Interview with a Hoops fan…

By: Drew | July 25th, 2009

After Matt posted my answers on the Celtic offside I was almost afraid to put this up considering everyone took a shit all over my answers. I’ll never post anything speaking for other spurs fans ever again…

Regardless, We Celtic Tomorrow evening and here are some questions that Matt answered for us to get a better idea of what to expect.

A brief history of Celtic?
Celtic were founded in 1888 by an Irish Marist Brother named Walfrid to help the poor Irish Catholic immigrants in the East Side of Glasgow. The club grew to be one of the biggest and most successful clubs in Scotland. In 1967, Celtic became the first “British” club to win the European Cup. That same year, the Lisbon Lions won every competition that it entered that year. They won all these competitions with a team composed entirely of home-grown players, definitely a feat we probably will not see ever repeated. Celtic also reached the 1970 European Cup Final, but were beaten by Feyenoord 2-1. Of course, Celtic made the 2003 UEFA Cup final, bringing 80,000 followers to Seville only to see Celtic beaten by Porto.

Favorite current Player?
Aiden McGeady is definitely a fan favorite, with his attractive attacking style. McGeady can do some wonderful things with the ball. Artur Boruc is another cult figure at Celtic, even with his poor play last season. A lot of this has to do with Boruc’s ability to wind up Rangers fans. You would not think that Boruc was born in Poland and that he was a East Side of Glasgow Bhoy. The rivalry obviously means a lot to him.

Last season saw The Hoops lose out to Rangers for the league, where do you think it went wrong for Celtic after they seemed to have such a great lead?
There were certain needs that Celtic needed to address in January that could have been addressed but were ignored for various reasons. The squad had holes and Gordon Strachan did not seem able to adapt to a new style of play after the rest of Scotland figured out how to deal with his tactics. Whether it was stubborness or an unwillingness to change, Strachan made no changes when things got rough.

How do you feel about the appointment of Tony Mowbray, as well as the resignation of Gordon Strachan?
I, like most Celtic fans are cautiously optimistic about Mowbray. He is known for his attacking style, something that has been missing from Celtic the past few years. Most are happy about his appointment simply because it meant the back of Gordon Strachan. Even when he was winning, Strachan was not the most popular character at Celtic, which was a shame because he was one of the more successful coaches in Celtic history not named Jock Stein or Martin O’Neill. It was probably time for Strachan and Celtic to part ways though.

This summer has been busy with the additions of Mowbary, Marc-Antoine Fortune, and Landry NGuemo, as well as the sale of Shinsuke Nakamura. Can we expect any other transfers?
As I write this (Thursday afternoon in the US), Celtic are apparently putting the finishing touches on a deal with Coventry City left back Daniel Fox. Fox is a young left back and was named to the Championship’s team of the year last year, so if the deal gets done, it is an exciting one for Celtic. This is added to the fact that Lee Naylor has been as useful as wood in a termite farm the last two years. Celtic fans have been SCREAMING AT THE TOP OF THEIR LUNGS for a new left back, so Fox will be a welcome addition.

What was your reaction to the EPL1 and EPL2 proposal made last season? Would you want Celtic playing in the EPL?
When this deal was first proposed, I had mixed feelings. Clearly Celtic is the big fish in the small pond and I’d like to see Celtic face more competition. However, Celtic is in Scotland and I don’t think they should join another country’s league. There’s too much red tape a la Cardiff City in the FA Cup last year and I think it would ignore the history of Celtic in Scotland by doing that. However, there has also been talk of Celtic joining a “European Super League” and (if they asked) I would tell Lawwell and Reid to jump on that opportunity in a second.

What do Celtic fans think of Tottenham, as well as the prospect of playing them at Wembley?
Celtic and English fans often have trouble getting on, and Tottenham fans are no different. There’s some political issues linked to Celtic often and English fans aren’t big supporters of that movement, if you know what I am saying. There always seems to be some trouble when Celtic heads down south or faces a team from England, including last year when Celtic and Spurs met. There will be neds in every fan base, Celtic and Tottenham included, and there’s always some trouble. However, when compared to teams like Chelsea or Man City, I think Celtic would choose Spurs as the lesser of evils.

Will Celtic be playing mostly starters, or will we see some younger players out?
With Celtic having a Champions League qualifier next week against Dinamo Moscow, I would not expect a lot of first teamers getting long run outs. You might see the McGeady’s, McDonald’s, etc getting a short run to keep fitness up, but I’d expect to see a lot of reserves and youngsters.

Best and worst memory from a Celtic/Rangers game?
As I’m only 22 years old, I can’t quite recall the 7-1 League Cup victory over the Huns in the 50’s, but recently I would say Henrik Larsson’s chip in the 6-2 game in 2000. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_fXLGQIpm0. I’d also have to throw in Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink’s late winner and Barry Robson’s penalty to put Celtic up in the two games against Rangers at Celtic Park two seasons ago to lead Celtic to the title.

Who should Spurs fans watch out for on Sunday from Celtic and what is your prediction for the match overall?
As I mentioned, I would not expect the first team to get much playing time Sunday. However, new signing Landry N’Guemo might get some good playing time to get accustomed to Mowbray’s style. He was wonderful Wednesday against Cardiff City, holding the ball wonderfully and making some great passes. I’d look for him. I don’t see Celtic being too competitive just because the focus will be on Dinamo Moscow later that week. I’d peg Spurs for a 2-1 win.

There you have it… Now let the shit talking begin.