Gribz

I dont like Clements comments, it says to me he is using Rangers just like players in the past and we all know how times its crept up and bit former players in the butt before. I wonder if Fergie really means he hopes Celtic go on and do better But overall im sure we will progress and that means both OF teams in europe after Xmas (i think for a first time in years) which can suggest the SPL isnt that much of a minor league.

Yeah I wish I thought of Quashie before Jensen

Im looking for experience on a budget. Mills is a hot head at times but an experienced RB who I think would stroll the SPL and he wouldnt cost much. Pressley defines what our defence needs just now - again on the cheap. Jensen is capable of scoring 10 goals a season and shoots from far out. He would also add bite in the midfield something we still lack. Again he comes with experience. He isnt a world beater but on par with the likes of Quashie who a lot of us wanted last season (and Quashie is another id still take BTW).

Not for me. Ok they got a win against Hearts but that team is the foundation of problems. Yes we want a settled squad but lets get players in positions and play guys who are fit. Ferguson should be an attacking midfielder and stop playing so deep and getting in others ways. He tackled Hemdani twice last sunday and you could see Hemdani was annoyed. Novo isnt any use wide right. Prso isnt fit. Adam doesnt play wide left although he could in a flat midfield 4. Boyd is non-exsistant upfront on his own.

And yet another SPL player. Add that to Brown, Thompson and possibly Anderson or Pressley. No thanks from me.

Danny Mills at RB Steven Pressley at Centre Half Claus Jensen for Midfield (Being released by Fulham)

For the lazy folk althought it isnt much:

He probably wont bother coming back for the charge

Not to be eh Gav?? 0 out of 3, just aswell I didnt put it on. Im the same as you BTW, a wee tener treble on the coupon and thats it (or maybe 2 lines if im boozy) But the best way to try and win if you are skint is to have small 50p or pound bets on accumulator correct scores. For e.g. If you get 4 x 1-0's correct at 7/1 each your looking at 4096 quid from your quid!!

We'll need someone else if Bardsley goes back to Man Utd for RB. This is the problem with loan signings, they only temp cover your problems. We already need 1 more centre half and now we will be looking for a RB also and they are hard come by. Danny Mills is a free agent at the moment. He is experienced with Englands caps, i wouldnt mind a punt for him. Luke Young is another who might become available but he would probably be way beyond us as he will get an EPL club no problem.

Yeah see what your saying chaps. I also think its now a test for Paul Le Guen aswell as Murray. PLG will have surely witnessed Celtic's performance last night and surely he must know by now what Gers supporters demand. Celtic play simple football with a simple formation. We really should be looking at there midfield and following suit. They had a balanced 4 in the middle and 2 up top. So will Le Guen change his system or will he continue to persivear (sp) with it. I kind of agree with Barry that if Murray's passion was as high as its ever been then Le Guen would have had more funds pre season. But i guess January and next summer will tell if he is prepared to release some cash or not.

Id just go for Brown alone and not Thompson or do these 2 HAVE to come as a pair or something? Im also with Ian on this, id rather get a solid centre half in. Then Hemdani can move back into midfield and be defensive cover when required. Then we can choose from Ferguson Brown Hemdani Clement Sionko Burke Adam Buffel But its useless having that amount of midfielders if we continue to not play a system that doesnt accommodate them. I dont like to use Celtic as an example but look how organised there midfield was last night and at half time they brought on Jarosik and Maloney which didnt disrupt the system.

I wonder if Buffel will be brought back into the team tonight. His game seems more suited to europe and may cause a bit of havoc. Id like to see a flat 4 in midfield and Buffel playing just off a front man. Id rest Prso, the big man tried his all at Hearts on Sunday but he struggled to beat his man. Id also put Boyd on the bench as he doesnt do enough off the ball and we need a tryer like Novo upfront in this type of game. Id go with 2 changes, Boyd, Prso out - Sionko, Buffel in: ________________McGregor_____________ Hutton____Svensson____Hemdani___Smith Sionko____Ferguson____Clement____Adam _________________Buffel______________ _________________Novo______________

I felt a bit sick with seeing Celtic gloat at the final whistle but its a good result for us in terms of qualifying for the CL next season, so thats the only way to look at it. It also says a bit more about the SPL that they can beat Man U, so fair play to Strachan in that sense. As much as I cant stand Celtic I find Strachan a likeable character. Man U dominated the first have but didnt have anything more than half chances. I see Balde is still a dirty bassa - he almost broke Scholes leg with that tackle. Celtic stepped up in the 2nd half but Man U were still the team in control. Celtics first shot at goal went in from the free kick and that was it. What was Saha thinking about! Even if he did hear a whistle as a striker you shouldnt just stop! Then as for the Pen you knew he was missing it with the body language and the run up he was taking. Why oh why did Rooney not take it. BTW Calscot, your earlier post saying it was a pleasure picking teams with midfields was spot on! I thought the same just watching the game. Both teams manage to play 2 upfront and a flat midfield where 3 of them get forward. That is non-exsistant with us and where our problems of killing teams off lies.

My tip came up - Real v Lyon was a banker draw at 9/4. Shame i never put anything on it though!! Typical eh! When i dont have a punt it comes up!

Id settle for a draw then win our last game at ibrox against Partizan and that should see us top to get a 3rd placed team

The version I knew was If I had the wings of a Sparrow The arse of a big Buffalo Id fly over Parkhead tomorrow And shite on them wankers below!

Im certainly getting up at 3am to watch this tonight. It will be fireworks. I only wish Man U werent playing Chelsea on Sunday as they might not risk players and could get injuries. Id love to see a Rooney hattrick in a 3-0 romp but i think it will be closer. I read on the BBC that Fletcher is playing against the team he supported as a boy, i thought he was a Hibs fan. The group is quite close and Man U still need 2 points to guarentee qualification but i expect they will get that easy from 2 games. It obviously helps if the SPL if Celtic qualify but il be right behind Man Utd in this one. Rio for the first goal at 33/1

I thought he was a dead ringer for Davie Provan

Yeah i had a wee sneak yesterday and Lyon for a draw jumped straight out at me. I think il wait to see what team Sir Awex plays before betting on Utd coz he will have 1 mind on Chelsea.

Fair points Cal, but its ok signing 1 or 2 SPL players but I dont fancy having a side full of them. Goram and Kenny Miller played for Hibs, Gough and Druncan for Dundee Utd, McCoist for St Johnstone, John Brown from Dundee, Ian Ferguson from St Mirren and Davie Cooper for Clydebank. Then there's Caniggia and Novo for Dundee, Boyd for Kilmarnock and Ian Murray for Hibs, Davie Robertson and Stevie Wright for Aberdeen. Weren't they good enough? I think its fair to say the SPL has went backwards far since these players above. In most of there days SPL could hold there own in europe against almost anyone. As for Caniggia, he was 34 years old at the time though.

It is that, but id say those who are in the away support go to home games also.

Yeah i see what your saying. Looking at January and February, I think they will be big months. Its a pretty good run of games, and if we have a good December it will set us up nicely. I suppose we need to keep believing!! Celtic have Hibs away next, then Aberdeen, then us, so they couldnt have a more tricky December!

That Hearts game is the first ive seen us play in a few weeks, and IMO i dont think we are far away from turning a corner to putting wins away. We have the basis of a good squad but the formation needs tweaked and 1 or 2 personnel needs added while a few exit the door. Those who exit are the likes of Gavin Rae, Stefan Klos and Fernando Ricksen whom arent starters anyway. As for the current side, watching the game yesterday the midfield 3 of Adam, Clement and Ferguson all played far too close to each other, they need to spread themselves out the middle. However the front 3 were the opposite. Novo and Prooshow (as Scott Booth calls him) hugged the touchline. Thats ok if they are genuine wide players or midfield wingers but not if they are strikers trying to feed an out and out golascorer who doesnt get involved in build up play. At the back I saw a bit of daylight at the end of the tunnel. Svensson gave us a scare early on but we'll put that down to a mis-hit as he improved throughout the game. His partner Hemdani strolled the game but I think he should be doing that in the midfield and a No-nonsence centre half needs to come in and partner Svensson. Maybe Papac can still do this. Young Steven Smith is a breathe of fresh air at LB and its a position he has made his own - well done that man! At RB id say overall the jury is out on Hutton. He shows promise on occassion. I think he may improve if he had a genuine right sided midfielder to assist him - Stand up Sionko! To conclude, id say the 4-2-3-1 or whatever has to be scrapped and get back to flat formation of 4-4-2, 4-3-3, 4-5-1 or even try a 3-5-2. My concern with the midfield at the moment is they are all close-knit together. A 4 man midfield should be 1 on the right, 1 on the centre right, 1 on the centre left and 1 on the left. At the moment they are all playing centre-centre which deprives us of passing the ball about more freely. Lets get back to basics

This is the exact reason. Thats a great article and good to see a reporter hammering in the truth for once. Cheers for posting it Koeman!