Eight Premier League Wins In A Row

Last game of the season and absolutely nothing to place for but pride, Celtic FC making it eight premier league wins in a row with a 2-1 score line under interim manager Neil Lennon.

Now the wait is on with fans to see who will leave Parkhead, who will come in to strengthen the squad, will Lenny get the job or do the board have a replacement in mind.

Other thoughts in the minds of supporters might well be, "Do I renew my season ticket".

Prices have been frozen on season ticket renewals for the third year running, I would think so, it would have been a liberty if the Celtic FC board had increased prices in the current climate and with the current teams performance over the season.

As I have said before, the decline in performances has been gradual over the past four seasons, since Strachan took charge and continued on a downward spiral during the reign of Tony Mowbray.

Strachan was there to decrease the wage bill, to move the high paid players out the door and bring in suitable replacements on lower wages, the first part went well but he found it increasingly impossible to encourage any kind of talent through the Parkhead gates and stories of unrest were rife.

Mowbray on the other hand was a totally different kettle of fish, his idea of bringing in Championship players, who couldn't get a game for the sides they were with, eventually led to his downfall and swift exit, not swift enough for most Celtic supporters however as he left our club with absolutely no chance of challenging for the league title.

As the song goes, "Things can only get better", I can't see them getting any worse.

Personally I would pay double the price if I thought we could be a force in Europe, It's not a major step up to win the Scottish league and watching teams like Kilmarnock, Falkirk & St Mirren week in week out is basically boring.

European football is where we want to be, we don't want to just see the best players, we want to compete with them and attract them to the club.

Time to bring in staff to train our players the same way they are trained in Italy, Portugal, Spain etc, this is the only way we will compete with teams from these countries, remember the old saying, "If you can't beat them, join them".

I hope Lenny gets the job, all the lone signings go back to the clubs they came from and let us build a Celtic team to be proud of for next season.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 5/10

Lennon & Celtic - Old Firm Victory - Seven Premier League Wins In A Row

Rangers fans turned up at Celtic Park with the intention of partying and celebrating the worst Rangers team in their clubs history winning the Premier League title but the celebrations soon turned sour as Celtic decided to show a bit of fighting spirit for a change to take all three points in this game.

Lee Naylor opened the scoring on 8 minutes with a free kick under the wall and into the bottom corner, the Rangers keeper rooted to the spot could only watch as it went passed him and into the net.

Rangers put up their usual display of kicking everyone in a Celtic shirt and managed to grab an equaliser through Miller but the celebrations were short lived when two minutes later Fortune's header from a cross went between the Rangers keepers legs to give Celtic the lead.

Rangers were reduced to 10 men in the 90th minute when McCulloch finally received his second booking for a foul on Aiden McGeady.

2-1 was the final score but it could have been more, Aiden McGeady's chip just over the bar, Brown's header just over the bar and a Samaras shot just over the bar.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Lee Naylor

Game rating 6/10

No Report - Sorry

Hard Fought Win

First 10 minutes Dundee Utd threw everything they had at Celtic and they were under the cosh but eventually settled and got themselves back into the game.

Kamara didn't seem to do much until the 40th minute when Fortune put a ball through which Kamara controlled and place into the net for 1-0 to Celtic.

Lennon decided to take the risk with Loovens & Rogne in defence, but it wasn't long before Rogne had to be replaced by Darren O'Dea and minutes into the send half, Loovens was replaced by Mark Wilson.

Second half - Goodwillie's shot coming back off the post all that came from Dundee Utd apart from a sending off and another defender going off injured.

With Utd down to 9 men, a ball put through to McGeady and the keeper took him down for a penalty which Robbie Keane blasted into the net for Celtic's second goal to secure the win in injury time.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 4/10

Hard Fought Win

What a good start when Robbie Keane scored the first goal on 3 minutes from a McGeady cross, but it was short lived when Hibs equalised 3 minutes later from Riordan.

The rest of the first half wasn't much to talk about with both teams continually giving the ball away.

On 54 minutes Hibs took the lead with a goal from Stokes and it started to look like one of those days again.

It wasn't until the 80th minute that Celtic started to look as if they could win this game when Fortune put the ball in the net to make it 2-2.

Rasmussen replaced McGinn at 74 minutes and this proved to be the way to win this game when he poked the ball under the keeper for the winner on 87 minutes.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Morten Rasmussen

Game rating 4/10

Season Over

I think Celtic FC and Neil Lennon are starting to see sense when it comes to Samaras, there were three changes to the team that performed like and amateur side against Ross County.

Out went Samaras, Hinkel and Fortune, and in came McGinn, Kamara and Wilson.

Not a big difference in performance except for McGinn who tormented the Motherwell defence on occasion.

Predictably the attendance at Parkhead had dropped dramatically, officially it was 27,750 but looking around the stadium it seemed more like about 15,000.

Most of the discussions I had or heard were not about the team or the way they are playing but about if people were going to renew their season tickets or not.

Personally I would never give up my season ticket, got to take the bad with the good, this is what sets us apart from all other clubs, we all stand by Celtic FC, we may not like what's going on in the form of football or signings or managers but we will always support Celtic FC.

The one saving grace in last nights performance was Josh Thompson who scored our two goals, solid performance at the back for one so young and excellent in the opposition box to bag a couple of goals.

Still a long way to go but I'm sure the board have learned a valuable lesson when it comes to penny pinching, you only get what you pay for and shopping in the bargain basement is not good enough for the club or the Celtic support.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Josh Thompson

Game rating 4/10

Season Over

I hope every Celtic player knows just how bad a result this was, even worse than the Inverness defeat under John Barnes.

Never in my many long years of watching Celtic Football Club have I ever seen a worse team, I feel sorry for Neil Lennon and the job he has trying to make these players into footballers.

First have was full of, giving the ball away, bad passes, second to every ball, no fight, no ambition, no class, no goals and no imagination.

As I have said before, I am amazed that a player like Samaras even gets to pull on a Celtic shirt.

The combination of Samaras and Fortune just isn't working, what's happened to Rasmussen?

Robbie Keane is good but he needs someone up with him, with Keane leaving at the end of the season, Rasmussen must be given as many playing minutes as possible.

I can assure you that I will not be at any more Celtic games this season, I won't waste my time or money going to see a team who are positively ordinary, we as Celtic supporters deserve much much more.

One good thing to come from not winning anything this season is that the board will have to react with bringing in a proven manager and players who are up to the standard that the fans expect, they won't be able to paper over the cracks in this team, there are far too many.

Lennon will then have a chance to learn his trade as a manager instead of being thrown in at the deep end.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - None

Game rating 0/10

Neil Lennon Takes Charge

Any manager, even with years of experience would struggle to make this Celtic team any better than average and that's exactly what we are.

It will take a total reshuffle of Celtic personnel to change anything in this team, passing in the first half left a lot to be desired as Celtic struggled to put three or four passes together.

Far too often the ball the given away cheaply, no movement as usual and players having to pass the ball backwards or sideways with no options open in front of them.

Getting the midfield right must be at the top of the list of fixes along with a steady defence and a proven goal scorer in the mould of Robbie Keane.

Keane can make runs all day but unless we get a midfield player who can go forward, take on players and split a defence with a telling pass, then these runs are no more than an energy sapping waste of time. Keane is always two weeks ahead of the players behind him and it must be frustrating.

Samaras Couldn't pass wind or tackle a fish supper and it still surprises me that he gets to pull on the Celtic top and manages to get onto the field before Rasmussen who should be getting as many games as he can due to the fact that he is the direct replacement for Keane when Robbie's loan deal ends.

Second half much of the same, only difference was when Stokes tried to clear a ball into the box and caught Aiden McGeady coming in on his blind side and the ref awarded a penalty which Robbie Keane slotted into the net.

This game could have went either way with both teams having hand ball decisions ignored by the referee and his assistant, Lenny at times seems a bit wary about changing things and making substitutions, a long way to go yet to prove he is the right man for the job.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Robbie Keane

Game rating 5/10

Neil Lennon Takes Charge

With the departure of Tony Mowbray it was up to Neil Lennon to take the reins of a demoralised Celtic team, hoping to bring some fighting spirit back into the side.

Knowing there would be few changes made to the already existing team made his job, although temporary at the moment, all that much harder as class players at Celtic FC have been in short supply since the days of Gordon Strachan.

There was however a bit of fight back in the team and it showed, Samaras having one of his better games in months, but it will be an uphill struggle and next season before we see any major changes.

Perhaps we have too many loan signings, it might be time to get a settled starting eleven and build from there, if the fringe players don't like it then let them go elsewhere, Celtic must stop being a club for under achievers on big wages.

Fewer and fewer clubs can now manage the big wage bill they have and are looking to offload players, time to start sifting through the dead wood we have and replacing them with a better class of footballer.

If we can't buy them, then it's time to bring them thought the youth development system we hear so much about and yet produces very little talent.

We wish Lenny every success in the game he has in charge and hope if he gets the managers job that he can attract the type of player we need and bring back the glory days.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Robbie Keane

Game rating 5/10

Embarrassing

Embarrassing is the only word to describe the performance tonight.

Okay we all knew it would be virtually impossible to win the league but I don't think there will be one Celtic fan in the world who will want Tony Mowbray as the Celtic manager tomorrow, If this man has any self respect at all he won't wait to be sacked, he will hand in his resignation with an apology.

I was willing to give him time to build a new Celtic side but after the players that left the club and the new players Mowbray brought in we are no better than we were before.

Under Mowbray the Celtic shirt has shrunk to fit too many inferior players, we are not only the laughing stock in Scotland but round the world and the board must take much of the blame when going for a fourth choice manager and not spending the money to bring in a manager who was up to the job.

As a season ticket holder I feel I have the right to voice my opinion and my opinion is that Tony should leave Celtic Football Club.

He tried and he failed all season and tonight was the final straw, loosing 4-0 to an average St Mirren side is unacceptable and embarrassing. Over the course of the season there have been too many under-performers, too may errors, too many goals conceded, too many points dropped and too many excuses.

I'm sure the attendance at Parkhead on Saturday will leave the board with no option but to do something about the way Celtic are playing.

Do we stick by the manager?

Do we give him more money based on the players he has brought to the club?

Do we take the chance that we will be just as bad next season?

The answer to all of the above is NO.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - None

Game rating 0/10

McGowan Given A Chance

With a starting line up of Zaluska, Braafheid, O'Dea, Thompson, Wilson, McGeady, Crosas, NGuemo, Fortune, McGowan & Keane it was going to be a game where someone would shine but I never for one minute thought it would be McGowan.

Celtic have struggled in recent months to find a telling pass, a through ball or a midfielder who would take on a defence, McGowan fits the bill, the player worked hard, fought for every ball and gave the St Johnstone defence no end of problems for 90 minutes and deserved the man of the match.

Josh Thompson was steady in defence as every and probably had his easiest game for Celtic since stepping into the heart of defence after some injuries, returning players might just find it harder than they thought to take the big mans place in the team after he scored his and Celtic's first goal today.

Robbie Keane's movement was excellent as usual and I just wish we had better assistant referee's who could keep up with the play instead of just sticking their flags up. When Fortune was taken down in the box by the St Johnstone keeper and the penalty awarded, yes we did manage to get awarded a penalty today, Keane was the man who stepped up to the spot and slotted the ball into the net for Celtic's second goal.

I like NGuemo and Crosas but not in the same team, I would prefer NGuemo with another attacking midfielder as I feel this is what lets us down on occasions and we have to pass the ball to the side or back.

When Fortune was substituted for Samaras and Crosas for Ki, I thought we would have to settle for 2-0 but was quietly surprised, Ki sprayed the ball about well and linked up with play and we pushed for the third.

Samaras must have put the right boots on for this game as he tormented the St Johnstone back line and scored a superb solo goal to make it three.

A mention for McGeady, who linked up well with McGowan and had one shot come off the crossbar.

All in all a good day at the office, St Johnstone showing very little in the way of attacking and all three points going deservedly to Celtic.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Paul McGowan

Game rating 6/10

Progress In The Cup

With the league championship slipping away the Active Nations Scottish Cup may be the only chance for Celtic to lift some silverware this season.

The first half wasn't pretty, Kilmarnock gave as good as they got and did have a couple of chances to score.

One point from the first half was the tackle on Rasmussen which the referee didn't see and the assistant totally ignored, Rasmussen being stamped on the top of his thigh with the assistant only a yard away, the mind boggles as to how this was missed.

The second half was totally different and I can only imagine that Mowbray must have had a few words to say to the players in the dressing room, It would be a bit unfair to call it the Robbie Keane show but three goals makes it look that way.

The first, a superb long ball by Edson Braafheid and Keane showed his class with his control to slip passed the Kilmarnock keeper and put the ball in the net.

The second, a tackle on the left wing by Samaras and his pass inside to Fortune who passed the ball across the goalmouth to a waiting Robbie Keane for probably the easiest of his three.

The third, the ball cut back and guess who's there to curl the ball passed the kilmarnock keeper for his hat trick, Robbie Keane.

The difference in the second half was probably down to the substitutions, Mowbray bring on Fortune & Samaras for Crosas & Rasmussen.

Another solid display by Thompson in defence, McGeady also deserving a mention for tormenting the Kilmarnock defence for 90 minutes.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Robbie Keane

Game rating 6/10

Game Over

First half pretty much the same as previous games except Robbie Keane looking sharper and having a couple of shots saved before a pass by Rasmussen was taken into the box and calmly passed through the legs of the Falkirk keeper for the first goal.

Much the same in the second half, Nguemo with a steady performance, O'Dea solid in defence.

The difference was Robbie Keane, his movement and quick thinking causing the Falkirk defence all sorts of problems and leading to his second goal of the game when he sprung the offside trap to run onto a long pass and slotted the ball into the net.

With all the fuss lately with referees and the comments made about Falkirk's pitch it would have been easy to blame any of the two if Celtic had been beaten or drew this game, as it happens I thought the referee had a good game and didn't put a foot wrong.

The Falkirk pitch however should be re-turfed as soon as possible, the ball bobbled about quite a lot and that was on the parts with grass on them.

As for the manky mob manager saying that teams should forget about the bad referee's decisions that go against them and get on with the game.

Uncle Walter should remember that last season he was the one complaining and he even named a referee that he was annoyed with when one of his strikers was deemed offside, it's easy to say forget it when all the decisions are going your way Walter.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Robbie Keane

Game rating 5/10

Game Over

If Celtic were ever going to have a chance of winning the league this season a victory today was a must, but it was not to be.

With thirteen players leaving Celtic and eight new one arriving, and going against a very weak Rangers side with no prospect of buying any new players, I was in the same frame of mind as most Celtic supporters, that the title was there for the taking, nothing could have been farther from the truth.

Since replacing most of the team and bringing in a major player in Robbie Keane, Celtic are no better than they were before Tony Mowbray took up the position as manager, a position he has offered to vacate twice, if the rumours are true.

It's now Judgment Day, I was quite willing to give Tony a chance to make his mark and build a new team of his own, if the team he was building could prove they were better than what we had before, but with eight new players we don't seem to have moved forward at all.

I feel sorry for Tony, I don't think he was first choice for the job, nor second, nor third, in my opinion he was fourth or fifth choice and it's showing.

Filling the Celtic team with players who couldn't get a game in the Championship has proven to be a recipe for disaster, if these players couldn't get a game in the English second division, what makes Tony think they are good enough for us?

Time to go gracefully and hand in your resignation Tony before the board are forced to take action and sack you as it won't be long before the support voice their disapproval and show it by not turning up for games.

I would also like to mention a couple of incidents in the game today, the first Scott Brown's sending off.

Seems Lafferty conned the ref again, as before in an old firm game, Lafferty kicks, nudges, puts his hands in players faces and pushes and nothing is ever done about it.

Today he pushed Scott Brown and when Brown pushed back Lafferty went down like a ton of bricks resulting in Scott Brown being red carded.

Celtic are going to appeal the red card but it's too late the damage has already been done, Celtic were down to 10 men and lost the game.

Another thing I would like to mention could also have had a bearing on the games outcome, Bougherra was yellow carded in the first eight minutes of the game but was allowed to kick any player stupid enough to go near him after that and should have had his marching orders in the first half, but then I might just be paranoid.

I'm all for bringing in a referee from outside Scotland for old firm games.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Artur Boruc

Game rating 3/10

Home Victory

Quite a dull match and Dundee Utd showing very little in the attacking department should have made this an easy game for the bhoys, Robbie Keane scoring the only goal of the game.

Keane's movement is fantastic and he's often miles ahead of his fellow team mates thinking, today was no exception but he got a well deserved goal for his efforts.

Aiden McGeady was missed, being suspended for this game,, his final ball might not be the greatest but his energy and ability would have been well suited to this game.

Thomas Rogne & Josh Thompson in the centre of defence, handled any attack well and Rogne even had a couple of chances of scoring, his first just past the post, the other saved by the keeper.

We needed the three points to keep the pressure on the manky mob and still have a chance of winning the league title, the next game against them could be called a title decider.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Robbie Keane

Game rating 5/10

Disappointing Draw

If Celtic are to have any chance of winning the league performances like today need to become a thing of the past, we haven't had any luck with our defensive problems as we don't have a settled back four and due to injuries it looks like we will have to make do with what we have at the moment.

Going forward we are starting to look good, create chances and score goals but we still let in far too many goals to be winners and should never loose with a two goal lead.

Hopefully we can get the back line sorted soon and go for a clean sheet now and then.

Is it time for Mowbray to go, I don't know yet, if we had a full strength side on the park and were getting these results I would say yes but we've still to see what happens.

If Tony wants to go, I don't think anyone would stand in his way but who would we get to replace him?

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 5/10

Robbie Keane's Parkhead Debut

It wasn't a full house at Celtic Park for Keane's debut in front of the home Celtic supporter and I thought he had a good game, he didn't score but had about five chances, match fitness will bring goals and the more games he gets the better he will get and the goals will come.

His movement was great and he was always looking for the ball and getting involved and once the players around him come up to speed with the way he plays I'm sure he will be a force in the Celtic team.

No score by half time but what a start to the second half when Loovens found himself a bit of space in the box, turned the defender and slammed the ball into the net for Celtic's first goal, we hardly had time to sit back down when Aiden McGeady slipped the ball through for Fortune who calmly side footed the ball into the net for the second goal within a minute - 2-0.

Some shuffling about when Braafheid went off and NGuemo went to left back, Loovens went off and Rogne came on to replace him in the centre of defence and finally Fortune went off and Ki came on.

Aiden McGeady was outstanding, running at the Hearts defence and seems to have got the message that he doesn't have to beat every player on the park and that a pass is the better option sometimes.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 5/10

Active Nation Scottish Cup

First Half:

A Celtic team with nine changes to the side that faced kilmarnock and probably most surprisingly Robbie Keane & Aiden McGeady on the bench and Scott Brown as captain.

Diomansy Kamara getting his first goal for the hoops on 19 minutes with a great strike into the top corner giving the Dunfermline keeper no chance after a Samaras shot came off the bar but Dunfermline strike back within 2 minutes to make the scores level when Phinn finds Graham in the box and he slots home.

Just under half an hour into the game and Dunfermline are awarded a very soft penalty but Charlie Richmond and Kirk put it in the net from the spot to give Dunfermline the lead.

Braafheid's lovely skill on the wing to make room for the cross was met by the head of Scott Brown but hit off a defender and fell to Rasmussen who put Celtic level at the second attempt.

Half time 2-2

Second half:

Crosas replaced by Robbie Keane and what a difference it made, Rasmussen claiming his second goal of the game with a hint of an own goal about it Dunfermline 2 - Celtic 3.

McGeady replaces Kamara on 65 minutes.

Lovely little pass from Rasmussen to find Keane in the box and he's brought down, penalty, which he takes himself and scores to make it 2-4.

Caddis replaced by Zheng Zhi, NGuemo goes to right back.

Robbie Keane's movement, vision and class shine through and this was only a glimpse of what's to come from him.

Celtic into the quarter finals of the Scottish Cup.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Morton Rasmussen

Game rating 5/10

A Long Way To Go

What a difference a day makes, going from the dizzy heights of superb signings to the lows of a defeat in 24 hours.

It was probably expected that the signing of Robbie Keane, Diomansy Kamara, Edson Braafheid, Morton Rasmussen & Jos Hooiveld would bring an end to Celtic's dismal performances of late but it was not to be on the debut of these players.

It would be stupid to think that any manager could throw in as many new players and that they would gel together right away, they will need time to work out what each other is capable of and work to their strengths.

We may have brought in some new faces but in my opinion a class midfielder should have been on the list of priorities also, don't get me wrong, I am a fan of Ki and NGuemo but we need a proven, attacking midfielder with a bit of class, to put so much pressure on these two players is not really fair to any of them.

NGuemo will work his socks off and rarely gives the ball away but is not an attacking force, Ki will do well when he has time to mature into a class player, he's still young, Kamara stated that he could play in the box or on the left, I hope to god that he's better in the box because he showed very little out left in this game.

Injuries to Hinkel and Hooiveld meant Tony Mowbray had only one substitute available, the option could have been to replace one of the players up front with Rasmussen but he went for Scott Brown at left back, a strange decision, but he's the manager.

Robbie Keane was eager to please on his Celtic debut but the Kilmarnock keeper had a great game and made a few saves that on another day would have gone in, Fortune had a header cleared off the line, Loovens header was just past the post, Ki's shot from just outside the box was kept down but just passed the outside of the post.

Aiden McGeady will link up well with Robbie Keane and make a difference when he learns that he doesn't have to beat two defenders every time he gets the ball, pass and move is the game and takes less energy.

We now have the situation of Mowbray being just as good or bad, whichever way you want to see it, as John Barnes, and we are now 10 points behind the manky mob, a tough job lies ahead for Tony and the team to bring the league trophy to Parkhead, but it's not impossible.

Lets give him time to get the right balance in this squad and we will reap the rewards.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Robbie Keane

Game rating 3/10

Hard Fought Victory

Very little shown by Celtic in the first half, not many chances and Samaras posted missing most of the time, I'm sure Tony Mowbray sent Peter Grant to see if he was at the pie stand he was so invisible.

Second half seen Samaras replaced by Rasmussen and Zhi replaced by McGuinn on 60 minutes.

Rasmussen scores his first goal for Celtic after only being on the field of play for 5 minutes, being in the right place at the right time to turn in the box and put the ball into the Hamilton net from 5 yards out, a position that seemed to be out of bounds for Samaras.

Hamilton never looked liked scoring in this game but that didn't stop them making it a hard slog for Celtic , McGeady had a great chance to put McGuinn through one on one with the keeper but his pass was way below par and the attack broke down.

Celtic had a chance 2 minutes from time when Fortune was brought down just inside the box and the referee awarded a penalty, but Fortune's shot was saved by the Hamilton keeper.

An ideal game to introduce new players as Hamilton weren't going to offer much in way of attacking, will be interesting to see how Hooiveld & Rasmussen fair against a better side.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Landry NGuemo

Game rating 3/10

Celtic Well Below Average

The less said about the Celtic performance in this game the better, with some players leaving our club it was expected that Tony Mowbray would bring in some better players than those who went but we didn't have much of a chance to see them with Hooiveld & Rogne not even making the team and Rasmussen give only 15 minutes at the end.

Celtic heave two areas which need to be addressed if they are to have any chance of winning this league, the defence which has been totally replaced has to have time to gel together but my main concern is the midfield and the number of chances we don't create.

Time to get a settled back four, settled midfield and a proven goal scorer.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - None

Game rating 1/10

Goals Galore & It Could Have Been More

St Johnstone started this game with the intention of giving Celtic the hardest game yet this season, we wouldn't have expected anything less from manager Derek McInnes and they got a penalty due to a makeshift Celtic defence and led going in at half time with a goal from the penalty spot scored in the 12th minute by Liam Craig.

Loovens getting injured half way through the first half forced Tony Mowbray to re-think his defence and O'Dea moved in to cover and Caddis came on at left back.

Celtic didn't show much in the first half but things were soon to change in the second half with the sending off of Gartland, who had already been booked for a challenge on McGeady, bringing down Fortune who was heading toward goal.

With St Johnstone down to 10 men it was all Celtic, wave after wave of attacking finally paid off with a screamer from Fortune and Celtic were level and in the mood for more.

Niall McGuinn was replaced by Paddy McCourt and Aiden McGeady moved across to the right wing, Paul McGowan replaced Zheng Zhi who was having a quite game and it was all out for a win, which never looked in doubt.

Thompson nodded down in the box and Samaras scored with a wonderful volley to give Celtic the lead in 77 minute, soon after Fortune placed the ball between Smith's legs for his second and Celtic's third.

McCourt had made two or three darting runs turning the St Johnstone defence outside in and got his reward with a top corner finish to make the score 4-1.

Could have been more if it wasn't for the St Johnstone keeper Smith, who had good saves from McGeady, O'Dea, Caddis, Samaras & Fortune to keep the score respectable.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Marc-Antoine Fortune

Game rating 6/10

Brave Display But Finishing Lets Celtic Down

You would be hard pressed to think of a game when the visiting team were totally dominated for 90 minutes and still came away with a point.

Finishing let us down today, not lack of chances, Samaras "couldnea hit a coo on the arse wi a brick" if you'll excuse the french.

In the immortal words of the hit comedy Halo Halo, "I shall say this only once", Samaras is not the type of striker we need and McDonald must be wondering why he is usually on the bench and he is on the park after coming on with 20 minutes to go and scoring within five minutes.

Samaras's control has improved just slightly and from around five or six chances, one of which was a sitter, he manage to trouble the manky mob keeper only once, not the standard we need I'm afraid.

In my view a partnership of Fortune and McDonald would produce more goals and Samaras could sit on the bench until we find something better, In fact I would use McGinn as a striker before Samaras.

No one could fault the commitment or fighting spirit of today's team and to dominate a game for 90 minutes where your opposition has one shot on goal and scores must drain the players mentally and physically.

One thing I did notice with the goal was McCulloch got the drop on the usual suspect, Caldwell, it's time for him to move on to greener pastures, I see his No 1 fan was at the game today, WGS.

Let hope in the next few weeks some players are moved out and some better players come into the team to give us a chance of getting this title.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 7/10

Still Not Firing On All Cylinders

With one more game before the old firm clash on the 3rd January it was time to put in a performance but we're still not firing on all cylinders yet.

Certain players in this Celtic side should work on controlling the ball and passing, far too many balls are given away and some of them have the control of an elephant on roller skates.

Movement is another problem, too many times a player has only one option and that is to play the ball back putting even more pressure on the fragile defence.

Having two defensive midfielders may be a necessity at the moment and It may work in other teams but it goes totally against the grain at Celtic and is a luxury we cannot afford, we need some who is going to run from midfield and force the play.

All that said I think Loovens had a solid game and redeemed himself a little for the mistake last week by scoring the first goal, with more games he can only get better and is a bigger threat than Caldwell or McManus in the opposition box.

NGuemo was his usual self, tracking back, tackling and put in a workman like display, McGeady at times running round the Hamilton defence.

The introduction of Fortune for McDonald and McGinn for Robson seemed to breathe a bit more life into Celtic and Fortune turned the Hamilton defender only to see his shot come back off the post, his control and skill is far superior than that of Samaras and I can see no reason why he doesn't start each game.

McGinn is an attacking player and works well with McGeady and caused all sorts of problems when he came on and capped it wit the winning goal.

Not a brilliant performance but three points to keep the pressure on the manky mob.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 2/10

Three Points Thrown Away

It was too much to ask that Celtic would solve their defensive faults overnight and this cost them dearly today.

Despite controlling the first 30 minutes of this game, looking like winners and Samaras making it 1-0 from about four yards, Loovens let a ball go past him and Caldwell's tackle on Mole was a clear penalty, giving Hearts a lifeline and resulting in Celtic being reduced to ten men.

From then it was an even game with Celtic having the better of the chances but failing to score, eventually Hearts getting the winner.

Samaras missing an opportunity that my granny could have scored, when McDonald won the ball in the box and put it on a plate for him, which Samaras put over the bar, not the type of finishing we need Sammy.

Aiden McGeady was very unlucky not to level the scores when his run took him past three hearts players and his shot came off the post and straight into the keepers hands.

As usual we find ourselves failing to keep the pressure on the other half of the old firm and unless something is done in January to bring in defenders who are Celtic class then I see us losing more goals and more games.

As for scoring goals I was prepared to give McDonald, Samaras and Fortune a bit of time to come good, are they up to the standard we deserve at Celtic, I think not, five years ago none of the players on the field today would have made into a Celtic reserve side with the exception of Boruc & McGeady.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 2/10

Bhoys Come Back From Three Goals Down

We all know that this game meant absolutely nothing in terms of our status in European competition, the damage was already done in Tel Aviv, but it was a good chance for Tony Mowbray to field some of the fringe players and those coming back from injury.

As usual our defence let us down and within 20 minutes we were three goals down to a pretty average side, but the players on the park had other ideas and Fortune turned the defender in the box and rifled a shot passed the Rapid keeper and into the top corner to get one back.

Fortune then added a second and it was game on, all Celtic in the second half as they fought to get a third and McGowan gave us that with minutes from the end.

Celtic could have won this game easily if not for the defensive mistakes giving Rapid a three goal start and the Bhoys showed character and strength to get a point from this game.

Our aim for the January transfer window should be to bring in a defensive partnership that will make us rock solid at the back, we're not losing games at the moment but we have to work harder to stop losing stupid goals.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Landry NGuemo

Game rating 5/10

Samaras, McGeady & Fortune

This game started off with Celtic in total control and for the first 15 minutes running the show and going one goal up after a run by Samaras seen him turn the Motherwell defence outside in and give the keeper no chance with a lethal shot.

But all credit to Motherwell who played their way back into the game with the equaliser from a cross, Caldwell failing to take care of the run and an easy tap in at the front post.

Motherwell went in front just before half time to make the score 2-1 but Celtic were not finished.

With Samaras hitting the bar in the first half and Mcdonald hitting it again in the second, along with a Barry Robson penalty miss, it was going to take a piece of brilliant football to get back into the game for Celtic and Aiden McGeady supplied a contender for goal of the season, curling the ball with his left foot into the top corner.

Motherwell rocked a bit as Celtic put on the pressure to get the winner and it came from an unlikely source, Fortune was only on the park a couple of minutes when McDonald squared the ball to him just outside the box and the striker supplied another cracking shot to leave the Motherwell keeper with no chance, Celtic 3 - Motherwell 2.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Landry NGuemo

Game rating 6/10

At Last A Great Performance

A long time coming, but three victories in a row, are we starting to get our mojo back?

Not a bad word to say about any of the players on the field for this game today, If anything negative it would be the first touch of McDonald & Samaras, It has got a bit better over the last few games but still nowhere near what it should be.

Brilliant and gritty performance from Robson, McGeady starting to look as if the hunger is coming back.

NGuemo & Crosas ran the show in midfield, NGuemo starting to look like a tanned Neil Lennon but with a little more pace. Aberdeen found it difficult to get going or create any sort of a chance on goal, I'm sure Artur Boruc was seen in the queue for a pie and bovril during the game.

it was a totally different feeling to come away from a game at Paradise feeling totally satisfied with the effort and performance and if we keep building on this there is no reason at all why we won't go on and win the title, bring on the manky mob on the 3rd Jan.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Barry Robson

Game rating 7/10

Too Little Too Late

Two victories in a row, something of a rare occurrence at Paradise these days but I'm afraid it was too little too late.

Hapoel Tel Aviv offered little and the win was too late to make a difference in this Europa League group, the cards were on the table as Celtic needed Hamburg to lose, which didn't happen, so out we go.

The only positives to take from the game were the performance of Zaluska, McGeady and man of the match in my opinion Barry Robson.

Robson's determination was a joy to watch, seems we've been missing a bit of this over the past months.

Samaras opened the scoring with a header from a cross and it always looked as though we would go on and win, but with the habit of losing goals late in the game the trend at the moment it wasn't until Robson curled the ball passed the Tel Aviv keeper and into the bottom left hand corner that I was convinced, a freekick Naka would have been proud of.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Barry Robson

Game rating 5/10

Back On Track

Credit where credit is due and a welcome relief from saying something negative every week.

It wasn't a fantastic performance but it was a huge step up from last weeks shambolic show.

Once again Aiden McGeady was the star, with Crosas, NGuemo & Zhi they practically controlling the midfield apart from the times when the passing let us down a bit it was mostly Celtic running the show. It seems a bit of confidence is returning the our side.

Scott McDonald got the first goal with a deflected shot but I'm sure it would have went in anyway, Samaras making it two from McGeady's cross and then McGeady supplying the cross for the third scored by McDonald.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 5/10

What A Shambles

What can I say after watching one of the worst Celtic teams I have seen in twenty years, they are shocking.

If it wasn't for players like Aiden McGeady we would be watching a below average Celtic team at best.

I'm starting to think that we have employed the wrong man as manger of our great club, for three years we stood by and watched Gordon Strachan destroy a half decent side and show us how football should not be played.

I feel for Mowbray a bit, our supporters were not looking for a quick fix but they were looking for a side that would play football and a couple of signings should have strengthened the squad but only seems to have weakened it.

I don't care what anyone says but no manager would turn Fortune into a striker and I feel the money would have been better spent on a decent player, he has no control, no pace and no ability.

I could go right through the team and pick out faults with them all but the main problem is in the heart of defence, Caldwell is welcome to go down south in January, In fact if he promises to go I will personally give him a piggy back all the way down.

Time for the board and Mowbray to do something, we are already the laughing stock of England for wanting to go down south, something has to be done before we become the laughing stock of Scotland also.

Totally fed up watching this dross in Celtic shirts, seems the Celtic shirt has shrunk to fit inferior players lately.

Happy birthday Tony Mowbray.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 1/10

Celtic - The Way They Should Play

At last, something like the team they should be and something positive and entertaining to watch.

Changes in the midfield were important in this display of football today at Parkhead, Crosas & NGuemo were fantastic and showed how football should be played, controlling most of what went on and tracking back when needed.

With Paddy McCourt in place of Maloney the support were looking for something different from the last few games and McCourt never disappointed, turning the Kilmarnock defence inside out and having a few chances to score only to be saved by the Kilmarnock keeper.

With the Celtic team taking a lot of stick for the failure to put the ball in the net against Hearts mid-week, Mowbray went with the front pair of McDonald and Samaras but it was McGeady who was to get the first goal with a neat bit of skill inside the box to skip passed the defender and smash the ball past the Kilmarnock Keeper.

Hinkel had a good game and was up and down the wing causing endless problems for the Kilmarnock defence and one of his crosses was met by the head of Samaras and went in like a bullet, 2-0 to Celtic.

On about 65 minutes, Mowbray decided to change things a little, replacing McCourt with McGinn, McDonald with Fortune and the substitutions paid off with another goal, this time from McGinn.

At this point it was all Celtic and the score could easily have been five or six if it wasn't for the Kilmarnock keeper.

For a change the whole team looked full of energy and up for the game, Samaras probably had his best game yet in a Celtic shirt, but I wonder how much of this was down to the fact that Fortune is back in the frame.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Samaras

Game rating 7/10

Co-op Insurance Cup Defeat

Tony Mowbray decided to change things about for this game, playing Killen and Zhi up front and NGuemo and Crosas in the midfield.

Half time saw the teams go in at 0-0 with both having had chances to score, the second half was a different story.

With the introduction of Samaras and McDonald for the front pair and McCourt on for Maloney, Celtic should have had enough to go on and win this game, 10 minutes into the half and Fox was judged to have taken Nadi down in the box and Hearts scored from the resulting penalty.

McCourt made a difference right away with a run that took him past two Hearts players with ease but his shot came back off the bar. Samaras had three good chances to level, chipping the goal keeper saw his shot come back off the post and straight into the keepers arms.

Minutes later from a free header in the box he saw his attempt go passed the outside of the post when he should have scored, and later another chance scuffed and hit a hearts defender.

On chances Celtic deserved to win this game by three or four goals but the lack of a first class striker took its toll, Samaras and McDonald just don't cut it for me and it's time to offload both and bring in a striker who can control the ball and has a bit of pace.

Mowbray seems to have settled on the defensive pairing of McManus & Caldwell and this has been Celtic's downfall, leaking goals like a sieve is not the way to start building a successful team and Mowbray as an ex-defender should know this.

The crowd rightly or not were booing at the end of this game and I feel for the players, who gave 110% but even they must know that there has to be changes.

If McCourt wants a starting place in this team he has to show for more than 20 minutes, If Caldwell wants a pay rise or better contract then he has to become twice the player he is at the moment, If Tony wants to win the league he has to bring in better players in January.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Zheng Zhi

Game rating 3/10

Top Of The League

Not a great performance in football terms but Celtic looked comfortable for most of this match, starting with Robson & Zheng Zhi in midfield gave Celtic more control over the game.

Maloney opening the scoring with a good volley from a cross and Scott McDonald pouncing on a loose ball to make it two.

Hamilton managed to pull one back with ten minutes to go and Celtic looked a little shaky in defence and only Zaluska's save five minutes from time stopping Hamilton getting a point from this game.

Not a great day for football due to the weather but not the silky passing football that should be on show from a Celtic team but top of the table again.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Sean Maloney

Game rating 4/10

Celtic Fail To Score Against Weakened Hamburg Team

Okay so we're not as bad as the other half of the old firm, yet, but I'm think we're getting there.

In an interview after the game Tony Mowbray hinted that the quality needed to compete in the Europa League just wasn't at Parkhead at the moment and I agree with him.

The thing I don't understand is when he still plays the ones that are letting the side down, the first two that come to mind are defenders, Tony being a defender himself at one time should recognise the one that are making mistakes week in week out and replace them, especially the one shouting for more wages.

A little bird told me that he will move on in the January transfer window to Middlesborough, If I thought he would go now I would gladly give him a piggyback all the way there.

Time to recall O'Dea, the guy has a bit of pace, determination and doesn't shy out of a tackle either, I think it's time to try a Loovens/O'Dea partnership in the centre of defence.

The midfield isn't much better and Scott Brown has failed to live up to his potential in the hoops, yes he has energy and will run about for a full 90 minutes but I'm sure the support would like to see him run more like an attacking midfielder than a headless chicken.

As weeks pass both Maloney and McGeady are proving to be a luxury we can't afford to have, some tricks, some skill but no end product.

Lastly the strike force, obviously mowbray has no confidence in Samaras or McDonald as he prefers not to play both together, opting for the two smallest players in Scottish football up front and bringing Smarmyarse on as a sub with 30 minutes to go.

I can't fault the current Celtic team for effort tonight, but we were up against a weakened Hamburg side and at home and we should be getting better from the team, the manager and the board.

Now comes the uphill struggle, having to win our next three European games if we want to progress in this competition.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - None

Game rating 2/10

Celtic Fail To Take All Three Point - Europa League

I haven't added any comments since the Dundee Utd game for one reason, there has not been much to say without slating the team and manager and this is slowly turning into that type of section due to the poor performances of our current team.

Or maybe I'm wrong, It just may be that we are performing at our level and this is the best this current Celtic side have to offer.

Supporters have watched the decline of a decent Celtic team since Strachan took over and this legacy has been left to current manager Tony Mowbray to sort out.

I feel a bit sorry for Tony Mowbray because he may be judged on his first season if we don't win the league, some people see him as third choice manager but I think he was actually lower than that, coming after Bilic, Martinez and Coyle, who for whatever reason never got or didn't want the job.

Everyone knows a manager needs time to build his own team, In the current credit crunch climate it will take time to sweep out the unwanted and just not good enough and bring in some decent players, but are ex-championship players what the Celtic support really want, Is this the best we can do and is this the way forward for our club?

For years Celtic have had decent players on the sidelines, players like Caddis & O'Dea, but instead of giving these guys a chance they keep buying dross from other clubs and putting these guys out on loan.

It's about time to admit that players like Henrik Larsson come along once in a lifetime, admit we can't pay the big wages top class players demand, admit we won't entice decent players to our club until we start playing good football or get out of this Scottish League.

I watched Darren O'Dea in the Wembley Cup and he was Celtic's player of the tournament, his reward, not a first team place, not even on the bench every week waiting for his chance, out on loan.

Loovens in my opinion is worth more than McManus & Caldwell put together and he can't get into the first team on a regular basis, McDonald is too slow and Samaras looks as if he's playing football in skating boots. Brown I don't see as getting any better than he is at the moment.

Everything is slow and one dimensional, passing either across the midfield or back to Caldwell for the big punt up the park, no penetration or imagination from midfield.

The only thing we've got going for us at the moment is that the other half of the the firm are worse that we are.

See what I mean about not having anything positive to say about our current Celtic team.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - None

Game rating 2/10

Celtic Drop Points At Home

As in previous seasons Celtic fail to cash in as the lesser half of the old firm drop points in the title race.

With the chance to top the table with two points, the Bhoys drew at home against Dundee Utd.

The highlight of this game was watching new signing Niall McGinn,in instead of suspended Aiden McGeady, McGinn looked comfortable taking the step up into the Scottish Premier League and will be a useful addition in the season to come if given the chance to show what he can do.

McGinn and Hinkel linked up well together on the right and gave Dundee Utd all sorts of problem, the omission of a big striker in the box contributing to the lack of goals.

With such an important game coming up on Thursday, is this really the time for experimenting?

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Niall McGinn

Game rating 4/10

Celtic Can't Compete With The Class Or Money Of Arsenal

I'm sure every Celtic supporter will agree that it was a steep mountain to climb going to the Emirates two goals down tonight and expecting anything less than a miracle would see Celtic through to the group stages of the Champions League.

Eduardo conned the referee and scored maximum 10's all round the ground for the half pike with twist to be awarded a penalty when Boruc didn't even touch him.

If we look at the goals Arsenal got, the deflection, own goal and penalty, then they only really scored two against us, but what great goals they were and worthy of winning the tie over the two legs.

The fact is that we didn't create enough chances on goal, In fact Almunia was said to have been seen selling pies and bovril to the Arsenal fans for most of the game.

One consolation was Donati's goal, a fantastic volley across the goalkeeper, hitting the post on the way into the net in the last minute of the game.

Gary Caldwell was replaced by Darren O'Dea at half time, some supporters hoping it's an injury that will keep him out of the team for a while.

I can't think why Darren O'Dea is not in this Celtic team every week, the Bhoy has the appetite for the game, skill and is a good defender, Caldwell's constant mistakes may come back to haunt us.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Donati

Game rating 2/10

Goal Thriller

It was goal fest day and some good football played as Celtic took on newly promoted St Johnstone.

Two goal from Shaun Maloney, two from new signing Marc-Antoine Fortune and a Scott McDonald goal saw Celtic take all three points comfortably.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Shaun Maloney

Game rating 7/10

Champions League Qualifier

A tough test for the Bhoys against one of the teams tipped to win the EPL.

Celtic gave as good as they got in the first half and looked just as comfortable as Arsenal but an error by Caldwell produced a foul just outside the box and a Galas effort on goal deflected pasted Boruc in goal to give the visitors the lead.

In the second half another error by Caldwell saw the ball in the back of the net when his attempt to stop a low cross gave the visitors a 0-2 lead going into the second leg.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 3/10

Start Of The Premier League Season

Good start to the season with a fine display of passing football which brought two goals from Aiden McGeady and another from Scott McDonald.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Aiden McGeady

Game rating 6/10

Friendly

Nothing more than a run out for the team to get fitness levels up

My Celtic Man Of The Match - None

Game rating 4/10

Champions League Qualifier - Second Leg

After a disappointing result for Celtic in this Champions League first round qualifier most people thought the Bhoys were down and out.

Celtic never at any moment thought a defeat was on the cards in this away leg even though going down 1-0 in the first game they created many chances and this was seen in the second leg as Celtic dominated possession and got the rewards.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Scott Brown

Game rating 6/10

Friendly

Another chance for Mogga to field some of the players not usually in the first team every week and he will now know exactly what every player is capable of before the Champions League - second leg against Dynamo Moscow.

The result didn't matter too much, the game was to bring our players to match fitness and prepare them for next weeks game and that's all this game was, so can't read too much into it.

Scott Browns return went well and he looked well on his way to being fully fit.

Good goal from Crosas who's shot from outside the box hit the post before going in.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Caddis

Game rating 3/10

Champions League Qualifier - First Leg

Disappointing result for Celtic in this Champions League first round qualifier.

One of those games which could have ended 5-1 if the players had taken their chances in front of goal, Fortune had two good opportunities to score his first goal for the club, the others falling to Samaras who's header went straight into the keepers hands, Maloney and Killen the others who could have been on the score sheet.

Celtic are by no means out of this competition yet with the second leg to come next Wednesday and a chance to make amends for the misses at home.

The return of Scott Brown may also help, although he will not be 100% match fit he may still figure in the return leg.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Samaras

Game rating 3/10

Wembley Cup

Fantastic finnish to the wembley cup for the Bhoys with a 2-0 victory over Spurs to win the tournament.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Samaras

Game rating 6/10

Wembley Cup

Fantastic start for the Bhoys with a 5-0 victory over Egyptian champions Al Alhy.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - NGuemo

Game rating 7/10

Pretty Boring Game

Not much excitement in a game with no goals and not much to speak about in the way of how the team are progressing.

A chance to field some of the fringe players for Tony to have a look at what they have to offer the team.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - None

Game rating 2/10

Nice Warm Up

Like every other Celtic fan I can't wait till the season starts, new manager and some new players make for an exciting time ahead.

Celtic traveled to Australia for this game against Brisbane Roar under new manager Tony Mowbray.

No doubt Tony will have been watching the performances and along with the training will know his starting eleven already, although the players still have a few games to impress.

Chris Killen scored two of the three goal with Koki Mizuno scoring the other.

My Celtic Man Of The Match - Chris Killen

Game rating 4/10