ClemensKrauss

I've not seen McCulloch play for the reserves at centre half. So I have the following questions: 1. How often has Lee played at centre half in professional football, over a career of 12 years? 2. How often has Lee played well, in any position, while at Rangers? 3. We regularly play four central defenders, two of them now approaching naturalisation at full back - exactly how long does a professional football manager need to work out we could do with proper cover when one first choice is nearly 40?

Celtic has played 17 away CL group stage games. 0 wins, 1 draw. 18 other teams have played 10 or more but less than 17 (so less than Celtic): They total 47 away wins, 60 away draws and 199 away points. In terms of away games played, Celtic is ranked 17th. In terms of games won, they are 105th and bottom, having won none and played more than others. In terms of away points gained, they are 92nd.

(Posted on FF, so for those who don't go there) This is important, as it is factual, and will be very useful for keeping the Yahoos straight. Celtic has now reached six CL group stages, and has no wins and only 1 point away from home. 105 teams have reached the first group stage of the CL since 1992/3. 40 have played in the first group stage only once. So let's start there, and move our way along until we at least find the group with the same number of group stage appearances as Celtic. TEAMS WITH ONE CL GROUP APPEARANCE (40) 13 have won an away CL game. 28 have at least one point - Zenit can make that 29 this season. TWO CL GROUP APPEARANCES (15) 12 have an away win in the CL. Only one has no points. THREE CL GROUP APPEARANCES (5) 4 have won an away CL game, ALL have more than one point. FOUR CL GROUP APPEARANCES (7) All bar one have wins away, and the other exceeds the Celtic points tally. FIVE CL GROUP APPEARANCES (7) All 7 have won away. SIX CL GROUP APPEARANCES - INCLUDES CELTIC - (8) The magnificent 7 have CL away wins (plural) adding up to 35. The other team has, of course, not won. TEAMS WITH A CL AWAY WIN (72) Man. United Milan Barcelona Real Madrid Lyon FC Porto Bayern Munich Arsenal Juventus Internazionale Chelsea Ajax Valencia Spartak Moscow PSV Liverpool Dortmund Rosenborg Dinamo Kiev Bayer Leverkusen AS Roma SS Lazio Werder Bremen Rangers PSG Panathinaikos AS Monaco Olympique Marseille IFK Goteborg Galatasaray Deportivo Club Bruges Auxerre Atletico Madrid Steau Bucharest Sparta Praha Shaktar Donetsk Sevilla Schalke 04 RSC Anderlecht Olympiakos Nantes Lokomotiv Moscow Feyenoord Fenerbache Bordeaux Villarreal VFB Stuttgart Udinese Sporting Real Sociedad Real Mallorca Real Betis RC Lens Newcastle Maribor Lille Kaiserslautern Hamburg Hadjuk Split Grasshoppers Fiorentina Ferencvaros FC Basel CSKA Moscow Croatia Zagreb Cluj Celta Vigo Besiktas Benfica Austria Salzburg Artmedia Bratislava TEAMS WITH MORE THAN ONE AWAY POINT (79) Man. United Barcelona Milan Real Madrid Bayern Munich Arsenal Lyon Juventus FC Porto Internazionale Chelsea Ajax PSV Valencia Liverpool Dortmund Spartak Moscow Rosenborg Dinamo Kiev Bayer Leverkusen AS Roma Rangers SS Lazio Deportivo AS Monaco PSG Panathinaikos Werder Bremen Sparta Praha Olympiakos Galatasaray RSC Anderlecht Olympique Marseille Club Bruges Steau Bucharest IFK Goteborg Feyenoord Benfica Atletico Madrid Nantes Fenerbache Bordeaux Auxerre Schalke 04 Lokomotiv Moscow Shaktar Donetsk Sporting Sevilla Lille RC Lens Fiorentina CSKA Moscow Croatia Zagreb AEK Athens Villarreal Real Betis Newcastle Maribor Kaiserslautern Hamburg Hadjuk Split Grasshoppers FC Basel Celta Vigo Besiktas Austria Salzburg Artmedia Bratislava VFB Stuttgart Udinese Sturm Graz Real Sociedad Real Mallorca Ferencvaros Cluj Parma Leeds United Hertha Berlin Genk Boavista 13 teams have only one away point in the CL first group stage. This is Celtic's sixth CL Group campaign. Of the others, only Aalborg have played in the group stages more than once, the other 11 having only one chance to accumulate points. Of the 23 teams without a win, only one other than Celtic (17) has played more than ten games, AEK Athens (12) - 17 have only played once in the competition. It's true that Olympiakos took until after their 30th away tie to win, but they had 7 draws by then, and now have 2 wins. Celtic has 1 draw. No wins. In short, their form on the road in the CL group stage is a disgrace.

Do you mean in terms of influence (which would make Ferguson a much more important and in some ways effective Captain than many often assume) or in terms of selecting himself? If the latter, are we to believe that Walter Smith, a man whom almost everyone would tell you is not to be crossed and most definitely a man of stature and his own viewpoint, is a stooge? Unlikely: to be as polite as Barry.

Tremendous site! The great Alan Brazil has the same sub appearances as Ruud Van Noodlehorse.

He's discovered a real flair for the theatrical - to fail to score in all those other games but save it for tough away trips to Celtic Park and Easter Road against his old teams is superb. Funnily enough, I didn't think he was as effective on Sunday, but the goals answer a lot of critics. Let's see how the season pans out - I for one would be happy to credit the player and Walter if he does in fact make a significant contribution, even if the details of the deal, and the way Smith treated the support, are far from ideal.

And one of our more technically proficient players is almost ready to return to contention. I'm very glad we have real midfield choice - we will need it, as a typical season brings loss of form, suspension and injury.

Waddell wasn't too keen on our support, vocally at times. He struggled badly with Celtic and his domestic record was poor. But you cannot discount Barcelona, nor his statesmanship and approach post-Disaster. And Waddell the Ranger - as player, manager and director - is a considerable figure. If Wallace had not come back then there would be no real contest. It depends how much weight you give to that second period, and whether you think someone else would have done better with those limitations of resource.

One of the greatest of all. Alan Morton.

Boyd scores. I am glad that is the good part of his game. The other stuff is much easier to improve at. I don't think his overall play was anywhere near as bad tonight as some would suggest. Nor do I feel that by comparison with his fellow strikers he was as bad. But there's definitely a bit of the 'loathed ex' syndrome when it comes to the way fans rate some players. They can do no right, and people begin to watch games and often come to conclusions that are baffling. I know this because we've all had blind spots or people we've had really negative opinions of, and it is hard to shake off at times.

Tonight we had some terrible finishing, but more than that some awful decision-making when in the last third. On another night we could have scored six or seven, easily. And the worst culprits, not the sole but the worst, were Wee Nacho and JCD. Yet the biggest thread is about Boyd.

Kenny is a pressman's dream: quote after quote, after spill, after leak. A couple of good games is not enough to have him knighted.

Are referees under-paid? If so, how should they be properly rewarded in this multi-billion pound entertainment industry?

Who'd have thought that such downsizing of ambition was something so readily accepted by the yoof? I always thought it took a little longer for melancholy and full Murray worship to develop.

Why oh why is that OP still here? It's just an attempt to be offensive and to rile people - there is no path to sensible debate when the original post is just bile and ill-informed drivel.

The best way for the partisan and bitter criticism of Smith to fade away would be if Burley looked like he was suited to the job. Let's be blunt here - Scotland has NEVER failed to beat Iceland in a senior match. So nothing but a win tomorrow will do. And Burley has to consider if picking so many out-of-form team-mates is really something he wants to repeat. Smith knew he'd be under pressure from his old 'pals' and for all much of it is bitter invective from people with less football knowledge than a snail, the Chief Executive will come under criticism if the national team flounders.

A well-organised summary. Well done on that and especially in your efforts to find answers from the groups you mentioned. May be worth adding the words of Cara Henderson when communicating with, or indeed merely mentioning, NBM - I read today a quote attributed to her which speaks volumes about the difference between the motives of that organisation and the manner in which its actions and direction have changed since she passed on the responsibility. Reference: http://www.nilbymouth.org/debate.htm In order to treat sectarianism in Scotland we must reach some sort of understanding of how it is that we - we as a particular society and we as a particular people - have come to be and act in a certain way. It is only by understanding that we can ever hope to break that emotionally degenerative and socially destructive cycle of blame. For blame is a scapegoat. Blame means that prejudice is someone else's fault, someone else's problem and that way everyone escapes responsibility. A blame culture reinforces the "them and us" mentality which helps to incubate prejudice. It is only when a society, in this case Scottish society, collectively moves towards facing up to and assuming responsibility for the ongoing cycle of ignorance, fear and prejudice that to varying degrees shapes all of its members, that this cycle can ever be broken.

I'm not sure you could tell. Not that we should see that as a bad thing (we want people in the media to be impartial) but compare and contrast with the people who are clearly, brazenly and indisputably pro-Celtic.

Rangers used to stand for certain things - standards, tradition, representing a particular type of Scottish identity. I think in recent times the Club has struggled to reconcile its status and position in a Scotland that is markedly different, even within the last quarter century or so. The trophies, the stories, the men who ran the Club, took the Club to a new level, the fans. All of it is special, and we could do without the bland edge to the modern Rangers.

You didn't. You told me that something that is opinion is wrong in fact. After having the temerity to claim I had no knowledge, simply because you don't agree with me. Clearly you're upset at something but I'm happy to hear the rest of the Northern Irish guys you think have been really good, having had a while to consider the matter.

I think it just comes down to what you consider to be a really good player. I'd say people like Laudrup, Butcher, that kind of player. I don't think John or Jimmy are at that level. I'm not one for hyperbole, so perhaps it comes over as being a little less enthusiastic than the fashion for saying everything is great. Not to say that Jimmy in particular was not a great trier, and he clearly loved pulling on that jersey the same way we would relish the honour, but I don't believe that we've been blessed with all that many really good (that phrase again) players from Northern Ireland. What would be good, and is 100% fact and indisputable, is that the people from NI who've come over to see Rangers over the years are a great bunch - I just think that they might be more worthy of a day to highlight than the contingent of Northern Irish players over the years. But, really and truly, this Follow Follow idea ties in well with the Sam English events they've been pushing, so hopefully (as I said on FF) the idea will take off and threads like this will help to highlight it for those who don't dip their proverbial toes in the somewhat choppy waters of Suck Inc. Well you still seem to be stuck on the idea that 'John and Jimmy' are the ones we should be judging this on. Over the years there have been so many more, but this late at night, well I can't be arsed looking them out. You ignore the fact that I have pointed out that we have excellent Ulstermen in our team right now, and there have been greats in the past. As for the Sam English events. While it is a fact that FF has been pushing this, I can tell you that it came about because close relatives of Sam were getting nowhere with the Club, and they they used FF as a medium to pressure the Club to recognise his place in our history. If you are in any doubt whatsoever that this is the case, PM me and I will give you more details. I don't know how else to say it - neither Davis or Lafferty have done anything yet to judge them as greats, and I've been crystal clear about the types of player I'd consider really good. I'm not ignoring your opinion, I just don't agree, and no amount of posts to and fro will make me think, "aye, McLelland and Nicholl were great." You'll have to agree to disagree and stop looking for a slight where none exists.

I think fergie still holds a grudge to this day against us doesnt he? For ridding of him.. He was very complimentary about us in the match programme when we played them at Old Trafford in the CL, but I've read a lot of other things over the years, and his book is a mixed bag - he is very critical of Willie Allison, who has passed on and could not reply, but also quite complimentary about the Club and other individuals, past and closer to present.

I think it just comes down to what you consider to be a really good player. I'd say people like Laudrup, Butcher, that kind of player. I don't think John or Jimmy are at that level. I'm not one for hyperbole, so perhaps it comes over as being a little less enthusiastic than the fashion for saying everything is great. Not to say that Jimmy in particular was not a great trier, and he clearly loved pulling on that jersey the same way we would relish the honour, but I don't believe that we've been blessed with all that many really good (that phrase again) players from Northern Ireland. What would be good, and is 100% fact and indisputable, is that the people from NI who've come over to see Rangers over the years are a great bunch - I just think that they might be more worthy of a day to highlight than the contingent of Northern Irish players over the years. But, really and truly, this Follow Follow idea ties in well with the Sam English events they've been pushing, so hopefully (as I said on FF) the idea will take off and threads like this will help to highlight it for those who don't dip their proverbial toes in the somewhat choppy waters of Suck Inc.

My dad never forgave him for his efforts (lack thereof) in the 1969 SFA final. I think I'm right in saying he was our top scorer the year before(?) but by all accounts he was not of the standard of those who preceeded and succeeded him.

I do too, three. No offence, but you are the one who told me I had to brush up on my knowledge, as you despaired of me holding a contrary opinion. I'm happy to have someone disagree, I wouldn't be on a discussion forum otherwise, but there are few players in our history who encourage total and utter 100% agreement on their merits and, regardless of where they were born, neither Big McLelland or Nicholl were ever, in my mind, anything worth getting excited about as players - not in the grand scheme of a club with a heritage as rich as our own. But I do like your user picture. So we agree, hopefully, on that.