Celtic have moved into the semi-finals of the Premier Sports Cup after thrashing Motherwell 4-0 at Fir Park this evening.
It felt unusual to have the Bhoys kick-off at such an early time, mid-week, but it was business as usual from the team, with a double from Liel Abada and a fine Reo Hatate finish putting the game beyond doubt by the hour mark. Kyogo then rounded off the scoring, delighting supporters.
Ange Postecoglou will have been delighted with what he witnessed, as are we, but what were the big takeaways from tonight’s action? Here are three…
Liel Abada finds his finishing boots like the rest
A returning Liel Abada reminded everyone why he has a fair shot of being considered the best finisher at the club with his first goals in Celtic colours since the 4-0 battering of Rangers at the start of September.
He’s been one of a few players who have been culpable of missing golden chances in recent weeks, but he was in lethal form this evening, sniffing out chances and showcasing how effective can be between the posts.
The Israeli international is now the joint-top scorer at Celtic this term, tied with Kyogo Furuhashi on eight each. The Japanese star was also on target, meaning that this duo, as well as Giorgos Giakoumakis and Daizen Maeda have all found themselves on the scoresheet in recent matches. It’s a great signing amid this very busy period before the World Cup.
Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic rotation is looking effective
There’s been a lot of talk about Ange Postecoglou’s team selections of late. Is he tinkering too much? Should there be a best eleven installed consistently?
The Celtic manager has shown that during this mid-week to weekend run he is going to rotate the team and I have to say, I don’t have much issue with it. The balance of tonight’s team was impressive. We had different types of attacking player on the pitch, different styles of midfielder working through the middle.
Our passing was sharp, the movement was effective, the combinations crisp. It was exactly what we want to be seeing from the starting eleven right now, regardless of personnel or who is sitting on the bench. Postecoglou is undoubtedly utilising his entire squad impressively right now and long may it continue, with Hearts on the horizon.
Domestically, Celtic have solutions to the Callum McGregor absence
The club captain is obviously a big miss, not just in terms of what he brings with quality on the ball, but also our performances as a whole with leadership and commitment.
Tonight was another good example that with Matt O’Riley sitting in a deeper role, with Reo Hatate and Aaron Mooy ahead of him, Celtic aren’t suffering too badly without McGregor.
With Oliver Abildgaard getting half an hour and Sead Haksabanovic also switching positions for a section of proceedings, there is further depth and versatility available if needed too.
When McGregor returns it will be a brilliant boost, but thankfully we’ve shown we can deal with the issue right now.
In other news, Tonight’s strange Celtic kick-off time vs Motherwell explained.
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