Totally Outclassed

[AlanK]

If Celtic had turned up in all yellow or any other kit that was different to their hoops they would easily be mistaken for a poor div1 team. The only thing that makes Celtic Celtic is their kit. Their football would be average at best down here.

[SMc_Celtic]

Think I'll take Zippy's stance on this and leave it....

Just for the record Ozexile.....I didn't post anything on official site....I don't visit that site.....and I'm not greenbhoy.

Dr Rich.....show me where I have taken the @#/?? I found this site last week and think its great....I have enjoyed chatting with most of you.

[Dr Rich]

I was talking about Zippy and some of the others.

Hey if you can figure out that the official site is crap there must be some good in you.  

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

Rovers fans are rightly upset about last nights result,WE WAS ROBBED!!!!...but thats football and we'll take it on the chin.If

Celtic fans arrogantly think Ewood is like legoland then so be it

but if 3,000 blues fans can make a noise like that at the library that is Parkhead just wait till you hear what 23,000+ can do at Ewood!!!!!

ADVANTAGE ROVERS!

[Paul]

Can we calm down a bit PLEASE.    Nobody should be upset.

As always our new visitors are very welcome on this site. Regulars and the visitors should remember we actually have something to "argue" about now which is why it's getting a little heated.

Celtic have a fantastic stadium, friendly support and we were all made to feel really welcome. Unfortunatley there are many similiarities between Celtic and MU, there was lots of hype about the atmosphere etc. and it just didn't happen. Two hours before kick off I watched buses and coaches arriving from all over Scotland to help fill the stadium. We all know Blackburn is a small club, with low attendances and every one of us is fiercely PROUD of our achievements and the fact we have the highest percentage of LOCAL support in the Premier League. Hence the banter on here.

[broadsword]

I don't think my mood has been helped by having a hangover and having some cheeky Celtic snide moon at me as I came out of the pub last night.

I mean, I live in East Kent. Fair enough I'm a Rovers fan and you don't find any others round here. But Celtic?! I was so gob-smacked he'd already sprinted off at top speed before I could muster a response. Brave lad! Oh well - I saw the funny side when I got home.

These Celtic fans remind me of Man City. How does that song go: "We took quarter of a million to Ewood Park ... 'cos Citeh are a massive club!". As well as reminding me of Man Utd fans and the way they look down on other clubs.

Granted, some of them have been gracious enough to admit that we were much the better side. But it's the "defiant football logic" which gets up my nose. The sort of thinking that provides an excuse for any performance/ result and allows the propounder to gloat gleefully with little or no cause. If it wasn't for that aggravating me then I'd be quite happy to chat - which is teh way it should be between rival fans.

[BlueMonday]

My thoughts...

A friend and I had tickets for the north stand last night.  We were apprehensive about sitting amongst the green hordes and were fully expecting to be deafend for 90 mins.

The biggest complement the hoops fans gave us, were the long periods of silnece and their growing fustration and anxiety about the way Rovers were bossing the game, and the prospect of losing.  

Yes we lacked a clinical finish in the box, but our football is far from "powder puff" (Worthy Cup Final,Arsenal 1-2,  Newcastle 5-2, etc). If celtics goal gave their performance credabilty(Their opinion),

Then a Rovers goal would have sealed a very accomplished performance in the "cauldron of Park head"

Not only that, but to watch my fellow lancastrians from across the ground doing their team proud with fantastic support, made me a very proud man last night.

Oh what price, 5000 of us in that ground last night to push us on to victory !!

The dissapointment of this result will fade,  the feeling of pride as I left that stadium will not.

Lets have more of the same for the 2nd leg.

                               

[joolzg]

A simple question to Celtic Fans.

You played a team called Basel in the champions league qualifier and beat them at home 3-1.

Your GREAT team then went away and got beat 2-0.

Looks like you will be knocked out of your second tournament even though you won your home game

Bring on the home leg

joolz

[squaylor]

That match was so similar to the Boro away game that when they got the corner on 85 mins I turned to my mate who went to Boro with me and said 'Watch this, they'll score now and we'll lose 1-0'

So I apologise to Rovers fans everywhere...my mouth will be closed from now on...

Just how good is David Thompson? Here in Scotland the BBC Scotland man of the match was the Celtic keeper! I bet in England they voted for someone else!

If Celtic are bringing 6,000 extra fans to Ewood the McDonald's on Bolton Road's gonna be busy...

[tashor]

congratulations to all celtic fans. you won.

we know how you feel - we were stuffed by arsenal after playing our worst football for ages.

were we embarrassed by our fortunate win - were we hell!

should you be embarrased? 'course not. enjoy your flukey victory against a far superior side.

if i were a manager i know which side i would like to have playing for me....

      .....yeh....t' arse      bet you would like the ( very slim ) chance to beat them twice a year  

[Paul]

The dissapointment of this result will fade,  the feeling of pride as I left that stadium will not.

Absolutely bang on, there is nothing else to be said.

[Myklebust]

Very suprised by the result, but also the Celtic supporters. When Cole came in they made some monkey noises, and I couldn't believe they would sink so low.

Look at the bench we had: Dunn, Jansen, Cole, Gillespie and Grabbi.

Jansen, Duff and Cole in topform in 2 weeks and we will destroy the Celt's !!

[squaylor]

did you report that myklebust?

[Zippy]

When Cole came in they made some monkey noises, and I couldn't believe they would sink so low.

just in reply to your observation, as a Celtic fan i am shocked to hear that such behaviour was going on. Our suppoerters are certainly not racists. we have a number of black players in our side and i can't believe ANY Celtic fan would sink this low.

Just a thought but are you sure you didn't mishear the chants of Joos Joos Joos(for Joos Valgaaren).

incidentally i think that Cole is a fantastic player and that NO player would deserve such despicable treatment. if it was going on i hope that you did report it...such people cannot call themselves true Celtic fans.

[waggy]

at the end of the day the record books will show a 1-0 victory to celtic,i had a fantastic day yesterday,i've been up for 35 hours and it was worth it.the game is now history,just like the arsenal game,the tie is alive and we have 2 weeks to learn how to turn pretty football into goals.

[Paul]

I got the impression the Parkhead pitch is considerably bigger - certainly wider - than Ewood. I wonder what influence that had on the game and will our smaller pitch benefit Celtic in the return leg? Rovers seemed to have space to play the ball throughout the match and I wondered if this came as a surpise to Celtic - playing opposition who could use that extra space and keep hold of the ball for much of the game?

[den]

A view from the Glasgow Herald:

 

Henrik's grand act of larceny

Blackburn unlucky to lose as Swede claims place in record books

GRAHAM SPIERS

Celtic 1 - Blackburn Rovers 0

Scorer: Larsson (85)

THIS greatly anticipated UEFA Cup tie in Glasgow, from Celtic's point of view, very nearly proved a huge disappointment. It is some while since Celtic were made to chase quite so many shadows as Blackburn Rovers peppered around them last night, a fate which left Martin O'Neill's team in an occasional state of bewilderment. The only bewilderment Blackburn Rovers must have felt was that they left Glasgow defeated, a truly remarkable outcome.

Henrik Larsson's act of larceny for Celtic after 85 minutes - it made him the highest scorer for a Scottish club side in European football with 22 goals - may have been justified on the basis of Celtic's willing spirit, but not, surely, on the basis of the game thus far. Graeme Souness' side looked much the more competent and dangerous, though Blackburn, despite enjoying the wiles of Dwight Yorke and Andy Cole, almost abused their own efforts in front of Celtic's goal. Big Rab Douglas seemed a hybrid figure of both a brave and charmed goalkeeper.

Souness has been lauded and loathed all over Europe but he can't have experienced anything like the welcome he received here. Since this UEFA Cup draw was made three weeks ago, there have been those who had been relishing the moment when Souness would emerge from the Parkhead tunnel and, unless you were equipped with ear-muffs favoured by the bomb disposal experts, you couldn't fail to be stirred by the atmosphere inside this stadium.

If Souness felt he could thwart Celtic Park's raining abuse, he was proved sadly mistaken. The Blackburn manager delayed his arrival in the dugout until after kick-off, a fact which rankled not just Celtic's supporters but the awaiting newspaper photographers, who were positioned ready for their prey. By the time Souness entered the arena the match was under way, but that delayed arrival didn't stop the home support from finally having their say.

On such nights you cannot ask Celtic Park to be at its social and civic best. The ex-Rangers manager strode forth and offered the Blackburn support an animated and exaggerated wave of his arms, prompting Celtic's supporters to give Souness what for. Parkhead showered him with boos and hisses and made the usual unbecoming suggestions about self-ejaculation.

To a man of Souness' mettle, all this was the perfect welcome. The Blackburn manager had been happily indulging the line about the noisier the Celtic support towards him, the greater a compliment it would seem. In that sense he wouldn't be disappointed. Nor could he possibly have felt let down by the stealth and composure of his team on the night.

A neat, cohesive and determined Blackburn side made life exhaustively difficult for Celtic, none more so than for Bobo Baldé, an intimidating though often lumbering presence in the heart of Celtic's defence. Swift with their incursions and often spreading alarm along with possession fed to Yorke, the Premiership side caused Celtic such awkwardness that Baldé was summoned to the touchline to receive urgent counselling from Martin O'Neill after a series of harassed moments. Notwithstanding Stilian Petrov's early, majestic header which Brad Friedel saved, Celtic were fortunate not to concede a goal.

Just about every threat Blackburn posed Celtic was woven around the scurrying David Thompson, a player once tossed aside by Liverpool and picked up by Coventry City before Souness bought him to add another astute part to this re-built Blackburn team. When Thompson wasn't haring at Celtic down their exposed left flank, he was tormenting O'Neill's men through the middle almost with abandon. It was amid numerous Rovers forays after 40 minutes that Thompson beautifully befuddled the Celtic defence, setting up Yorke in front goal before Ulrik Laursen blocked his shot.

The match was distinguished by two remarkable saves, coming within moments of each other. From a bursting Didier Agathe run in the ninth minute, the ferocity of Petrov's header had to be seen to be believed, as did the instinctive arm thrown by Friedel to keep the ball at bay.

If that was an excellent display of goalkeeping, what the often-derided Douglas produced moments later, and elsewhere in this match, proved equally eye-catching. Frankly, Celtic's defence got into an embarrassing fankle when Tugay and Gary Flitcroft pushed Blackburn forward, and the alert Thompson was suddenly in acres of space eight yards out when he lashed his shot at goal. Douglas plunged instinctively to his left to beat the ball away.

Celtic's play, at least in the opposition half, had been sorely impoverished in the first half, yet Blackburn simply could not convert possession or pressure into goals. There was little comfort for Celtic, though, when Cole, preserved on the bench by Souness after injury, appeared for the second half. Cole's pace and sense of anticipation were obvious, though Baldé, Laursen and Joos Valgaeren all somehow stuck out a leg to block his shots.

Celtic had a far better second half, but, like Blackburn, their play seemed to be going unrewarded in front of goal. A tame shot from Sutton in the 48th minute was easily gathered by Friedel, and Celtic, frankly, were a disappointment. After 85 minutes, though, Thompson's corner was met ferociously by Hartson, whose downward header Friedel beat away. Larsson pounced to stab the ball home.

- Nov 1st

[AndyC]

hey guys....well what a great experience.

Thoroughly enjoyed the day / night.

Enjoyed meeting the celtic fans in the pubs before the game - the pubs in gallowgate were great and all the fans I spoke to were very welcoming & generally looking forward to the game.

As for the atmosphere - very surprised - especially after reading the daily record and listening to the fans before the game. Anyone who thinks the sun is totally biased should take a read of the record.  Talk about anti english.  There opening paragraph on the day of the game was all about how there had been no media coverage south of the border for this game...it then went onto spout the biggest load of crap i've ever seen in a newspaper article.

ANyway - back to the game.  We totally bossed it, never looked under threat,  but never really got our game together where it counts - in the box.  But something to work on for the next leg, which I'm sure will be very exciting again.

Now onto the blackburn legend...step forward Mr SOuness.

Not sure if they showed this on telly....

After us chanting his name over and over again, he rose from the dugout and arms aloft applauded us.  The celtic fans all stood up and hurled abuse....so what doe he do? He runs to the edge of that technical box thing with his arms outretched punching the air in a kind of 'AVE IT' manner!

This sent the rovers contingent into delierious applause! Much to the displeasure of the 'new old trafford' crowd!

After the game, chatted to quite a few celticfans - all of whom readily admitted we should have won...but hey - that's football & it was arsenal's turn last week!

So it was onto a couple of pubs and then a nightclub called RKaos or something like that!  I then did my best to keep up inter country relations !

:'>

[ABBEY]

take it you got a result andy lol  

[AndyC]

seen as though we didn't score, I thought i'd make up for it  

[ABBEY]

seen as though we didn't score, I thought i'd make up for it  

ave it

[Myklebust]

Does the "Jos Jos Jos"-thing sounds like monkey noises ? I hope you have are right. I've never heard it before so I thougt it was some abuse. For me it sounded like monkeys, but I shouldn't be for sure. It happened to times when Cole lost the ball.

No, I didnt report it. I didn't know !

[Myklebust]

sorry ! two times

[squaylor]

Andy it was probably easier for you when you were trying to score - I bet you didn't have Bobo Balde in front of you ...

:'>

[Pete1888]

Does the "Jos Jos Jos"-thing sounds like monkey noises ? I hope you have are right. I've never heard it before so I thougt it was some abuse. For me it sounded like monkeys, but I shouldn't be for sure. It happened to times when Cole lost the ball.

No, I didnt report it. I didn't know !

Yep, the Joos-Joos-Joos thing sounds identical to monkey noises, but I can assure you they werent.  If you look back im sure you'll find it was Valgaeren that had tackled Cole, hence the chant.

Always worried about opposing fans thinking that though.