31/12/2003
16:59:50

Pearson's move to Celtic on hold Celtic and Motherwell still have 'issues' to resolve before Stephen Pearson can join his boyhood favourites. The 21-year-old is poised to leave Fir Park for Parkhead after the transfer window opens at midnight tonight, despite being courted by Everton and Blackburn Rovers. One of the main stumbling blocks to the deal with Celtic is the possibility of Well boss Terry Butcher taking loan players in exchange. Motherwell are still officially in administration leaving the Fir Park manager with his hands tied financially when the transfer window reopens. A Fir Park source said: "One of the main issues is loan players for Motherwell, which has been talked about. "Terry has been looking at a range of players with a view to one or two being on loan." Hoops' midfielder Jamie Smith has been touted as a possible loanee to the Lanarkshire side.

31/12/2003
16:00:59

OBE FOR HOOPS BOSS Celtic manager Martin O'Neill has been awarded an OBE for his services to British football over the last year. He has been recognised in Britain's honours list for 2003. After Celtic's UEFA Cup run from last season, it is another well deserved award for the club as a whole, who already hold UEFA and FIFA awards for Fair Play. Congratulations to Martin for the award

29/12/2003
13:18:40

BARCA WINNING THE RACE TO SIGN HENRIK Radio Clyde today reporting that Barcelona look to have won the race to sign Celtic legend Henrik Larsson when he leaves the club in the summer.

24/12/2003
13:26:29

Gray day for Michael. Sunderland manager Mick McCarthy suspects Celtic will send Michael Gray back their way in the next few days. Parkhead manager Martin O'Neill took the former England international wing-back on loan with a view to making it permanent. But Gray has failed to force his way into the Celtic first team on a regular basis and was given a torrid time in Lyon recently. The Sunderland boss wanted to offload one of the club's biggest earners but it appears that his future does not lie at Parkhead. "It looks very much like Michael is on his way back to us," McCarthy told the Scottish Daily Express. "I don't know what the future holds for Michael but it certainly isn't at Celtic. "They have made no moves or shown any inclination that they want to keep him so he will be coming back to Sunderland."

22/12/2003
17:50:21

Lennon likely to serve ban Neil Lennon's two-match suspension looks likely to stand despite Celtic's appeal to Uefa. Martin O'Neill branded the ban "crazy" after Lennon was punished for his bust-up with Swiss referee Urs Meier in Lyon. He promptly sent a letter of appeal to European football's governing body but that is unlikely to stop the Northern Ireland midfielder missing the Uefa Cup tie with Czech side Teplice. A Uefa spokesperson said: "Celtic have made an appeal and it's likely to be heard on January 29 or 30 when the next appeals body comes together. "The club have to pay a fee for the appeal but it's unlikely that the original ruling will be increased or overturned." Meanwhile, O'Neill is hopeful of Henrik Larsson being fit to face Hibernian on Saturday despite an injury which has plagued him since last Thursday's CIS Insurance Cup defeat to Hibernian. "He is very sore at the moment," he said. "He declared himself fit to play [against Motherwell on Sunday] and we wanted him to play. "He wasn't really right but we are hoping with a week's rest he should be okay for Hibs."

22/12/2003
07:38:17

TENNENT'S SCOTTISH CUP.- 3rd rd draw: Dunfermline v Dundee Utd, Raith Rov v Kilmarnock, Celtic v Ross Co, East Fife v Queen of the Sth, Hearts v Berwick Rgrs, Morton or Vale of Leithen v Partick Th, St Johnstone v Motherwell, Stranraer or Hamilton Acad v Cowdenbeath, Clyde v Gretna, Livingston v Montrose or Threave Rov, Aberdeen v Dundee, Inverness Cal-Thistle v Brechin C, Ayr Utd v Falkirk, St Mirren v Airdrie Utd, Hibernian v Rangers, Arbroath v Alloa or Spartans. To be played on the weekend of Jan 10-11.

20/12/2003
08:10:16

Celtic To Appeal Lennon Ban Celtic are considering an appeal after Neil Lennon was given a two-match suspension for clashing with a referee. The incident occurred during Celtic's Champions League defeat at the hands of Lyon, and the ban applies to all European games. Midfielder Lennon expressed his anger and frustration at the decision of Swiss referee Urs Meier to award Lyon a late penalty that cost Celtic the match – and with it group-stage qualification. Lennon will now miss Celtic's two Uefa Cup ties against Teplice - unless his appeal is successful. A Uefa spokesman said: "We can confirm that Neil Lennon received a two-match ban after what happened in Lyon. "The Uefa control and disciplinary departments imposed the ban for his improper conduct to the referee at the end of that match. "The club can make an appeal, but that must reach the offices here by Sunday." A Celtic spokesman told BBC Sport that they are considering an appeal.

17/12/2003
19:39:30

De Boer: (HE’S HAVING A LAUGH) Rangers Can Retain Title Ronald de Boer believes Rangers still has what it takes to retain the Scottish Premier League title. The Light Blues are eight points adrift of league leaders Celtic and they have already dropped vital points to their Glasgow rivals following the 1-0 home defeat in the Old Firm derby in October. The Ibrox outfit's form is faltering following two straight home defeats to Panathinaikos in the Champions League and Dunfermline in the SPL and injuries to key players at crucial periods haven't helped their cause. But the 30-year-old insists Gers still has the belief, but they realise that they have to start winning over the festive period to gain momentum for the all-important return derby at Parkhead in the New Year. The Dutch international told Rangers News: "We are still capable of winning the title again and we all believe we can. If you don't believe, you will never win trophies at any level. We are behind in the SPL at the moment but we have to make sure we don't drop any more points to other teams. We have to keep winning over the festive period. "The spirit is very high here and I am sure we can have a nice season. There is a direct spot in the Champions League for the SPL title-holders so everyone knows how important the rest of the season will be. Losing at Parkhead in January would be bad for us and it would be very difficult to win the title but not impossible. "So it would be nice to get at least a draw, although winning would be great. We are not as bad a team as people are making out and a lot of our bad results are to do with injuries. In the majority of games this season the spine of the team has been missing." The former Barcelona player is confident of making a comeback from a knee injury for the Old Firm clash on January 3. "My knee feels fine at the moment. I won't say I will definitely miss the Old Firm game but I also can't predict I will be 100% fit to play at Parkhead," he added.

14/12/2003
13:19:51

Hoops hit by two grand fine by UEFA Celtic fined 5,000 CHF (2,267 GBP) by Uefa for the fan that ran onto the pitch in the Bayern game. Bayern (CHF 14,000) , Lyon (CHF 4,000) and Anderlecht (CHF 5,000)were also fined by Uefa. UEFA will donate all fines to humanitarian organizations and educational projects.

12/12/2003
16:23:52

UEFA CUP ODDS UEFA CUP ODDS Following the draw for the UEFA Cup, bookmakers William Hill make Roma the 9/2 favourites to win. Hills then offer: 11/2 Barcelona, 13/2 Inter Milan, Valencia; 8/1 Liverpool, 14/1 Celtic, Newcastle, Parma; 16/1 Marseille, 25/1 Benfica, 28/1 Besiktas, Galatasary, PSV Eindhoven; 33/1 Bordeaus, Mallorca, Villarreal; 40/1 Auxerrre, Club Brugges, Panathinaikos; 50/1 Perugia, Rosenborg, Spartak Moscow; 66/1 Brondby, Sochaux; 80/1 Genclerbirligi, 100/1 Gaziantepspor, Teplice; 125/1 Groclin Grodzisk, 150/1 Debrecen, FC Dnipro; 250/1 Levski Sofia, Valerenga.

09/12/2003
08:33:48

Colin Healy in horrific leg break Ex Celt Colin Healy suffered a horrific leg break in last night's Coventry v Sunderland. I'm sure all Celtic fans will wish Colin a full and speedy recovery.

09/12/2003
08:28:03

Bobo Fit For Lyon Celtic defender Bobo Balde will be fit for the Champions League clash against Lyon tomorrow night. The French centre half has recovered from a back injury picked up in the weekend victory over Livingston. It's a welcome boost to Martin O'Neill who's been robbed of the services of Jackie McNamara and Didier Agathe through injury. Alan Thompson misses the game through suspension.

05/12/2003
21:20:52

Lyon warm up with home win. Celtic's Champion's League opponents Lyon warmed up with a 2-1 home league win over Metz on Friday night.

04/12/2003
15:31:31

Celtic game gets green light Celtic confirmed on Thursday that their Champions League Group A showdown in Lyon would go ahead next Wednesday despite the floods in the south of France. Hoops officials contacted their opponents, who they need a point against to qualify for the knock-out stages, on Thursday morning and were assured that the game was on unless the situation deteriorates. A spokesperson for the club said: "The game is on unless something changes before next week's game. We spoke to them and they assured us there was no problem with the pitch and the game was okay to go ahead as planned."

01/12/2003
14:35:30

LARSSON NAMED IN UEFA HALL OF FAME Celtic and Sweden hero Henrik Larsson has won a place in the Uefa Hall of Fame. He was named as Sweden’s greatest player of the last 50 years to help celebrate the golden jubilee of Uefa in 2004. Europe's governing body asked each of the 52 member countries to nominate their best player. Celtic’s King of Kings join’s such greats as Dino Zoff, Alfredo Di Stefano, Ferenc Puskas and Eusebio

01/12/2003
09:32:15

TEST

30/11/2003
23:22:11

Celtic on rise to G14 elite Celtic could soon be invited to join the powerful G14 group of European elite clubs, according to Bayern Munich general manager Uli Hoeness. The Hoops' recent European performances, which saw them reach the UEFA Cup final last year and draw with Bayern in the Champions League last week, have raised the club's profile. The G14 clubs include Manchester United and Real Madrid and possess a powerful influence on the running of the European game. Hoeness said: 'They were in last season's UEFA Cup final and that was tremendous but, in all honesty, it is the Champions League that really matters in Europe. 'They are doing well in that tournament and we at Bayern have seen that for ourselves.' Celtic will become the first Scottish club to qualify from a Champions League group if they get at least a draw in their final game in Lyon. The group is so tight, however, that no-one is yet assured of qualification - and Celtic could even finish bottom and crash out of Europe altogether should they lose in France. But success in that final game could turn out to be the key to joining the G14 elite. Hoeness added: 'They really need to deliver for two or three seasons in the Champions League. 'If they can achieve that consistency then I believe they would be entitled to come to the G14 group.' For the first time, this season's Scottish champions go straight into the group stage of next year's Champions League and Celtic currently possess a five -point advantage over second place Rangers.