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Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou urges his stars to be free in the park.
Off the pitch, he says the chance to get out of lockdown, savor dinners, and spend time together helps create a bond that invigorates his rebuilding.
Postecoglou must have slept with a whole team.
A total of 12 new players have come to Glasgow from all over the world with a new manager to face a new league.
The Aussie jokes that there’s a book in there, but his opening chapter at Celtic is getting more and more enjoyable to read week by week.
This has not been easy. While the language of football breaks down many barriers, being able to be a unified team away from the game is also an important factor when building a new squad.
Postecoglou could not have counted on that last season.
As he knew he was being kept inside by Covid protocols while managing in Japan, his teammates couldn’t build good relationships outside of work.
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Normalcy is returning and being able to share time away from Lennoxtown and Parkhead to increase the friendliness, the benefits are obvious.
Photos of Joe Hart and Josip Juranovic making the rounds on social media are an example of this and with seasoned leaders like the keeper and Callum McGregor setting another example in the locker room, the Postecoglou team bond on and off the ground.
He said, “It’s part of the process. In any environment that is generally driven by your experienced players and how they behave.
“It’s not about words, it’s about actions and behavior. If they do, the rest will follow.
“I know from my own experience in Japan that it was a difficult time last year with Covid. It was difficult to create this team unity because the guys had to go home and shut themselves up.
“It would have been very difficult at Celtic last season as well, so at least now we can enjoy the freedoms we have. The players themselves must take credit for the spirit. Sometimes when you’re together in adversity, it binds you together.
“We have 12 new players, but even some of those who were here, like Tony Ralston and Adam Montgomery, hadn’t played much football at Celtic.
“At the start of the season they had to be resilient because the results and performances were inconsistent.
“But through this adversity, if you stick together, it creates a bond between the group. That’s what happened and also the leadership of guys like Cal, Joe, Niro [Bitton] and Tommy [Rogic] is important.
“They’ve been here a while or have a past experience that if you stick together you can build something.”
It is also still new for Postecoglou. He went from confinement to three games a week at a new club in the most intense spotlight.
He said, “There’s a book in there somewhere. We will write this chapter when, hopefully, something big happens. I had a wonderful opportunity to run a fantastic football club.
“I have a beautiful family, a wife who understands them and two young children who don’t have a say! It makes the transition a bit easier.
“Everyone has really supported me and it allows me to focus on giving this club the success it deserves.”
As a management staff, coaches and players, Celtic is building itself.
Today’s victory over Livingston will put them atop the Premiership and give another sign that the project is moving forward at a steady pace.
Although Postecoglou will want it, it’s more about expanding a six-game winning streak rather than reaching the top with the season at an early stage.
He said: “The only thing that matters if we get to lead the league is that we are doing well in terms of consistency.
“But in terms of something longer term than that, you can’t look at it.
“We’re only a quarter of a season away. There are going to be ups and downs with us and other teams, so you
have to focus on what’s in front of you and that’s Livingston at home.
“We are playing well and the results followed, but we have to start over.
“The chance to move up the rankings is not the main factor. This is our performance.
“If we can get it right, whatever happens after that in terms of the table will happen.
“The players are stuck on the ground. It’s not like sailing has gone well for them this season.
“They’ve had some pretty tough times in their Celtic careers before, so they appreciate that it will take us a lot longer to get to where we want to be.
“This will only happen if we continue to improve and not be complacent in any way.
“You just have to keep focusing on performance. Each game challenges you. In terms of my philosophy, I only think of a team for one game in front of me. You get confused if you look too far.
“If you look too far, you’ll trip. “
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