Transfer summits, dragging feet with Jocelin Ta Bi, and 20 days into the the transfer window with no signings. Just another average Celtic board day…
Eric Knott 
(Photo by Alan Harvey/SNS Group via Getty Images)
Fauxductivity – that’s the word of the day today, and it fits the Celtic board to perfection.
So what, you might ask, is Fauxductivity?
Well, Fauxductivity involves performing tasks like typing emails, attending pointless meetings (“transfer summits”), and appearing focused (“ghostworking”) to create an illusion of productivity.
People who engage in Fauxductivity often use tactics like “fudgeling” (easy, fake work) to delay real tasks, a performance often seen in corporate settings to manage perception.
If you ever wanted an apt description for the Celtic board, well, there you have it.
Michael Nicholson is a master of Fauxductivity, and because the Celtic CEO is, the rest of the board reflects his Fauxductiveness.
Throughout January, the Celtic board has projected the illusion of productivity.
Communicating with their media partners to say that they are busy in the transfer market, but its notoriously hard to sign players in January.
Nobody is falling for that one, but they’ll trot it out nonetheless.
When they get that people aren’t falling for that one, then they’ll call the media and tell them they’re engaging in a transfer summit.
What is a transfer summit?
As opposed to actively engaging in the transfer of players to and from a football team?
Especially when you’ve had twenty days to do so?
In fact, I’ll alter that to especially when you’ve had since last summer to do so.
Well, transfer summits are about as effective as a wheelchair with pedals in my view.
They achieve nothing but to epitomise Fauxductivity.
Nobody, and I mean nobody, gives a shit whether the board are engaging in transfer summits or not.
The only tangible thing that Celtic fans give a shit about is legitimate signings.
But here’s the thing, who at Celtic thought it was a good idea to inform their media partners that they were entering into a transfer summit?
Does the Ibrox side inform their media partners that they’re having transfer summits?
Nope, they just go out and get deals done.
Maybe Michael Nicholson needs to pick up the phone to his opposite number at Ibrox for some insights into transfer dealings?
Then he could hold another transfer summit to share his learnings with the board…..by which time the fucking transfer window will be shut!
You honestly couldn’t make this shit up.
Transfer summits??
Who gives a shit?
Sign some players already!!
Then maybe people might actually start to take you seriously.
But that’s the thing, nobody takes these guys seriously any more.
Not the Celtic fanbase, not player agents, and certainly not potential selling clubs.
Nobody wants to do business with Celtic at the moment, and its easy to understand why.
In the Record this morning, we’ve been treated to another reason as to why this is the case.
And before I get into it, I don’t buy for a second that this has anything to do with ‘Zionist abuse’.
But I do believe the main reason Jocelin Ta Bi is not a Celtic player is down to the board dragging their feet on getting the deal done.
Saying that Celtic fans “bombarded” Ta Bi with anti-zionist abuse without concrete evidence that this happened is typical of the media at the moment.
Anybody could go to the media and state they were the subject of any kind of abuse.
Just because they say it doesn’t mean its true.
Granted, Celtic fans did not like the optics of this move, but I sincerely doubt fans went directly to Ta Bi and accused him of being a zionist.
We did not agree with our club doing transfer dealings with his club.
Which has nothing to do with the player.
I also somehow doubt that Ta Bi gave his social media details to Celtic fans to abuse him.
If you are going to state something like this, then at least produce proof that it happened.
It is clear that the Ta Bi fiasco is just another example in a long line of the board’s glacial pace when it comes to getting deals closed out.
The reality here is that while the board was dragging their feet, Sunderland saw an opportunity and took it.
Ironically, Celtic did the groundwork on Ta Bi, but would Sunderland have shown any interest in him if they had not?
All in all, this is just another average day of Fauxductivity from the Celtic board.
Day 20, and still no signings.
But hey, the board had a transfer summit at Lennoxtown.
So there’s nothing to worry about.
Its all under control.
Number of days Michael Nicholson remains Celtic CEO since Wilfried Nancy’s sacking – 15
Key Takeaways
- Fauxductivity describes the illusion of productivity, prevalent within the Celtic board under CEO Michael Nicholson.
- Throughout January, the board focused on communicating activity, such as ‘transfer summits’, rather than actually signing players.
- Fans only care about real signings, not unnecessary meetings that waste time and effort.
- The slow pace of the board’s decision-making has led to lost opportunities, like the Ta Bi situation.
- With 20 days gone and no signings, Celtic’s reputation suffers, while Fauxductivity continues.
When I moved back to Scotland after working down south years ago, I joined a similar agency up here but the difference in culture was striking. I actually had the ceo (must be a theme here) tell me we couldn’t pitch for a big account I’d spent months targeting, worked my butt off to get him in front of but he said no because his wife worked at a rival firm and she wouldn’t be pleased. I slightly lost it and said your wife doesn’t work here and this seriously affects what I’m being targeted to bring in. I quit 2 months later (no job in saudi though!) but I learned that unfortunately, we’re still parochial at times up here. I think the board actually have no clue how to negotiate so they wait until the end of the window. PL had the gravitas so with him not there, his no.2 has zero skills at negotiation. And you wouldn’t let McKay do them; one look at him from across the table and they’d know they could rinse us for whatever they wanted. They await the Del Monte nod of approval from DD – he says yes!
Actually, please don’t hang your hat on this but we might be getting 2 in this week. DD has said yes; now it’s on the man who makes the ticking of a grandfather clock seem like a full on techno rave, get his finger out to get them in. HH
I heard the same from a person with connections to a certain blogger.Two in by Friday 23rd,central defender and striker.I won’t be putting the house on it as they say,as I lost faith in this lot some time ago.Trust them as far as I could throw them.
The Zionist thing is made up by a Zionist agent in a Zionist country, using our right wing media to further his fascist views, trying to blacken the ‘Socialist Workers Party’ led Celtic supporters name.
The ‘optics’ Eric have nothing to do with anything, it is illegal under international law to deal with those committing or supporting genocide, and both this club and this agent have supported, and are complicit in genocide. While it has nothing whatsoever to do with the player, it is everyone’s duty, as set out at the Nuremberg trials, and enshrined in international law to take nothing to do with these entities.
Celtic, the club, and supporters can be proud that we did not do business with this club or agent.
So far from a ‘lost opportunity’, this is infact a lucky escape or a moral victory, stopping Celtic committing crimes as set out in International law. Because our government is complicit in genocide, it does not make it ok for anyone with a shred of humanity, to do so.
They are 100% trolling the fans on the Celtic X account with what they’ve been posting lately
Absolute Vermin