Barca’s Injury Pile & The Brilliant McGeady

With a brief winter vacation in the books, its time to get back to what really matters in life: media coverage of The Celtic Football Club. So let’s get to it.

The first leg of Celtic’s Champions League Round of 16 tie with Barcelona is a mere eight days away, so even the minor knocks players pick up are truly meaningful. With the knowledge that Barca’s curly-topped talisman Carles Puyol will miss the match at Celtic Park, another Catalan (literally) defender has gone down.

The devilishly handsome Oleguer Presas will be absent due to a broken hand. I have tons of respect for the man, not only for his willingness to air his political views without fear of repercussion (though there has been quite a bit), but also because he’s refused to play for Spain due to his strong belief in the cause of Catalan independence. He’s true to himself and his people first and foremost, and thats rare in the world as a whole today, much less professional sport. Thats old school honor, plain and simple.

A player that could have a much larger impact on the tie is facing tests on his injured hip. Thierry Henry was substituted during this weekend’s draw against Sevilla, though I’m sure Barca have sufficient depth to make due. Once the extent of his injury is known, I’ll post the info here.

New Scotland boss George Burley was on hand to witness Celtic’s 5-1 humiliation of Aberdeen at Pittodrie on Sunday. Afterwards, he praised the midfield combo of Scott Brown and Paul Hartley, as well as the commanding presence of Stephen McManus. He also said that if Barry Robson keeps scoring with his first touch after coming onto the pitch as a substitute, he’ll have a role to play.

One Bhoy who Burley would love to see in the blue of Scotland is Irish winger Aiden McGeady. After his virtuoso performance at the weekend, the papers are full of commentaries on his progress. Chick Young thinks he’s already the player of the year, but I sense that Scott McDonald will have a say in that race, especially if he keeps on scoring at a Larssonian rate.

McGeady’s influence is being felt throughout Celtic’s academy structure as the youngsters attempt to keep up with the tricks that they see Aiden display each week. Hopefully the kids will remember that its a whole lot more than tricks that win football matches, a fact that Aideninho didn’t fully grasp until this season.

It looks like the new additions in the midfield combined with Robson’s wondrous free kick against the Dons have Naka worried about his place in the first team. I’d love to see him push it to another level. With McGeady on fire on one side and last season’s Player of the Year cranking it up a notch, opposing fullbacks will have quite a bit to think about, if they don’t already.

Former waste of a Celt Kenny Miller says he wouldn’t mind returning to Ibrox, despite having already crossed the Old Firm divide once. Please do.

Here are the highlights from the Pittodrie beat down. Watch McGeady at 1:28. Pure genius.

Category: Celtic, In the Press

Tags: Aiden McGeady, Barry Robson, Carles Puyol, Celtic, FC Barcelona, George Burley, In the Press, Kenny Miller, Naka, Oleguer, Paul Hartley, Scott Brown, Scott McDonald, Stephen McManus, Thierry Henry

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