I also see Benfica attacking us. Portuguese teams have a bit of flair so I’d expect they will be looking to use that against us. I’ve seen clips of the Copenhagen-Benfica draw and they looked OK in that game. At home against Manchester United three weeks ago, I thought Benfica were unlucky not to get a draw. They’ve got some good players so they will make for difficult opposition.
With Thomas Gravesen ruled out because of injury, Evander Sno looks likely to get the chance to start against Benfica. He has done well since he came over from Feyenoord in the summer. It has taken him a bit of time to get used to the game here but he has done well when he has come into the team - he played well in the friendly at Chelsea and in the game against St Mirren. So it is only fair he should start against Benfica. He’s a confident guy, confident in his own talent and he has a big imposing presence - he must be about six feet one.
Champions League evenings are always great at Celtic Park. I just don’t want to be disappointed and miss out on this one through this injury.
Tricks and treats of a Bhoy wonder
Quote:
Aiden Mcgeady's relationship with a football has always been an intimate affair. Even now, when his Celtic team-mates drift off for the day, the 20-year-old will slip away to a corner of Barrowfield with a ball under his arm and the afternoon stretching out before him.
A passion for the artful, creative aspects of the beautiful game has always informed his outlook. As a youngster, inspired by videos of Diego Maradona, McGeady would practise keeping up a tennis ball 500 times and a golf ball 200 times. DVDs of the Argentinian genius still line his shelves.
"People focus on the England game [when a Maradona-inspired Argentina won 2-1 against England in the quarter-final of the '86 World Cup], but I've got stuff of when he was growing up, aged 17 and 18, and he's different class," enthused McGeady. "I love Ryan Giggs too. I've always liked players who were good at going past opponents."
As a youngster, he instinctively knew that achieving mastery of a ball would allow him to express his natural talents. In the increasingly athletic world of professional football, it is testament to his resolve that he has not abandoned his passion for skills – witness his mesmerising turn near the touchline against Falkirk last month. Thankfully, he is not alone.
Ronaldinho, the ultimate modern skills disciple, combines the required levels of physicality with electric spontaneity and a beguiling array of tricks. Cristiano Ronaldo, the Manchester United winger, announced last month that he had mastered a new trick and would unveil it in forthcoming matches.
Their influences have spread to top-level coaching, an acknowledgement that skills have more to offer than mere entertainment value. At Old Trafford, a skills development coach, Dutchman Rene Meulensteen, is employed to bring about a fusion of British zeal and Brazilian flair in their young recruits, while other Premiership clubs have gone down a similar route. Celtic's own prodigious academy has been quick to embrace the increased emphasis on ball skills, and McGeady's legacy endures.
He references his coach at under-14 level, Martin Miller, as pivotal in the development of his ball skills. In turn, Miller, and other Celtic youth coaches, now indoctrinate pretenders to his throne with three variants of the "McGeady turn". Twenty other skills practices are also taught in a welcome attempt to revive aspects of Scotland's tanner ba' players.
"It's nice to see, it puts a smile on your face," says McGeady of his army of acolytes in the club's youth set-up. "When I was growing up, I always used to do those sort of things [tricks]. I still stay behind a lot after training and practice. Some people think 'he's just fannying about' but, when you go past somebody, it's great. People go to games to enjoy themselves after all."
Yet McGeady's individualist streak has also brought with it its own challenges, and a dawning realisation that it is not enough just to have magic in his toes and tricks up his sleeve. His head-to-head with Gary Neville in Celtic's 3-2 defeat by Manchester United in the Champions League proved a chastening experience.
"You can really feel the difference in level moving from the SPL to the Champions League. You learn more about yourself," he reflected. "When I was playing against Neville I found it difficult to get on the ball. I always seemed to get the ball with my back towards the goal and never got a chance to run at him.
"But you have to remember that he's been at the top level for 10-15 years. In games like that, you must learn what movements to make to get on the ball. If you have a bad game, you need to learn from it."
It could be Gordon Strachan talking. The Celtic manager has worked diligently to add a much-needed dimension to McGeady's play: to turn him into a rounded team player without blunting his creativity.
"I knew that when I played under Martin O'Neill I was far from the finished article," he reflected. "I was young and trying to do too much on the ball. Now, the manager will regularly take me aside in training and show me the best ways of getting on the ball.
"I've added a lot to my game in terms of working hard to get back and creating chances for others. I know now that I can't run with the ball every time I get it. I feel like a different player. I've made progress in important parts of my game and that's down to Gordon Strachan and his backroom staff."
As a footballer, Strachan was cut from the same cloth as McGeady; a bundle of creative energy with playmaking responsibility heaped upon his slim shoulders. Both share a single-minded streak, even a natural abrasiveness, which leads to the occasional locking of horns.
In the 1-0 win at Aberdeen in September, McGeady thought he played well. Strachan didn't. The 20-year-old shrugs, a tacit acceptance that creative conflict is part and parcel of a dressing-room environment.
"Sometimes I come in and feel like I've played well, but he'll pick up parts of my game that could have been better. You can feel disheartened at times . . . but it also shows that he has belief in me and wants me to improve. He is trying to get the best out of me and that can only be a good thing.
"Sometimes he shouts my name and I know what's coming, but it's usually because I've been out of position. Some people might think that I get it a bit more than other players, but it's probably because I play wide. He shouts at Naka [Shunsuke Nakamura] too, but the difference is that he doesn't understand him!"
Celtic's 1-0 away win against Falkirk at the start of October was a microcosm of how far he has come. After a disappointing first 45, he composed himself at half time, finally found form after the interval and duly scored a late winner.
"A year and a half ago, if I had started like I did against Falkirk then I would have gone on to have a beast of a game. But I just thought to myself at half time: 'I'll go for it again' and it worked out well."
Strachan's preference for fast, expansive football has also allowed playmakers like McGeady, and Nakamura, to flourish. "We play a bit more to feet than under Martin O'Neill. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that because Martin had a lot of success. Before Jan [Vennegoor of Hesselink], we didn't have a big target-man, so it was more to feet.
"That's the way football should be played. We have a lot of good technical players now and the style suits the team. It's great playing with guys like Naka because it encourages you to be on the same wavelength. He's added an awful lot to the team."
For a flair player, McGeady is no shrinking violet. Out of his training kit, he is deceptively muscular, a product of hours in the gym. In September's Old Firm game, one of his first acts was to dive into a bonecruncher with Alan Hutton. Alex Rae, the former Rangers midfield enforcer, will also testify to McGeady's steel after losing his front tooth in a challenge with him back in January 2005.
"When I was younger I just got the ball and ran at players. Nothing more was expected of me. No-one ever said to me: 'You're a good tackler'. But it's expected of me now because I've shown that I've got that side to my game. I know I'm not the biggest, but you always want to hold your own on the pitch."
The 20-year-old started the season as the first-choice left midfielder but an ankle injury which coincided with the return of Shaun Maloney presented him with a fresh challenge. Competition for places, though, is nothing new.
"It's difficult because it's such a big club and they can just go out and buy a world-class player. I thought I was playing all right when the club bought Juninho and then I got bombed, although I did manage to get back in.
"It's now all about being a regular in the team. And [staying in the team] is not about doing it in flashes, you have to be consistent. Having said that, it could be 0-0 with 15 minutes to go and you're expected to pop up and do something. That's fine, though. I'm happy with the pressure."
Sorry if this is covered elsewhere. I assume McGeady didnt play last night due to injury/lack of match fitness. Is this the case or is he just not getting onto the team?
I was going to ask the same question? Why was McGeady just on the bench in a big game?
Strachan is favouring Maloney atm. Maloney's a top player so I would read too much into it.
I was hoping he'd bring on either McGeady or Maloney in the 2nd half as there was very little attacking options down either flank from Celtic. Strachan just went for what he thought was the right team for this particular game. Wouldn't read much into it like eirebhoy says.
It's been a very fast fall from grace for McGeady. Every1 agreed he was Celtics best player in the first couple of months of the season and now he's not even getting a run in their biggest game.
Maybe it was the fact he had a shocker against Man u at Old Trafford
Hardly a fall from grace methinks. Just different tactics for a different game. Agree though that the fact he was poor in OT MIGHT have had a bearing on it.
You could say the same about Maloney. He was the best player in the league last season, as soon as he gets an injury he loses his place. At the moment Maloney is still the better of the 2 players imo.Quote:
Originally Posted by lionelhutz
Obviously you see Maloney a lot more than me but to me he is just one of those players who scampers around the place to no great effect and I would be disappointed to see McGeady losing his place out to him.
I'd be worried if Strachan doesn't see McGeady as a player to use in a game Celtic can't afford to lose (i.e. he's not effective going back).
McGeady still does not provide enough consistency, end product or goals to get me even remotely excited about him. He prances about on the pitch most of the time like he's an extra from Riverdance without adding anything to the game.
He needs to improve big time if he's to fulfill any of the supposed potential it's claimed that he's shown since his early teens. At the mo he shouldn't be let near our starting 11.
I'd still have Duff on the left with A Reid as backup with A Reid on the right with Elliot or Doyle as backup instead of upfront (both can play there).
Fed up with this McGeady adulation. As someone who regarded by so called "everyone" as one of the best players in scotland he didnt get his game when it mattered. Cetic played Sno who is also 20 ahead of McGeady and nobody has ever called him brilliant. McGeady should be playing if he is worth even a tiny fraction of the hype
McGeady looked out of place in the first match against man u. His party tricks failed to fool neville on the right and he was quite ineffective. By going with Sno was strachan maybe playing more for the draw? I know at Feyenoord Sno was used as a defensive midfielder and played in defence quite a bit.
I don't know what you've seen of Maloney but he's an excellent player. Great goalscorer for a midfielder, sets up tons of goals and has a real intelligience which McGeady could do with. Very similar player to Joe Cole. Celtic could sign Aaron Lennon and he'd be doing well to get into the team ahead of Maloney and Nakamura which probably puts McGeady's challenge into perspective.Quote:
Originally Posted by OwlsFan
McGeady was rubbish at Old Trafford but I can't remember him trying to beat Neville once.Quote:
Originally Posted by dodgycanadian
Well he was in the last Dutch squad so van Basten must think he has potential. McGeady's hardly in competition for his place anyway.Quote:
Originally Posted by princeofoslo
I said it before but I'm certain McGeady will make it big. A showboater like McGeady will always be on the backfoot from the start. 90% of people slag off Ronaldo but he'd still walk almost any team in the world.
Big difference. Ronaldo is almost the same age as McGeady yet is one of the first names on the United teamsheet. He's also week in and week out up against some of the best defenders in the world unlike McGeady who (when not warming the bench) is generally playing against sub standard sh*te. Also he's played in two major international championships and has been impressive in both. Oh yeah and he scores goals.Quote:
Originally Posted by eirebhoy
I'm a fan of McGeady, but I do worry if he's going to make it. I've seen clips of James McFadden when he played in Scotland and he looked very McGeady like at times. Has faded since.
Scoring the odd spectacular goal is a sign of class, but unless you're playing week in, week out and turning it on in 90% of your games, you're not going to make it at the top.
100 % agree. He needs to be making his mark at his age. I would also prefer him to get a move to a more competitive league if he's going to be needed by Ireland.Quote:
Originally Posted by johnnyc
Flashback to Liam Miller. Looked like class when young and at Celtic but proved not to be good enough in more competitive football.
He was making his mark though. If you look back a few pages he was miles ahead of anyone in the Celtic fans polls for man of the match. Only last week week did Nakamura finally catch him and Naka has started about 6 or 7 more games than him.
99% of Celtic fans would have him in the starting lineup on Sunday. He has been really superb this season and also set up about 8 or 9 goals. We don't know the reasons Strachan has decided to go with Maloney but I would be suprised if this contract situation had nothing to do with it. Not to mention the fact that Maloney is superb.
youngirish - I love the way you insist on slating the SPL at every opportunity yet have nothing against Championship players. When you knew Stokes was on trial at Sunderland you listed him in the players to look out for. As soon as he joins Falkirk you write him off. Fair enough, the SPL may be weaker than the Championship but believe me, it's no tougher to judge a player's ability playing for Celtic than to judge a premiership player. I certainly find that the case, you may ignore it thinking I'm biased. Put it this way, can anyone say that one of Celtic's best players ever constantly failed to perform against the best in Europe?
Liam Miller joined Man Utd based on a months performances against Rangers, Hearts, Anderlecht and Lyon. That really is all. He started about 10-15 games when he signed that contract with United.
Why constantly ignore the points I make? Maybe I sound too biased? I'd be very happy if McGeady stayed at Celtic for the rest of his career. He certainly doesn't need to be playing in the premiership to fill his potential and the history of SPL players has shown that.
I slag it cause it's sh*te. No other reason. If yo've any doubt just look at the quality of players who play week in week out in it. Even some of those players for the so called big two would not set the world alight in the Championship.Quote:
Originally Posted by eirebhoy
If McGeady wants to be a top player and has as much talent as he's been hyped up to have, he needs to be playing week in and week out at a decent level - not prancing about looking good against Dunfermiline and Falkirk defenders. If that's the quality of opposition he's accostomed to it makes it very hard for him to be rolled on for Ireland every two or three months to adjust and play his part in games against top class opposition.
I only care about Ireland and if McGeady is MOTM for Celtic in all the games he plays against Motherwell and Aberdeen etc this season but can't get a game or turn it on against decent opposition like United then I don't give a s*it. It'll just show that he's no use to us and unfortunately only another squad filler.
P.S. I'd still have much preferred Stokes to get a loan move to the Championship. Unfortunately it doesn't really seem to matter much many goals he scores for Falkirk. If he'd scored half as many in the Championship by now he'd be the most sought after young player in England and that's the cold hard facts.
Stokes has scored 12 goals this season in Scotland.Quote:
Originally Posted by youngirish
Half of 12 is six.
The following strikers have scored 6 (or more) goals in the Championship this season
Chopra Cardiff City
Earnshaw Norwich City
Rasiak Southampton
Eastwood Southend United
Gray Burnley
Vine Luton Town
Kamara West Bromwich Albion
Cureton Colchester United
Lee Ipswich Town
Howard Derby County
Hume Leicester City
Of these, only Eastwood has been linked with a move to the Premiership, those are the cold hard facts
No he doesn't. I don't see what makes you believe this. There has been dozens of international quality players in the SPL in recent years.Quote:
Originally Posted by youngirish
I think this paragraph sums up your bias against the SPL. I've no problem with people stating the reality, that the SPL is a poor league but in your case it's mainly bias for some reason.Quote:
Originally Posted by youngirish
Vine is also linked with a move to the Premiership if you must know.Quote:
Originally Posted by tetsujin1979
Nearly all the others are journeymen strikers anyway some of which have already tried their luck at higher levels (Gray, Earnshaw, Chopra) and not looked too hot. None are an 18 year old striker in their first season. Walcott moved for 10 or 11 mill last year and was a similar age to Stokes scoring less goals per game so look to that if you want a comparison. Fact.
Stokes has been linked with many premiership clubs. Lupoli has scored half as many goals as Stokes and he's certainly not "the most sought after young player in England".Quote:
Originally Posted by youngirish
Exactly.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tuff Paddy
McGeady has got MOTM in a few Old Firms and Against AC Milan...Far Superior to just Motherwell and Aberdeen. I think people's view is also coloured by one of his only poor performances this season against United in a high profile match in the CL. This was unfortunate. He has ridiculous technical ability, probably more so that anyone else in the Irish squad. Has a lot more to offer than Kilbane, can unlock defences and is still only 21.
December 2004 - SPL Player of the Month
Season 2004/05 - Celtic Young Player of the Year
November 2005 - SPL Young Player of the Month
Season 2005/06 - Celtic Young Player of the Year
August 2006 - SPL Young Player of the Month
Consistency? Too good for the SPL perhaps? Either way, he's doing very well and is definitely a player we should not take for granted.
My Above post is In response to that post by youngirish by the way... Quoting it wouldn't work for some reason... Gremlins, you know yourselfQuote:
Originally Posted by youngirish
I hope that now he's too old for another one of those young player awards.Quote:
Originally Posted by republicofwhite
He also got young player of the month for September. Stokes won the October award so it's all Irish so far this season. :)
Must be time for McGeady to be called a man.
Latest McGeady press conference:
mms://channel67.celticfc.net/ondem/2...1-24_AM_PC.wmv
and his latest icons diary entry:
Quote:
We've qualified!
Friday 24th November 2006
I thought we were outplayed for most of the game against Manchester United in the Champions League on Tuesday evening. The main thing was the result, the 1-0 victory that put us through to the last 16 for the first time. At first, I just thought it was a great result but then in the dressing room a few people said we were through and that was excellent news.
Although the performance was not great, the main thing for the players in a match like that is the result. We could have played really well, as we did away to Manchester United, and lost and not made it through. In such a situation playing well on the night would have been of little consolation.
When I saw Naka lining up to take the free-kick, I thought it was pretty far out but he’s done things like that before so nobody was really surprised when he scored. He’s got a great technique and he does practice it quite a lot - but a lot of it is natural ability as well.
I didn’t see the penalty so I don’t really know whether it was fair or not and Shaun hasn’t said much about it.
It’s great to be part of the Celtic team that's made history by getting through to the second stage of the Champions League for the first time. It’s impossible to say how much further we will go in the competition but it is just fantastic to have that platform. We have beaten Manchester United and other top-class teams in Europe so that shows we could possibly go on and do well against similar opposition. It depends on which team we are drawn against and how we perform against them on the day but we must have a chance.
I don’t really have a particular preference as to which club I would like us to meet in the last 16 although Real Madrid would be a nice one. I’m not too fussy - just being involved is wonderful and ensures there are two great games in Europe coming up for us after Christmas.
On Sunday we travel to Edinburgh to play Hibernian, who have a new manager in John Collins. I was a big fan of John Collins when I was a young Celtic supporter. He was a player I always looked up to and he did great things in a Celtic shirt . He was my favourite Celtic player when I was growing up. We weren’t doing particularly well as a club when John was here in the early to mid-1990s, Rangers were dominating and winning the League every year, but John and Paul McStay were the two Celts who lit up the gloom for me more than any others.
John was a good passer and had the ability to go past players as well. He was decent at free-kicks too; I remember two superb goals scored by him from free-kicks against Rangers at Ibrox; in consecutive seasons . Both were extremely similar - one was scored at the end of one season and the other at the start of the following season. He is remembered well at Celtic Park for those moments.
He has been doing well since taking over as Hibernian manager. He has maybe added a wee bit of consistency to the Hibs team, which is perhaps something that they were looking for. I always like playing at Easter Road - they are always good, open games. John’s management may add an extra edge and competitiveness to Hibs that would make them powerful challengers to us but it’s not really my concern whether there are more and better challengers to us - my only concern is that we keep being better than the competition and keep winning.
McGeady sounds like he will look at other options , if he fails to gain regular first team football at Celtic.
Midfielder Aiden McGeady admits a lack of first-team action could jeopardise future contract talks with Celtic.
The 20-year-old Ireland international has 18 months of his present deal to run and is currently losing his battle with Shaun Maloney for the left midfield position.
However, both were left out of the starting line-up for the dramatic Champions League win over Manchester United which sent Celtic through to the knockout stages of the competition for the first time.
McGeady's disappointment at watching yet another huge match at Celtic Park from the sidelines could affect his future career plans.
"I'm in competition with Shaun for a place on the left-hand side of midfield," he said. "I think we were both surprised when the team was read out for the United game.
"I'd been looking forward to the game because I thought I might play.
"Not getting a regular game could have a bearing on my contract talks because I can't commit myself to a long-term deal if I can't get a game.
"I feel I should be getting more time on the pitch.
"But all I can do is play as well as I can in training and hope that's good enough to get me a game.
"I was happy as anybody that the side beat Manchester United and made the last 16 in the Champions League, but to not get on the park was a disappointment."
Excellent article in today's Times about McGeady, if someone could post it here
Don't mind that. You can see from the above press conference that he's happy. Those quotes are from the Daily Record and they just want to create something out of nothing as usual.Quote:
Originally Posted by co. down green
He played well when he came on today and earned Celtic a point with a good goal. He'll surely start next week and we'll see if he can keep his place in the team for a while.
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article...3-2471919.htmlQuote:
Originally Posted by tetsujin1979
This is all nonsense. The lads at Arsenal ( and other clubs ) tracking Stokes won't be looking at the quality of the SPL, or the Falkirk team but just Anthony Stokes and the things he does and doesn't do, the decisions he makes on the pitch etc. IBut you think it's not enough he has done very well at Falkirk, ah no it doesn't count unless he banging them in the Championship :rolleyes: .Quote:
Originally Posted by youngirish
I'll be happy so long as he gets his game be it at Celtic or in the Premiership. Imagine he went to the continent? That might do wonders for his game.
Yeah good one. Are you seriously telling me that it wouldn't be far better for Stokes and his future career options if he was banging in goals for a decent Championship team on loan as opposed to Falkirk? If so you're deluded.Quote:
Originally Posted by Qwerty
Stokes has taken the SPL by storm and is proving that he's too good for the sh*te that plies it's trade up there but I still don't see Premiership teams lining up to sign him in January. If he was doing anywhere the same amount of damage to Championship defences there would be offers flooding in to Arsenal. Any statement otherwise is rubbish.