Good E-Tims Article on Strachan

Three-in-a-row, first time since 1974 (technically), by any standards a tremendous accomplishment yet when the hangovers lessened, the smoke dissipated and we all gently floated down from Cloud Nine, I wonder if anyone is felt as schizophrenic about the whole experience as I did. On the one hand there's the aforementioned relief and joy over the last minute reprieve, while on the other I can't help wondering why the team, while playing in a manner no better than adequately competent and taking advantage of Rangers bubble bursting, should suddenly bring about the kind of conversions in some supporters that would have had Saul of Tarsus hiding anything sharp and casting a hopeful eye at the nearest door. I can't believe that I'm really the only person in the Universe who looks at the names of the other two managers that achieved three-in-a-row, Willie Maley and Jock Stein, and find it odd that the Gordon Strachan's name should now nestle alongside such legends.


After all Maley and Stein both produced famous teams renowned for their football, Gordon Strachan on the other hand has achieved impressive feats without bothering with such trivialities. While others may agree or disagree, I have found Strachan's three seasons to be a mixture of dreadful football and, paradoxically, incredible domestic success. It's akin to watching a blind, drunk driver speeding into a wall, only to be thrown clear and then land on an escaping bank robber for which he receives a large reward. It seems rather churlish though to denigrate Strachan's achievements after such a thrilling end to the season, yet at the same time I cannot but recall that aside from the hectic last seven weeks it was another season noted for its overall abysmal football, which at times carried mental health warnings for those suffering clinical depression or with suicidal tendencies.
I can hear the roars of outrage heading my way as I type but let me just head those off, or at least try an outflanking manoeuvre, by stating that I’m simply refusing to allow the emotional rollercoaster of the season end to usher in ridiculous revisionism. It is nonsense to now claim, as some are doing, that the last seven weeks are all that matters and everything that occurred previously is utterly irrelevant, or in some cases never happened at all; presumably all but the last weeks being sucked into some sudden rift in the space-time continuum. In a way the reaction of those focusing on that last hurrah is understandable, after all Celtic put in a tremendous effort to win all the last seven games, and the snatching of victory from the jaws of defeat is certainly a classic chapter in Celtic’s long and distinguished history, but, and yes there’s a but coming, if we are to truly judge the state of the club then it has to be with a certain objectivity. Consequently there is certainly no room for gushing sentimentality.

Let me say though that even I, hard-hearted and callous though I am, warmed to Strachan in the aftermath of the tragic death of Tommy Burns, who wouldn’t? The hurt Strachan publicly revealed could have broken the heart of even the most cynical observer. Similarly the sight of Strachan celebrating on the Tannadice pitch would only elicit a negative comment from someone who could kick a starving kitten. Hell, I even wanted to believe that Strachan had said the following in that Tannadice post-match huddle, and was rather disappointed to find out that it had just came from a forum contributor in response to a competition to put words into the manager’s mouth: "That lot with their pens and notepads, their exclusives, and their match reports saying we had no chance of retaining this title, we proved they know nothing about us, our fans or our club...that lot standing there singing, with their scarves up above their heads, chanting the name of a special man who everybody connected with this club loves, that's who we won this title for..for our supporters, for ourselves, but most of all for Tommy, so be proud of yourselves, hold your heads high, look up to the heavens and shout loud and proud, ' look what we did Tommy, we did the 3 in a row'" Oh if only, mind you, that still wouldn’t change my mind about season 2007-2008.

Be honest about it, Celtic may have courageously clawed their way out of a deep hole, but it was a deep hole of our own making. Dysfunctional signings, odd team selections, indifferent performances, basic errors on a routine basis, all led to a situation where Celtic allowed a Rangers team with one strength only, the ability to treat football the way Sweeny Todd treated inviting throats, to march into a seemingly unassailable league position despite having failed to look impressive domestically themselves. Walter Smith didn't have to do a hell of a lot to send Celtic reeling, a handful of unspectacular signings and a decision to try out the 10-0-1 formation was enough to strip away the illusion of competence that the club had build on shaky foundations. Suddenly we found ourselves staring with mounting horror at what was promising to be the season from hell, while Rangers supporters skipped from hoof to hoof at the prospect of completing a quadruple trophy count. Only the most insanely optimistic Celtic supporter seriously entertained the prospect of a league upset after the defeat at Ibrox and the shattering home defeat to Motherwell. After that we were all treated to the sound of final nails in being hammered into the coffin lid of Celtic's championship hopes.

The possibility of winning the remaining seven games appeared to be remote to say the least, especially as two of those league fixtures were against Rangers, a team we had not scored against in four encounters, and had not won in five. Winning seven games simply seemed too much to ask, after all, Celtic’s performances had been pretty deplorable, winning just one game in the last seven (that number again)– and that was against the now defunct SPL basketcase, Gretna. Following the defeat by Motherwell, Celtic were seven points behind Rangers who also had a game in hand. It really should have been all over bar the shouting. It did appear that all we had left to look forward to was the salvaging of some credibility from a season that would have grown men screaming in fear for years to come. Happily, although we did not know it at the time, it was all about to change. Celtic was about to embark on a spirited grinding out of results partnered by a equally impressive collapse by Rangers, the latter thanks to the Cowardly Hidden Hand of the Pan-Fenian Conspiracy (copyright The Rangers Supporters Trust).

If Carlsberg made season endings then the end of the 2007-2008 season would be one of their finest with Celtic snatching the league from below the snottery-noses of The Forces of Darkness, the foul ones losing spectacularly in the UEFA Cup final, the lumpen Hun horde disgracing themselves in the streets of Manchester, and lowly Queen of the South nearly staging the upset of all time in the Scottish Cup Final (soon to be boycotted by the huffy Huns). Only the death of Tommy Burns cast a sad pall over events, however that merely served to strengthen the determination of the club to bring the league trophy back to Paradise. In that Strachan cannot be faulted, he does appear to have created a fine team spirit amongst the players, and that more than anything turned the tide. The scenes following the final whistle at Tannadice are ample evidence of such a spirit, and if actual ability is lacking in some of the players, the same cannot be said about their will to win. Unfortunately however this is sometimes not enough, and it usually isn’t enough when faced with opponents of anything other than a mediocre calibre.

Part of the criticism of Gordon Strachan has been the hit and miss nature of his signings, and nowhere is that better reflected than in another contributory factor to the league triumph, that was of course the partnership of Robson and Hartley in the centre of midfield. When contemplating the change of fortunes in this area of the pitch, it should be remembered that the situation only came about with the relegation to the bench of two of Strachan’s most expensive summer signings; Brown and Donati (£7.5m combined outlay). Rather than this turnabout coming from some brilliant insight, the manager actually persevered with the duo despite thoroughly disappointing contributions until circumstances, late in the day, forced the regular selection of two players who helped stop the rot. It's not the first time that Strachan has been criticised for sticking with underperforming players to the point where trading standards inspectors are peering at the sell-by date and reaching for a handy court summons.

An assessment of a season consists of more than a final last death or glory charge, it involves every game and every week if any genuine conclusions are to be reached. The emotions generated at the final stage cannot and should not be allowed to cloud that judgement. By any standard Celtic’s season was a mess suddenly rescued by the kind of final last death or glory charge that would have impressed the Light Brigade. The success of the charge points to unquestionable strengths in both the players and the manager, however are those strengths enough to overcome the weaknesses revealed both then and during the previous months of grim toil? The nature of the league win does not, I'll admit, lend itself to dispassionate consideration, yet the manner of Celtic's victory is an indicator of existing problems that have been pushed firmly into the background. Celtic simply required an heroic effort at the end of the season due to the fact that until that point the team had been found wanting. As the Times article, "Celtic Sore Winners" by Simon Buckland stated:

"Celtic deserve huge praise for the way they responded to where they were back in the first week of April. Yet that is what it was: a response. It doesn’t mean the criticism they received for being where they were can suddenly be rendered invalid. There were too many occasions when Celtic hadn’t performed. In December they lost at Inverness and could only draw at home to both St Mirren and Hibernian. The goalless draw with Dundee United in March was followed by a miserable Scottish Cup replay exit to Aberdeen, with both games at Parkhead. The Motherwell home loss was no blip: it typified the team’s flaws at that time. Celtic have gone on to win the title because they have improved since then. Even then, five of their seven consecutive Premier League victories have been by a single-goal margin, but you cannot argue with the ruthless effectiveness of their sprint-in as Rangers slowed to walking pace. Celtic played well in the closing weeks of the season. Because they had to. Because they hadn’t earlier." - The Times, 25 May 2008.

I said at the start of the season that Gordon Strachan would show if he had what it took to be the Celtic manager now that he was , for the first time, faced with a credible domestic challenge. Up until the arrival of Walter Smith, Strachan had only to content with one serious bout of domestic competition and that ended in October 2005 with the sacking of George Burley. The following season with O’Neill’s signings removed and with a team all of Strachan’s own choosing, Celtic managed to win the league title with seven points less but with nearly 30 fewer goals scored (goals against was pretty much the same). There really is no point in trying to dispute the lack of domestic competition during these seasons, especially the second, so any consideration of a team or manager's merit really has to take these factors into account. When Dick Advocaat won the league by 21 points in season 1999-2000 did anyone seriously believe that this was an accurate reflection of his worth rather than a stunning incitement on the state of Celtic? The next season the same team and manager was demolished by Martin O'Neill, and he was sacked midway through the following season..

Winning domestic competitions when opposition is non-existent or weak is no guarantee that a team or manager’s competence is reflected by the trophy count, even Europe brings with it some oddities. For example during the 2005-2006 season when Rangers managed to win just six league games out of the first seventeen and managed to put together a record breaking run 10 competitive games without a win, McLeish led them to the last 16 of the Champions League. A team that consistently fails to perform to an adequate level is not a good team regardless of the silverware accrued, and there is no doubt what so ever that Celtic have not performed to a level that can be considered acceptable for anything other than brief purple patches during Gordon Strachan’s reign. Even Strachan’s most ardent supporters cannot deny the reality of this unfortunate fact, especially with the disappearance from Celtic Park of considerable numbers of the support during the course of much of last season. The acres of empty seats during most match days are confirmation of the fact that grinding out results is not a viable long-term policy, especially when the necessity for these displays is noticeable by its absence. The necessity to engage in a footballing war of attrition may be tolerated during periods of extreme circumstance, such as the appointment of a new manager trying to get his signings to gel or stopping Ten-in-a-row, but when it becomes standard fare each matchday for several seasons then it’s time to ask serious questions.

I had hoped that the summer would see Gordon Strachan bowing out on a high, it doesn’t look as though the manager is going anywhere though, whether this is a mistake for all involved will be revealed sooner rather than later. When our esteemed chairman, John “Blair Cat’s Paw” Reid, decided to break his self-imposed purdah and re-emerge into the public spotlight, timed with Celtic’s change in league title fortune as it happens, to proclaim the board’s continuing adoration of the manager then the future was clear. Only if Strachan decided to saunter into the sunset of his own volition would we see a change for the coming season. With no sign of that happening I have to contemplate another season of life under the Ginger One, and simply pray to every deity that I can think of in the hope that forthcoming matchdays aren’t spent staring at the sight of a Celtic team collectively sinking the boot into the battered groin of the beautiful game. Can it really be too much to ask for some silverware success and decent football? Is this plea utterly unreasonable? There is no fixed universal law that states success has to be brought about by football that wouldn’t look out of place during the three-legged elephants charity football match in a local swamp.

I will be delighted if Gordon Strachan surprises me and fields a team next season that displays a noticeable improvement in terms of ability. It will require some decent money to be spent, and for genuine quality to strengthen the team. On the money front there is no excuse for the current failure of the Celtic board to provide a reasonable transfer budget to Strachan, none. The profits generated in 2007 and 2008 (I’m assuming), together with the guaranteed money from Champions League participation, surely must see a reversal of the club’s austere fiscal policy. Similarly the money that is available must be spent in the right manner, no more journeymen picked up for buttons and expensive buys who look anything but. No more haphazard hit and miss delving into the transfer market. I can’t say the early signs are encouraging however, offering £2.5m and Riordan for Kyle Lafferty of Burnley is depressingly little more than business as usual.

Gordon Strachan has now had three seasons at the club, three hugely successful seasons in terms of silverware but three very disappointing seasons when it comes to the standard of individual players and the football produced. Considering the club’s healthy financial state and the time the manager has had to improve the team, there are no justifiable reasons for a failure to see considerable improvements in both the overall ability of the team and the performances they produce. So far, through determination and good fortune, Celtic have managed to avoid the quality of the team’s performances being reflected in the trophy count, which cannot last forever. We very nearly saw the bill presented last season for these level of displays, it was a close call and should serve as a warning that the club cannot ignore. Unless we’re witnessing a complete inability of behalf of Gordon Strachan to produce a team that can play reasonable football, then there are no good reasons at all for a continuation of the previous standard. Celtic can instead, for once, build on success and ensure a period of domestic domination that is not dependent, albeit partially, on events elsewhere or the level of domestic competition. It would be a shame to see the feel good factor dissipate and sullen resignation return simply down to a lack of ambition in the Celtic boardroom, I think we’ve all been there on enough occasions in the past to wish any replay of that scenario.

So that’s my wish list for season 2008-2009, reasonable success and watchable football, it’s hardly akin to demanding the moon on a stick. I have to say though, I’m not overly optimistic.