Ange Postecoglou

Ange Postecoglou issued a prickly response when asked about Livingston manager David Martindale's comments on squad strength this afternoon.

The Celtic manager was not too happy to discuss the Lions' boss and his thoughts on Rangers' squad depth and then Michael Beale's claims that they were on par with the Scottish champions. Postecoglou, clearly irked by the line of questioning, joked he wishes he'd taken another week off media duties following last week's decision to allow John Kennedy to meet the press.


The Hoops boss, asked about Martindale's claims, moaned: "What's probably clear is I should have taken another week off.




Mate, I don't sit there listening to other manager's press conferences. There's 10 other managers in the league or whatever and if you think I spend my time sitting there wondering if each of them have something to say about...

"Ask me about Aberdeen tomorrow, ask me about the game tomorrow, ask me about our training.

"But asking me about what another manager has said in reference to another game altogether is just not on my radar so why I'd need to comment on it I've got no idea."

 

"Ange, who was clearly irked" these clowns will do almost anything to get a rise out the big guy

 

Ange Postecoglou says he's not interested in anything Michael Beale had to say about Rangers' chances of catching his team.

The Celtic boss spoke to the press as his side get set to take on Aberdeen looking to take another step towards reclaiming the Premiership title. With Rangers in action at the same time, they will know a win can take them as many as 12 points clear of their rivals on the other side of the city.

Ahead of the game, Postecoglou confirmed that Kyogo is all clear despite an injury scare while David Turnbull will miss out with an injury. And after clearing up that situation, he was asked to address Beale's quotes which suggested the title will "probably" not be heading to Ibrox. Speaking when Beale was appointed, the boss said he was more interested in what he was having for his dinner than goings on across the city.



And when asked if Beale's comments were "interesting or surprising", he said: "Neither, mate. I haven't heard the comments but the original point is probably the most accurate, that I don't really pay any interest to it

 

Why are the SMSM constantly trying to ruffle feathers, every day there is a story about 'he said this' when you can quite obviously see that ange give not a * about it.

 

He looked like he couldn't be arsed today.

 

Sevco media busting a gut to try to get Ange to engage with Has Moleman's love letter to his own ego.

One again, he shuts that * down in an instant.

But it's clear he's viewing these questions with less patience.

I can see a pre presser caveat given to the press from now on;

"Mr Postecoglou will not be answering any questions regarding the thoughts and opinions of other managers or players. Any attempt to field such questions will result in immediate removal from the press room ".

 

Its unreal...Actually trying to bait him into an argument or to show himself up.

He is 100% spot on.....Its about the Sheep tomorrow, nothing else.

Its so pitiful to see these clowns attempt to antagonize him or goad him, just for headlines...and then he gets dragged into the gutter and is no more than Beale and Martindale.

 

So desperate for Ange to respond and make the huns feel relevant.

 

That's how you deal with this nonsense.

 

the original point is probably the most accurate.....translates to....championees

 

Everything Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou had to say ahead of his side's Scottish Premiership clash against Aberdeen.

Any update on Kyogo?

I'll cover the whole thing. Injury wise Kyogo [Furuhashi] is fine. He trained this week and had a session on Thursday and Friday. He is good to go. The only one from last week is David Turnbull who got a bit of a knock. He'll miss the Aberdeen game. That's it. Everyone else is okay.

I know that you say that you don't pay attention to comments and you focus on your own game but Michael Beale has said the chances of catching you guys in the league are unlikely. Does that interest you or surprise you to hear the Rangers manager say that?

Neither mate. I haven't heard the comments. I think your original point is probably accurate. I don't pay any interest to it.

What do you make of Aberdeen? They don't exactly have their problems to seek in recent weeks and they are still without a manager.

I think it is always a challenge when you are meeting a team with a new manager. Barry [Robson] has had a couple of games now. In the first game, they had a man sent off really early and they got a good result and a good performance in their last game. Then they had the weekend off so he has had a chance to work with the team. We have got to be ready for that. We know at their best they are a very good side and have some good individual players who can hurt you, particularly in the attacking sense. At the same time, our form has been pretty good, especially at home for a while now. If we start the game well and play to our tempo then we will be hard to stop.

You talk about that form and you have the League Cup final next weekend. Is it a case of one game at a time or do you have your mind on the final as well?

You can't have your mind on the final when you have a game on Saturday because our most important game is the next one. We want to get three points and continue our strong league form. We want to make sure that we finish the season really strong and stronger than we started and so far we have done that. Post-break we have been really good and stronger than we were in the first part of the year and we want to continue that. Our focus is certainly on Aberdeen.






How much of a boost is it to have Kyogo back for the big and important games coming up?

I think I said after the St Mirren game I was pretty relaxed about it. He had a pretty similar one last year and last year he missed one session and played the next game. It wasn't anything that we were overly concerned about. From our perspective, if he wasn't right, he wasn't right. We move on and deal with it. He missed a session on Tuesday and he has trained the last few days so there are no issues.

We saw a healthy set of financial reports and big profits being posted. What does that mean for you in the football department?

I'm not one to get too excited about balance sheets. My responsibility is how we invest our hard-earned funds that are brought to this club by our supporters and the people who back us. That's my role and my basic accounting knowledge also makes me understand that they are interim results. I am in constant dialogue with Michael [Nicholson] and Chris McKay and I am well aware of the position the club is in. I am well aware of the parameters that I work within. My role within that is to make sure that whatever we use that money for whether that be in the squad or infrastructure or staffing or resourcing all those kinds of things we spend it wisely. That's where the importance of my role comes into it.

In your experience of coming up against a club like Aberdeen who are without a new boss do you expect them to do something different or do you expect to face a similar Aberdeen team to the one you played before Christmas?

I don't think having somebody in charge on an interim basis is the issue. With every new manager whether they are interim or permanent there is always a change. Every manager does things a little bit differently. They have only had a couple of games with Barry and the first one they had a man sent off so you discount that from an analysis perspective and all you have to work off is one game and they've had a couple of weeks to work on things. We prepare the same way for every team and we prepare for them to be at their best. We prepare for all possibilities in terms of the way they are likely to play and the way they are likely to set up. The basic foundation of that is that we always reflect on it is important that we concentrate on our football and make sure we are really strong in the principles that we have because when we do that irrespective of what the opposition brings we are a hard team to stop.




A Scottish Cup quarter-final against Hearts, what did you make of that draw?

It is a quarter-final of the cup against a good team away from home and I haven't given that another moment thought since the draw was made.

We have been reading about a possible tour of Japan post-season. Are you able to tell us anything about that? Is that something you would welcome?

No not really. I am sort of out of those discussions. I come into it when there is actually something to talk about. We had a really good tour of Australia. We are now looking at the planning for the summer break and there are a couple of things in play. Is it a part of the world I would love us to go to? Absolutely because I have spent time there. I have brought quite a few players from that side of the world. In terms of where the club is at other people are in charge of those discussions and I only get involved if we get to the stage where we have got to plan things.





You are always appreciative of the support you get from the Celtic supporters and it seems the Green Brigade are looking to enlarge the standing support at Celtic Park. Is that something you would also welcome?

That is something that I have given no thought to be fair. I pride myself on trying to be as knowledgeable as I can and across as many areas as I can but the Green Brigade's thoughts are not at the forefront of my mind right now. I love the atmosphere at Celtic Park and I am not alone in that. I think anyone who plays there knows it is a fantastic experience and atmosphere and that is generated by our supporters and nobody else. It is a credit to them I love being involved in the football club but beyond that whatever each individual or groups want to do with that is beyond me.

What are your thoughts on David Martindale's comments that Rangers are on par with Celtic?

What's clear is I should have taken another week off, to be fair. I do not sit there listening to other managers' press conferences. There are 11 other managers in the league. If you think I sit there listening to what they have to say about... ask me about the game tomorrow or training. But asking me about what another manager said about another game altogether is just not on my radar. I have no idea why I would need to comment on that.

Thoughts on the January signings?

We got them in fairly early which was good. Alistair [Johnston] has already made a meaningful contribution which is good. Oh [Hyeon-gyu] is now getting some game time. Tomoki Iwata and Yuki Kobayashi are training really well. I have not been able to give them significant game time at the moment. I have no doubt they will get some significant game time between now and the end of the season, given their training. They are also in good physical condition, which means if they get an opportunity then they are good to go. We are in a good period right now in terms of not having many injuries but I am in no doubt that over the next two or three weeks, we will have to change things up. Those guys should then get some game time.

Is the squad at its strongest now, as it has been since you arrived?

I think I said that coming out of the window, the squad was in its healthiest state since I arrived. I am happy with the squad and I think we have a strong squad that will hopefully be resilient unless something drastic happens with injuries. I think you have seen with our performances that whether it is players coming on or starting and they are contributing at a high level. We are coming up to a time of the season where every game is of consequence and everyone is contributing. We are in good shape.



You have scored 40 goals in your last 13 games. What do you put that down to?

A number of things. The break gave us a good chance to recharge and there is no doubt we benefitted from the performances of the players at the World Cup. The guys who were there have been real key contributors. Those things have helped. Our football is a lot stronger than at the start of the season. Not only are we scoring goals but we are also minimising the opposition's threat against us. That has probably been the biggest change since the break. We are scoring more goals and have been more solid defensively. Our pressing and counter-pressing has allowed to go on with that framework and score goals. In a game like last week, it comes down to the mentality of the lads. A lot of people talk about the goals that get us results. Last week we scored twice after 90 minutes. We did not have to as it was dead and buried. When that is our mindset it helps us achieve our goals.

Is it satisfying to see a goalscoring threat all over the pitch?

It is. Scoring the volume of goals we do, if you only have one sort of avenue then the opposition can set up to stop you if those avenues are of a limited nature. I think people have seen us score from multiple places including set pieces which people do not seem to mention we are number one in. All these things help and we are able to overcome teams. We are starting games well and finishing games well which is helping us to assert our dominance. In the big games that is going to be a positive thing for us.

 

https://youtube.com/shorts/Ohip9_CJy34?feature=share

ange clearly doesn't like passing it back haha

 

He really did look like he couldn't be * today

 

Ange Postecoglou on Celtic crowd numbers, Ally McCoist's offer to drive him to Leeds, and the only stat that matters
Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou has maintained that the numbers flocking to watch his team provide him with greater job satisfaction than any silverware totals ever could.



The treble-chasing Scottish champions’ encounter at home to Aberdeen on Saturday afternoon sold-out weeks ago. It marks the third time in four Premiership outings that every seat will have been snapped up for a league fixture at CelticPark. A period during which almost 80,000 were attracted to the stadium for two Scottish Cup ties – crowd returns for such one-off ties not previously witnessed this millennium.

The clearest indicators of how Postecoglou’s high-octane, free-scoring playing style is proving box office dynamite for the Celtic faithful, the Australian prizes this above all. “For me that’s the most important thing. Ultimately that’s our biggest measure,” said the Celtic manager, whose side will be looking to retain a nine-point advantage in the title race by extending their 100 per cent home league record to 13 games.




Of course trophies are what this football club is about and that’s my role – to bring success. But the biggest encouragement or rewards we can get is people wanting to come and watch their football club. I don’t take that for granted. No one in the club does. Even cup games, it’s a choice sometimes whether they come or not but they are coming in record numbers.




They are not just appreciating the fact that we are winning games of football. I think they are appreciating how the boys are playing and they are excited by that. For me, that’s the greatest reward. It’s always been my barometer during my whole career. Fans will tell me how I’m going, more than the table or anything else. We can be winning games of football but if our supporters don’t like what they see then I’ll get that feedback for sure. For me, it’s very rewarding that they are not just appreciating the fact that we’re winning games of football but they are enjoying the way we are doing it.”




Celtic’s apparent unerring capacity for registering victories in the domestic environment is wearying those beyond the club’s camp on the back of 27 wins, a draw and only one defeat in 29 such outings. Amidst the speculation linking Postecoglou with Leeds United, Livingston manager David Martindale joked he had already sent his counterpart’s CV to Elland Road, while Rangers legend and television pundit Ally McCoist said light-heartedly he would drive the 57-year-old to England himself. Asked if he took this joshing as a compliment, the Celtic manager said, tongue-in-cheek: “I wouldn’t struggle for a lift, mate… I’ve got plenty of people who’d take me, or I could drive myself. Listen, again it’s all stuff that’s not on my radar. My measure is the people who love this football club. That’s the only feedback I’m looking for. They’ll tell me how I’m going more than anyone else. That’s always going to be my barometer.”

A week before the bitter rivals face off in the Viaplay League Cup final, Rangers manager Michael Beale has stressed the importance of that showpiece is in part framed by the “low probability” of overhauling an in-form Celtic in the title race. Postecoglou chooses not to engage with that assessment. ‘We’ve got to win tomorrow, mate,” he said. “That’s all. I’ve said before that my role in all of that is that we want to finish the season strong – stronger than how we started. If we win all of our games, we don’t have to worry about anything else or anyone else or what anyone else is saying, or forecasting in terms of percentages. If we win every game between now and the end of the year, here’s a percentage for you … 100 per cent we will win the league. So why would we think beyond that?”

 

The rags spin it any way they want, so its futile trying to entertain them, like someone previously posted there should be a list of no go areas, ange is bored of it already, you can see that.

The moral compass of the SMSM firmly points in the direction of Mordor, which they lap up like total jobbie lickers, waiting for every morsel of * to drip off that * Beales chin.

 

Ramped it up to 5 hun nothing stories. But most ange pressers is always a negative, antagonising spin. Was the same with lenny. Painting the huns have wound me up *. Ange has been excellent at pressers

 

Agreed Callum Davidson did a much better job with the resources he had to work with.