| Season Review | Matches: 1974 – 1975 | 1974-1975 Pictures |
Appearances (Goals in brackets)'
+' sign indicates the number of substitute appearances by that player
* – left Celtic during season 1974/75
† – left Celtic at the end of season 1974/75
| League | League Cup | Scottish Cup | European Cup | Total | |
| Hunter | 18 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 23 |
| Connaghan | 6 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 14 |
| Latchford | 10 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
| Barclay | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| McGrain | 30 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 44 |
| Brogan † | 19+1 | 7 | 1 | 2 | 29+1 |
| Quinn * | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| McNamara | 1 | 4+2 (2) | 1 (1) | 0 | 6+2 (3) |
| McNeill † | 30 (1) | 9 | 4 | 2 | 45 (1) |
| MacDonald | 12+3 | 1 | 2 (1) | 0 | 15+3 (1) |
| Welsh | 1+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1+1 |
| Connelly | 15 | 5 (1) | 3 | 0 | 23 (1) |
| McCluskey | 28+1 (3) | 10 | 4 (1) | 2 | 44+1 (4) |
| Hood | 21+6 (8) | 6+2 (2) | 5 | 1+1 | 33+9 (10) |
| Burns | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 |
| Johnstone † | 15+6 (5) | 7 (3) | 0 | 2 | 24+6 (8) |
| McLaughlin | 0+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 |
| Murray | 28 (8) | 8 (3) | 3 (1) | 2 | 41 (12) |
| Glavin | 19+1 (5) | 0 | 3+1 (2) | 0 | 22+2 (7) |
| Dalglish | 33 (16) | 7+1 (3) | 5 (2) | 2 | 47+1 (21) |
| Deans | 18+1 (9) | 4 (4) | 2 (1) | 1 | 25+1 (14) |
| Bone * | 2+1 (1) | 2+1 | 0 | 0 | 4+2 (1) |
| Lennox | 9+5 (5) | 4+3 (2) | 2 | 0+2 | 15+10 (7) |
| Callaghan | 19+3 (2) | 7 (1) | 3 | 2 | 31+3 (3) |
| Ritchie | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lynch | 5+2 (2) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 7+2 (2) |
| Wilson | 31+2 (13) | 10 (5) | 5 (3) | 2 (1) | 48+2 (22) |
| Davidson † | 4 (2) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 (2) |
| own goal | (1) | (1) |
Most Appearances – Paul Wilson with 50 appearances
Top Scorer – Paul Wilson with 22 goals (Top scorers in Scotland were Willie Pettigrew (Motherwell) and Andy Gray (Dundee Utd) jointly with 26 goals)
New Arrivals, Debuts and Departures.
Season 1974-75 – a difficult season for the club and team representing as it did the fact that the League flag was not won for the first time in 10 consecutive season – saw a number of important arrivals and departures as the team found itself in trouble.
The first important arrival was that of Ronnie Glavin from Partick Thistle. At the age of 23 he had been the Jags captain and leading player as well as a Scotland U-23 cap. Signed in November for a club record of £80,000, Glavin had been a target for a number of clubs and Partick Thistle, under manager and ex-Celt Bertie Auld were looking to cash in. Glavin arrived to add extra firepower and to help Dalglish who was turning out to be easily the most competent and rounded player in Scotland. After a successful scoring debut he found it not as easy as first thought to fit into the team and in January he found himself dropped as Stein wrestled to find a winning formula again.
That assessment of the team was being made as early as October of 1974. At that time four players were told that they could leave on a free if they found clubs or clubs came in for them. These were Jimmy Quinn, Vic Davidson, Andy Lynch and Jimmy Bone.
Two offers came in for Jimmy Bone but he chose to stay. However by January the writing really was on the wall and he chose to move on to Arbroath for a fee of £15,000. Signed in February 1974 for £25,000 from Sheffield Utd. and seen as a replacement for Dixie Deans with the same mode of play, he had failed to make a mark whilst at Celtic Park and had spent more time playing for the Reserves than the first team.
Jimmy Quinn had been with the club since 1963 but he had failed to make his mark despite the transformation from forward to overlapping left back. He appeared to accept the situation in good grace and was freed in December 1974 and by January had found a home at Sheffield Wednesday.
Vic Davidson had started on the groundstaff in 1967 gradually working his way up to a first team place. He had initially found success along with other members of the Quality Street Gang but he had fallen by the wayside particularly after the departure of Lou Macari. It was felt that he would not show the full potential of his earlier promise and he would be better developing elsewhere. That decision would come back to haunt Celtic. He stayed until the end of the season then departed on a free to Motherwell where he became a top scorer.
Andy Lynch despite spending most of the season in the Reserves, found favour in the latter part of the season when he was converted from a left wing to a left side overlapping defender and he chose to stay.
Of the remaining departures at the end of the season it was a case of farewell to the Old Guard. Billy McNeill having received a Testimonial in August 1974 chose just before the last meaningful game of the season, the Scottish Cup Final to announce that it would be his final game and that he would retire. This stalwart Celt and superb centre half had played all his time with Celtic from his recruitment from school in 1957, to his debut in 1958 against Clyde, to taking over the captaincy in 1963 from Duncan MacKay and through the Lisbon Lions, the European Cup and nine consecutive league titles. At the age of 35 it was time to retire from playing and think of the future.
Equally a legend was Jimmy Johnstone. The chosen beloved one of the Celtic support he had been in and out of the team for the last two seasons but it was still a shock when he was freed after the end of the season in June 1975. He would head to play in the new North American Soccer League with San Jose Earthquakes before returning to England in November 1975.
The final departure again in June 1975 was left back Jim Brogan. Jim joined Celtic from St Roch's in 1962 following in the footsteps of his brother Frank. Jim had gradually established himself as a sound defender with the spirit of Celtic but he had lost some of his speed and lost his position in the Cup Final to Andy Lynch. He would go on to join Coventry City.
That would leave Bobby Lennox as the only remaining Lisbon Lion who at 32 still had young legs and could still make devastating runs into the box that troubled opposition defenses this season.
It wouldn't be Celtic without a goalkeeping crisis. The season started with Connaghan, who had been third choice the previous season, between the sticks. However Ally Hunter came back and retook the position but at the start of February, Hunter had a serious loss of confidence which saw, with Denis Connaghan out with cartilage problems, Graham Barclay step in for his one first team game against Clydebank in the Scottish Cup. A goalkeeper was essential and through the agency of Don Revie, Sean Fallon was sent south to look at West Bromwich Albion second keeper Peter Latchford. Latchford came up and played in a Friendly and in wizard time he was duly signed on an initial loan deal and saw out the rest of the season as first choice keeper. At times the support and Jock Stein must have thought what they had taken on as Latchford was prone to the occasional howler and soft goal. But he would develop substantially from this his first season at Celtic.
Of the youths, groundstaffers and reserves, there were a number of prominent points. Tommy Burns made his debut in April '75 coming on as a sub against Dundee. Ian Baillie, John Weir, Jim Coyle, Brian Coyne, Bernie Godzik and Mike Scott and a young trialist was given a shot called Mark McGhee (but not signed) in the last friendly of the season. Those departing who never played a first team game included Michael Leonard, Gerry McAleer, Kevin McCool, John Mulholland, Jim Murphy and David Thomson