VERY few people fancied Celtic’s chances of ending Rangers’ dominance of Scottish football and stopping their city rivals from making history by completing 10-In-A-Row at the start of the 1997/98 season.

The Parkhead club had finished the previous campaign trophyless and manager Tommy Burns had been sacked as manager as a result.

The departure of Jorge Cadete, Paolo Di Canio and Pierre van Hooijdonk, all hugely popular and prodigiously talented players, in the previous months had saddened supporters and made them fearful for the future.

Yet, Wim Jansen came in, signed Craig Burley, Jonathan Gould, Darren Jackson, Paul Lambert, Marc Rieper and a little-known striker called Henrik Larsson and promptly led the Glasgow giants to a historic League Cup and Premier Division double.

Jackie McNamara was an important member of Jansen’s side that term – he was named PFA Scotland Players’ Player of the Year by his fellow professionals at the end of it – and can remember how their prospects were dismissed when Cadete, Di Canio and Van Hooijdonk departed and Dutch coach Jansen took over.

So it is maybe no surprise that McNamara feels the exits of Kristoffer Ajer, Ryan Christie and Odsonne Edouard this summer will not prove any impediment to Celtic enjoying a successful campaign under Ange Postecoglou.

He has been impressed by the immediate impact that summer signings like Liel Abada, Kyogo Furuhashi and Joe Hart have made as well as the attacking football that Postecoglou has introduced and is interested to see what transpires in the coming months. 

“When Wim came in, I don’t think anybody gave us a chance of ending Rangers’ dominance,” he said. “We had lost Cadete, Di Canio and Van Hooijdonk. They had all gone. There was a big cloud hanging over the fans when that happened.

“Paolo was a unique character. I got on well with him. He was charismatic. He wasn’t shy! It was great for me to play with somebody like him. I feel very lucky to have played with the likes of Paul McStay, Henrik, Lubo and Chris Sutton in my 10 year spell at Celtic. I was very fortunate.

“Anyway, when Jorge, Paolo and Pierre left the fans were wanting to know who the next superstar going to be. They were asking: ‘Who is the next top player coming in?’ It was difficult for the club to replace them because they were big supporters’ favourites.

“Recruitment is always difficult at Celtic. I saw some unbelievable players come in when I was there. But when you go out on the park and there are 60,000 people there some of them can’t handle it.  But, of course, Henrik arrived. It was great to be involved.”

The former Scotland internationalist, who looks back on that memorable 1997/98 season in his excellent new autobiography His Name is McNamara, has been encouraged by Celtic’s displays in recent weeks.

His old club put their shaky start to the new season behind them in August. They recorded emphatic victories over Dundee and St Mirren in the Premiership, turned on the style against Hearts in a Premier Sports Cup tie and overcame AZ Alkmaar of the Netherlands over two legs to secure a place in the Europa League group stages.

They also performed well for long spells of the Old Firm match at Ibrox, created several scoring opportunities and were unlucky not to earn a draw against Rangers away.

“Celtic are in transition,” said McNamara. “But I can see improvement from where they were pre-season at quite a quick rate. They look a lot fitter, they look a lot sharper, there seems to be a lot of freedom about their play.

“There is a structure there, but within the structure there is a freedom for movement. The left back, for example, will sometimes come into the middle of the park.

“Yes, there is a vulnerability defensively at times. But the manager’s philosophy is to attack, which I like and Celtic fans like. If he wins 3-2 every week I don’t think anybody will be complaining. Entertaining fans is a big thing. I think that sometimes that is lost in football, entertainment. People just want trophies.

“I think the new manager has come across quite well in the media. Particularly how he speaks about his players. He is a good fit so far. He looks decent. Both he and his team will only get better with time and games.”

McNamara, who has made a remarkable recovery from the brain aneuryism he suffered last February, now works with the Consillium Sports Group representing and mentoring both aspiring and experienced professional players.

He thinks Celtic has signed well and is optimistic they can shine without Ajer, Christie and Edouard, who have joined Brentford, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace respectively for combined fees of over £30m, this season.

“Football is different now,” he said. “The gulf between England and Scotland is great. They can attract players. When a player has got the chance to go to England it is difficult for Celtic to compete. The salaries are so much greater down there.

“But Celtic know what they are in that sense. It is all about bringing in players at the right time, selling them at the right time and reinvesting in quality. From what I have seen of the new boys, they have done that.”

The best of the bunch so far has been Furuhashi. The Japanese forward, a £4.6m capture from Vissel Kobe in his homeland, has netted seven times in nine appearances. But McNamara feels the 26-year-old offers Celtic far more than goals. 

“So far, he has been excellent,” he said. “And not just because of his goals either. His desire, his energy, his willingness to chase down balls, have impressed me. In the Dundee game he scored a hat-trick, but he was still chasing down full-backs.

“The fans can see that. They can see that he is somebody who is enjoying himself, wants to entertain, wants to help them team, wants to do more than score goals. That sort of enthusiasm is infectious in the team.”

 

His Name Is McNamara by Jackie McNamara with Gerry McDade is published by Pitch Publishing.