It was set to be the day that Celtic could secure their fourth consecutive league title in the Spring Sunshine, thanks to a lacklustre display at St Johnstone though, plans have been put on hold. Although, it’s a matter of when rather than if, andon Saturday afternoon, they will be looking to return to winning ways. They face a Kilmarnock side that sits just two points above the bottom two. How then, will Celtic tackle this tie? We answer just that at Last Word on Football, with our Celtic Predicted Lineup.
Celtic Predicted Lineup vs Kilmarnock
How Celtic Have Lined Up Recently
After an uninspiring display in Perth, Brendan Rodgers frustratingly lamented the poor “mentality and ambition” of the players.
He lined up with Vilijami Sinsalo in between the sticks. The Finn was bought from Aston Villa in the Summer window as an understudy to the aging Kasper Schmeichel. In his two starts since the Dane sustained an injury, he has proved to be a reliable shot-stopper. Having said that, St Johnstone’s opening goal revealed a part of his game he should be looking to improve.
As Graham Carey lines up to take the free kick, the Finn stands very close to his goal line. If you were to split the length of his six-yard box in two, he would be comfortably in his own half. By definition, this gives Carey a bigger area to aim into and also creates a lack of certainty over who should make the first contact for Celtic. With Schmeichel still some weeks away from a return, it’ll be interesting to see whether a positional adjustment is made at set pieces.
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In defence, Alistair Johnson, Cameron Carter-Vickers, Auston Trusty and Jeffrey Schlupp played. Schlupp was replaced at halftime for Greg Taylor, and truthfully, he had little to complain about. In the build-up to St Johnstone’s winning free kick, the 32-year-old showed a lack of composure and awareness.
A long pass from the Saints saw them win first contact, a common theme for the rest of the game. All of a sudden, Carter-Vickers and Schlupp were caught out of position. Forced to cover on the left-hand side, Trusty did well to deal with the danger and forced Makenzie Kirk to retreat. Yet, just as Celtic seemed safe, Schlupp needlessly fouled the Young Scotsman, putting his side under pressure.
Engels Dilemma
In midfield, Callum McGregor, Reo Hatate and Arne Engels played together. As has been the case as of late, there was a lack of cohesion and fluidity. Fairly or unfairly, the eyes are drawn towards the latter of the three. Signed at a record fee of £11 million, the Belgian has still to show a consistent level of performance that matches his price tag.
On the European stage, where naturally the game is much more open, he has looked more at home and been able to show off his passing range. He excelled away to Aston Villa, Bayern Munich and at home to Slovan Bratislava and Rb Leipzig.
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Yet in the domestic scene, where space is at a premium against low blocks and man-marking sides, his lack of positional awareness is often exposed. More importantly, when posed with the question: What does he actually bring to this Celtic side? Can you confidently answer?
Up front, Nicolas Kuhn, Daizen Maeda and Jota started together. Kuhn’s recent run of poor performances continued and was shipped off after halftime.
Celtic’s Recent Form and Tactics
There was a real lack of urgency in last week’s loss to St Johnstone. “Intensity” and “counter-pressing” were the buzzwords coming out of Rodgers’ mouth in the first half of the season, but since the exit to the Champions League, there has been little of that. Which is an issue. In a possession-heavy system, built on rotations and creating openings, playing at a slow pace is easy to defend against.
The Bhoys have lost three of their last seven domestic games, to reach the same figure beforehand you would have to go back 60 games.
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Without a doubt, the lack of jeopardy left in the league campaign has contributed to the decline in performance levels. It’s no coincidence that in that run, the most dominant performance was the Scottish Cup Quarter-Final tie against Hibernian. It’s not unusual to see runaway leaders tail off towards the end of a season. Take a look at the Premier League; Liverpool, sitting eleven points clear, have dropped points in three of their last eight league games.
Yet, you sense part of Rodgers’ frustration comes from his feeling that “his sides” don’t do that. A look at the 2017/18 season may suggest otherwise, though. In the last thirteen games, they won six, drew four and lost three. In five of those games, they didn’t score a single goal. Importantly though, it didn’t affect the Scottish Cup, with clean-sheet victories in both the Semi-Final and Final.
Celtic Injuries to Consider
Schmeichel remains out. After an awkward fall last week, Yang is unavailable.
Celtic Predicted Lineup
Kasper Schmeichel
Alistair Johnson
Cameron Carter-Vickers
Auston Trusty
Jeffrey Schlupp
Callum McGregor
Reo Hatate
Paulo Bernardo
Nicolas Kuhn
Daizen Maeda
Jota
