There is a spectre haunting Ibrox.
For the avoidance of doubt, it is the scary prospect of yet another title party at Celtic Park next May.
Of course, the Sevco High Command are duty-bound to do everything in their power to stop this monopoly of silverware at Parkhead.
That includes the financial plate-spinning of recent days.
As I had previously reported, the £5.5m deal that brought in both Cedric Itten and Kemar Roofe is the total cost including fees for agents.
It is structured over four transfer windows, therefore the initial outlay of £1.375m.
Even so, this rather meagre sum for a football club of that size still required the intervention of two chaps from outwith the Blue Room.
That they could only offer a “near six-figure” sum to Hibernian for Florian Kamberi indicates the paucity of resources that Mr Stevie has at his disposal.
Therefore, they offered a FIVE FIGURE sum for the striker, e.g. £90K.
Whatever morsels that Sevco’s PR superhero DUPman feeds to the stenography Corps it is necessary to follow follow the money.
If Alfredo does leave then, the two new strikers will take up his chunk of the wage bill.
Of course, someone has to make an offer, a real one, for the svelte South American.
When this site started in 2008, it was clear to your humble correspondent that something was seriously amiss at Ibrox.
However, at no point did anyone at the SFA shout “STOP!”
Consequently, the original Ibrox club was allowed to self-destruct.
The same process appears to be unfolding at Sevco.
A dysfunctional triad of Blue Room, Hampden and the local media created the conditions for insolvency and liquidation in 2012.
Today the Sevco High Command are maintaining the pretence that they are financially robust.
Quite frankly, that is a laughable assertion.
Across the city, the champions, like every other well run club in Scotland, have had to adjust because of the pandemic.
For example, in the pre-COVID world, neither Jonny Hayes nor Jozo Šimunović would have been allowed to leave for free.
However, the wealthiest club in Scotland does have access to a cash pile and the facility of normal borrowing if they need it.
Neither ability is available to the chaps in the Blue Room.
The Ibrox klanbase believe the Sevco High Command because they have no other choice.
That is because the reality of their predicament is too grim.
Of course, the Fitba Fourth estate plays a vitally shameful role in this deception.
Moreover, this did not start with the creation of Sevco.
The task in front of Mr Stevie and the Sevco High Command is not easy; the financial gap between the two clubs is simply vast.
However, you wouldn’t have any notion of that if you were relying on the local media.
If anyone needs to get a handle on the difference between Celtic and Sevco, then think of Adidas and then Castore.
That is an example of the financial gap between the two clubs.
Now that is a frightening prospect for the folks at Ibrox.
If Celtic deploy the resources at their disposal, then Sevco will not have a ghost of a chance this season.
Has the Spectre of Mr Craig Whyte (legally innocent), The Ghost of Christmas Past, turned up with a six figures £100,000 gift to invest?
The Ghostly shirts of an eight years dead, Blue Parrot, football club take to the field of play. The RFC cypher surmounted by five diddy stars appears every week as if summoned by a Victorian seance Madame. The dead badge of the dead club.
They are not The Gers, they are The Ghosts.
Spectres in the image of a long dead club.
Surely a seance would require deid folk? Oh right, I see what you did there! HH
Pressure mounting to get rid of Morelos…one wonders if there’s really any serious interest in him…
NOT for the bawbees being quoted in the press.
Phil, do you have any info on Celtic’s transfer moves? Really disappointed so far, totally get we don’t want to be wrecklessly spending in current climate but surely the board should be investing something given the importance of the season ahead.
But ,but,but spirits are high at Mordor Phil!
Sure you can buy a 40 ounce bottle of 90% proof Deludamol for a mere £16.90 at the popped up,sold out outlet on the Wurruld Famoush Albion Tarmac.
Bill Struth International will be signing the bottles personally I gather on their opening day at the Crumbledome.
HH Yes Very True but these sevco people will and doo try everything in there illegal power with no Q Asked cheating still going on lies lies all the time Watch this season of all ref’s and other teams get up too hh ktf
WELL Done Phil keep up the Good Hard Work hh ktf
‘IF Celtic deploy. …’ therein lies the possible problem.
“If Celtic deploy the resourses at their disposal” Indeed Phil, this is what is worrying to a lot of us.
Your final paragraph is spot on. But Celtic are reluctant to deploy their resources and Rangers* are willing to over stretch. Thus the gap is way narrower than it ought to be and 10 in a row is less likely than it ought to be.
Does MR C WHYTE still haunt the marble staircase Phil ?
We may indeed be considerably wealthier but going for a 33 year old free transfer, with a career scoring record of 1 goal every 4 games, makes us look as poverty stricken as sevco.
Incidentally, I was happy when we DIDN’T sign him from Hibs.
The key sentence is the last sentence. They seem unwilling to do so. If what you describe comes to pass at Ibrox we can only guess at the standard of player we will end up with.
That is a pretty big if Phil, we are looking at a striker from west ham, and also a 33 year old veteran, not chuffed tbh, we laughed at sevco signing Defoe and here we are doing the same thing,starting to worry about Edouard.
Aye, and an over-the-hill Defoe is a much classier player than Fletcher was at his peak.
The last sentence in your post says it all. This is a very big “if.”
If we don’t invest then I believe this league will be too close to call.
I also think it is likely that the league will once again be cut short and so it is so important that we don’t fall behind sevco.
There will be no clamour for null and void if they are on top.
The precedent on ending a season, was set last season. So if they get on top, don’t be surprised if their is a clamour for another lockdown at the first hint of a second wave. If they’re on top after half a dozen games they’ll want the season called.
There is a clamour.
Lawwell as history shows won’t break any bank, we will source cheap replacements and projects, say what you like about that mob at least they are planing for Morelos before he leaves, we are always on the back foot. There’s nothing in this article we don’t know about already Phil. Roofe is a decent player I hate to admit and despite what you think the signings bring them closer to us, we need to strengthen and keep Edouard and Mac Gregor but we won’t. One season as king said of success and the financial situation could easily reverse.
It won’t reverse, but it WILL be a fuckin sight closer. If they take the title this season and somehow qualify for the CL the following season, it will allow them to basically come off life-support.
PL needs to realise NOTHING matters this season but the TEN. If his penny-pinching costs us that I actually fear for his safety. It’s not just Sevco who have nutters in their support, we have more than our fair share as well. And it would not JUST be the nutters who saw that failure as a complete betrayal, it would be 99.999% of ALL supporters.
Do NOT take us for granted Peter!!