There wasn’t a crowd of 13,000 waiting and cheering but 10 June 1999 did seem like a landmark for Celtic as the Millenium Dream Team was unveiled.
Not long after Fergus McCann had departed the shackles were off, footballing austerity was over as Celtic started to show their new found financial clout.
Bobby Petta, Olivier Tebily and Eyal Berkavic were quickly paraded with the Israel setting a Scottish transfer record at £6m to West Ham with a five year contract to match.
With frugal McCann gone and Dr Jo Venglos shunted onto the sidelines the Allan MacDonald era was underway- and bhoy did Celtic pay for it as the former British Aerospace high flyer spent lavishly on his golfing buddy and his protege.
As the Dream Team of Kenny Dalglish and John Barnes were unveiled there surprise and some shock at the job titles. As Director of Football Dalglish was leaving John Barnes in total control of all footballing matters with no hands on management experience. In the lead up to the announcement it was expected that Dalglish would be in the front line with Barnes learning with a view to taking over after a season or two.
Like Ronny Deila Barnes had definite views on how to play the game using a 4-2-2-2 formation with the introduction of two defensive/sitting midfielders. That idea never sat easily with Craig Burnley.
A 5-0 win at Aberdeen kicked the season off in style although a 2-1 defeat at Dundee United caused concern while Stan Petrov made his debut at right-back the following week in a 2-1 win at Dens Park.
Hindsight tends to slaughter the Barnes era but there was a genuine feel-good factor about the club as autumn approached, when Henrik Larsson and Mark Viduka scored hat-tricks in a 7-0 rout over Aberdeen on October 16 the garden was rosy.
Unfortunately over the next month serious injuries to Larsson and Paul Lambert threw things badly off course with Barnes and Celtic never recovering the early season momentum.
In the background Dalglish kept an exceptionally low profile while MacDonald created screaming headlines any time he was let near a microphone.
Larsson’s leg break in Lyon looked a career ender, three weeks later Lambert’s teeth were splattered across Ibrox and the season started to collapse.
Iain Wright Wright Wright was introduced during a home defeat from Motherwell, within a month that had been repeated with a 3-2 defeat at Fir Park.
After the winter break the Dream Team lasted three more matches, a 1-1 draw at Kilmarnock was followed by chucking away a two goal lead to lose at home to Hearts before Caley Thistle went ballistic.
During the winter break £5m plus had been donated to various Brazilan sources for Raphael Scheidt who exceeded his surname.
After the Caley Thistle defeat Dalglish was recalled from La Manga, Tommy Burns returned as a coach, the League Cup was won thanks to goals from Vidar Riseth and Tommy Johnston against Aberdeen.
The league was lost by 21 points but on the final day a clutch of kids got their chance while Larsson made a dramatic return to prove his fitness ahead of Euro 2000.
With Larsson in his pomp the following season delivered a treble as the Dream Team chapter closed without MacDonald, Dalglish or Barnes.
