Celtic: In General - 18/02/2026

The late, late show.

Victory often goes to those who can withstand the most.

Considering the variety of challenges surrounding this understaffed, brow beaten and change-fatigued set of players, have had to endure, we might be doing quite well.

You certainly can’t accuse them of giving up.

Coming back on Sunday can only calcify our resilience. When added to late goals against Dundee and Livingston, it corroborates the fact that Celtic have an inherent ability to pull themselves off the canvas.

It’s something we can’t say with any certainty about the other two title contenders.

With 12 games to play, we’re getting close to crunch time.

At 2:45pm on Sunday, things looked close to being over. A catastrophic first half, which laid bare all the frailties of the team, looked to have not condemned us mathematically, but handed the initiative to others at the worst possible time. A 2-0 deficit is not unassailable; however, the performance of both teams respectively, made a turnaround seem unrealistic.

There was feeling that this had been coming. Bad news was in the post.

In never arrived though. Fast forward to 3:53pm; relief and rapture, rang load from the Celtic support. Julian Araujo’s late, late goal caused utter bedlam in the away end, to the point that the Mexican himself couldn’t resist joining in.

Regardless of how bad Celtic are, you never really believe it’s over, while the clock still ticks.

Never fall for a loan player.

I was already – like many others – all in on Julian Araujo. I have reached this age without ever getting a tattoo but my newfound attachment to both him and Mark Fotheringham, means this might change soon.

He has that lovely knack of timing in the tackle. A full back often beats themselves by being too eager to win the ball, too aggressive, thus making up the opposing winger’s mind for them. Stealing the ball is a real skill and we have ourselves a conman.

Araujo has the holy grail of attributes for a defender: anticipation. His pace helps as well.

On the ball, he has an effective quality, without being swashbuckling – up to this point anyway.

Regardless of tangible footballing stuff though, he has the underrated gift of enthusiasm. The alacrity of someone who trusts themselves wholeheartedly. Terms like hunger, desire and determination are vague but these are the soft skills that help to embellish the technique, which underpins a player’s game.

Like many of you, I think I’ve watched him dancing in the stands about 100 times. Sitting grinning like an idiot at the sheer fun of it all. Happy for us and him, that he has found a home.

Let’s make it permanent.

Sayonara

It didn’t have to end like this. The Japanese chapter at the club is coming to its end with a soft impotent indifference.

I’m often not bothered by a player cupping their ears, or such like behaviour. It usually means they’ve just scored and in turn, have done a decent day’s work. Reo Hatate and Daizen Maeda look completely detached from Celtic’s current challenges. As if they’ve washed their hands of accountability and are trying to separate from the herd. Hatate has been working remotely for weeks now to the point we’re not sure he’s even online.

Turn him off and on again.

Stuck in the middle.

The unfortunate injury to Arne Engels means that we have a problem in the centre of the park. Whilst not everyone’s cup of tea, it is a huge loss in a vital part of the team.

The options for replacing him, seem inadequate and throw our recruitment failures, into sharp focus. The idea that the club should be commended for rejecting a huge bid for the Belgian is laughable; their failure to go shopping means that once again, the cupboards are bare.

AOC’s quality has been evident in his cameos so far, but it remains to be seen, whether he will be durable enough to contribute substantially throughout the remainder of the season.

Hatate has became a liability and a burden.

This leaves the unfancied and lesser spotted Paulo Bernardo. A player who needs an arm round the shoulder, and at the same time, put in a head lock.

He’s never became the sum of his parts Bernardo; his promise has fizzled out, along with his long-term future at the club. Reductively, I feel his physique makes him the most suitable candidate to replace Engels for the time being. He has previously shown a decent ability to win duels and recover the ball, and I feel these attributes are sorely lacking in the side. They’re certainly not the strengths of Hatate and Nygren.

His skill set is hard to define but another body is needed in the mix now. It’s time to bring him in from the cold.

Stuttgart(H)

This game has been given little of the fanfare which would usually surround a semi glamourous knock-out tie. That may be understandable when domestic matters, and the relentless schedule we are about to embark on, are considered.

We are here now though.

Sure, these Thursday fixtures can take their toll, but advancement in Europe is a large part of the opprobrium directed at the club. Winning and progression would be a massive shot in the arm going forward.

Hopefully, minus the Green Brigade, the stadium can organically muster the noise and colour, needed to push the players over the edge.