consolation cup still better than watching the bill

Following another agonising failure to qualify for the last 16 of the Champions League what would an audit of Celtic, in playing terms, show?

Like many, I felt that over the 90 minutes Lyon were the better team. But nobody will ever convince me that Swiss referee Urs Meier was correct in his intepretation of the Bobo challenge in the dying minutes, namely that it was deliberate handball and therefore deserving of a penalty. Meier had a poor game and would never have given an equivalent decision had a similar incident happened in the home side's penalty box.

Had we lost to a perfectly legitimate third goal this season's hard luck medicine might have been a little easier to swallow. The fact that two of the teams beaten en route to Seville last year - Celta Vigo and Stuttgart - made it into the last 16 shows how frustratingly close we are to regularly competing at the top level. Nevertheless, though we again came within the proverbial ba' hair of the knockout phase, the harsh truth is that once again the Hoops undoubtedly lacked the wee bit extra that is needed to progress to the next level in Europe.

Looking at the current composition of the team there is a distinct feeling that we are short at the back. To begin with the last line of defence, the Lyon tie has sparked off a debate over who should be handed the gloves - preferably somebody who won't drop them. Even Hedman apologists are beginning to come round to the view that Rab Douglas is better (less bad?) than the big Swede. Having said that, neither are convincing enough to suggest that they can regularly perform with the necessary level of competence and reliability at Champions League level over the course of six matches. The problem here, of course, is if you look around the groups you'll find that there are relatively few outstanding 'keepers. An even tinier list could be drawn up of those who would realistically be available for Celtic to buy.

Balde is our best and most consistent defender but it's becoming increasingly obvious that we urgently need to acquire a couple of others to play beside him. Mjallby's contract expires in the Summer so his time at Celtic Park looks as if it could be drawing to a close. Valgaeren seems to have slipped into a spiral of decline over the last couple of years so it could be time to move him on and replace with someone better. Laursen, so far, hasn't shown anything to suggest he is the answer and both Kennedy and Crainey, while showing promise, are still not consistently good enough to play against top European opponents. McNamara is another whose deficiencies at the top level are frequently exposed thanks to his alarming propensity to gives precious possession away far too easily.

All successful teams have rock solid defences. In European terms, Celtic's is still a wee bit deficient. We might be able to emulate the top outfits by scoring two goals away from home (think about Juventus, Porto and Lyon) but in those three games the defence leaked nine goals.

Midfield will also need refreshed in the near future. Lennon and Lambert are coming toward the end of their Parkhead shelf-lives. Petrov is another who to be stagnating. To cash in on him might realise a reasonable sum of money which the manager could reinvest. Thompson is a sound professional and Agathe also does a good job, best illustrated when he is not playing. His crossing is poor but I feel when he plays that the team has a better shape. Miller is promising but still a long way from being the finished article. He's better going forward than defending but is a player of great potential. We can only hope he realises that potential with Celtic.

It's clearly time to call time for the likes of Petta and Sylla who are both no doubt drawing large wages while contributing next to nothing. Up front (and wherever else he gets picked) Sutton is playing like a Man possessed. He has been outstanding so far this season. Larsson is obviously away next summer and given the speculation surrounding Hartson I wonder if we should cash in on him as well during the January transfer window. What of the fringe players? Maloney still flatters to deceive and is as far away from a regular place in the first team as he was eighteen months ago and every time he does start a game he almost invariably finds himself substituted. It's one thing looking good at Celtic Park when you come on with 20 minutes to play against a team who are already well beat. It's something else to do it week in week out from the start of a game.

As far as prospects go it might have been worth making a more wholehearted attempt to land McFadden. Of the other youngsters, only time will tell. Both Wallace and Beattie seem promising but it's early days for them both. There has been so much hype over the years regarding our promising youngsters that it's difficult not to be cynical about how many will end up being good enough. Jamie Smith is one who looks as if he's never going to be a regular starter and it might be best all round if he moves on.

All of which suggests that we have an ageing team that will soon be in transition and it's about time MON started to introduce some new blood. Pearson in January would be a reasonable start. He's young and has ability even if, like some of our own promising youngsters, he still has a lot to learn.

One valid criticism that can be levelled at MON is to ask why he doesn't pick up new player via Bosmans? He also complains about not having enough cash to spend but during his three years in charge it's difficult to recall him signing too many decent players for zilch on Bosmans. Why should he have to when we should be spending all the money we haven't got in the bank?

I actually have a degree of sympathy for the board with regard to the amount of money made available to the manager to spend in the transfer market. Given the appalling financial state that Scottish football is in I'd have thought they should be praised not condemned for running a financially viable business. Sometimes you get the feeling that Brian Quinn and Co take a more long term strategic view than MON.

Nevertheless, given the ineptitude of Rangers we should win the league this season which puts the Hoops straight into the group stages of the Champions League next season. With the departure of Larsson and others - and their high wages - it's surely time to free up funds for MON (or whoever is the manager next season) to invest in some new quality players.

Despite the inevitable speculation about the future of Martin O'Neill after Lyon (Liverpool is understandable, but bloody Spurs? What would that say about his level of ambition if he went to White Hart Lane??) we all want him to stay and rebuild the current team and hopefully take us on to more success at home and in Europe in the next few years.

Maybe he could start by steering his side to another run in the UEFA Cup. Second prize maybe, but an infinitely preferable way to spend your midweek than the Huns can look forward to in the new year, although looking on the bright side, at least they can catch up with all the episodes of The Bill they've missed recently.

While the result in France was a kick in the privates, the immediate future is far from gloomy gloomy. The current team lacks that bit extra required to do well in Europe but we are getting closer. The big test of MON's management is how to rebuild the current ageing squad while continuing to win domestic trophies and compete at that higher European level. Hopefully he will stick around long enough to successfully do that.

GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE
and a Gentleman