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Celtic Fan View: Disappointing Old Firm performance 'felt like defeat'
Stuart Armstrong’s post-match interview pretty much said it all. Despite maintaining their undefeated domestic streak after drawing 1-1 at home to Rangers, the feeling around the Celtic camp- and indeed from the fans- was one of disappointment which was reflected by how downbeat the midfielder was at full-time even though he was the best player on the pitch. Brendan Rodgers also admitted the draw “felt like a defeat” during his press conference.
Having won the previous three Glasgow derbies this term with an aggregate score of 8-2, the Hoops faithful were understandably full of optimism and anticipation, hoping to add to their rivals’ misery at a time when the sensations surrounding both clubs are poles apart. But the performance was poor and Rangers deservedly left Parkhead with a point which might also place an element of doubt into Celtic minds when the sides meet each other in next month’s Scottish Cup semi-final.
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Now, some perspective is required. This isn’t a draw that damages Celtic’s position in the league table which, of course, still looks extremely healthy. In fact, when the teams play each other at Hampden Celtic will be crowned champions and will essentially be two games away from the treble. Given this has been such a commanding and successful campaign, it’s hard to be too critical but the display on Sunday just simply wasn’t good enough from start to finish and a massive improvement will be needed if the Bhoys are to overcome the semi-final hurdle in April.
Armstrong was the only bright spark on a largely frustrating day. He took his goal with aplomb and was the sole goal threat as he registered five shots all of which were on target. His late bursts into the box have proven to be difficult for the Gers defence to cope with in previous encounters and that theme continued but he wasn’t backed up by his fellow attackers this time.
Moussa Dembele, Scott Sinclair, James Forrest along with substitutes Leigh Griffiths and Patrick Roberts were all very disappointing as they failed to make much happen when they got near the opposition box while the usually rampant Kieran Tierney was also nullified. The visitors’ narrow 4-4-2 denied these players space to cause havoc as they were crowded out and often easily dispossessed, nor did Rangers get caught on the counter attack as easily as they have in other matches this season. Whenever the likes of Sinclair, Dembele and Forrest did enter advanced positions, they lacked the cutting edge and composure to open up the rival defence
The game became very congested which is exactly what Rangers wanted and Celtic decided to counter that by going more direct with longer balls up to Dembele which didn’t exactly make for a great spectacle. In general there was a distinct deficiency of rhythm, tempo and fluency to the Hoops performance all around the pitch as they struggled to link up with each other and the midfield was forced into a scrap rather than feeding those in front of them. At times it also seemed some lacked the courage to attempt a telling pass.
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It’s become something of a trend in recent matches when teams set up extra defensively against the champions. St.Mirren and Hamilton Accies have found some joy by sitting deep near their box while remaining compact and Celtic have struggled to break them down, often missing the vision and technical brilliance of Tom Rogic in the number 10 position.
Armstrong was operating there on Sunday but was forced to depart from the action with 20 minutes remaining after picking up a knock which proved to be crucial as Celtic ceded control of the game and encouraged Rangers to push on. They took advantage by equalising when they were on top and to their credit showed a lot of heart which will have pleased their new manager, Pedro Caixinha. It gives him something to work with, it gives the players and fans renewed hope and it certainly makes them more of a threat heading into the Scottish Cup clash.
Rangers have slowly but surely got better in the derbies and got closer and closer towards getting a positive result which they merited on Sunday. They look far more organised, fitter and better going forward than they did when they were spanked 5-1 in Glasgow’s east end in September.
There’s definitely something to ponder for Rodgers and there must be a small part of the squad and support that will be more worried about the upcoming derby. The Bhoys only have to look at last season’s match to see how dangerous a one-off tie can be against a fired up, albeit inferior, opponent. There must be a serious improvement from this display if the team is to move a step closer to the treble.
