This just in: Celtic have qualified for Europe 2016-17

Had to do a double take, my first reaction was 'who the hell is Patrick Thistle?'

 

Titus Bramble's cousin.

Don, you'll have to explain your disdain for the Scots to me someday. It's not like they're the only small country with a crap league in Europe.

 

I'll shortcut the conversation, Ag. HD hates haggis (but on the flipside, I'd like to inquire about his inclincation [or not] for the beautiful brown liquor produced by the Scots).

 

...my other thought is this is a baited cast to float into the calm water ... just let it float through for a bit... to catch a certain whitesbhoy

 

You could say the same for Real & Barca in La Liga, Galatasaray & Fenerbahce in Turkey and Olympiakos & Panathanaikos in Greece. To a slightly lesser extent it applies to FC Copenhagen in Denmark. I haven't looked at the other Scandinavian countries, or Austria, Poland, etc, but it seems pretty much part & parcel to football in smaller countries and/or lesser leagues....and Spain.

Plus, Celtic & (previously) Rangers have been pretty much stuck in their league. UEFA rules have prevented them from moving to the Football League, unlike their Welsh counterparts.

Given Celtic's European success, I'm a little surprised that you don't seem to like or respect them. They were the first British team to make and win a European Cup Final. More impressively, they did it with a team composed entirely of local players, one of only 3 teams to accomplish that feat. And of the teams from smaller countries/leagues, they've punched above their weight as well as anyone.

Of course if Nev is right and the repeated digs over time have been to rile Christian up, then disregard all of the above.