Celtic’s progression to the quarter-final of the Scottish Cup on Sunday did two things for the Hoops support.
It kept their hopes for a league and cup double alive and it gave them a glimpse of what the rest of the season could look like if Brendan Rodgers continues to play two up front.
The Celtic manager did something he has never done before this season by starting two strikers against St Mirren.
And it paid off for him. Kyogo Furuhashi netted his twelfth goal of the season for Celtic and Peter Grant shares what he noticed about the Japanese striker that left him completely blown away.
Grant said [BBC Sportscene], “Callum McGregor’s pass feeds Palma early and he does exceptionally well and so does Idah as he takes them [the St Mirren defenders] to the front post.
“But Kyogo, if you notice, he slows himself down and all the defenders go back and then he quickens up.
“Then he has a fantastic finish. It was a real good finish because of the way he slows himself down to arrive onto the game.
“It was a fantastic finish. Delighted for him.”
We all know that Kyogo plays better off the shoulder of the last defender but to see him adapt to playing off Idah is a source of great encouragement.
The on-loan Norwich striker did well to create space for Kyogo and the Japanese striker had the presence of mind to see that and adjust his run to take advantage of the opening to notch the first goal of the game.
Hopefully, Rodgers deploys this tactic again on Saturday against Kilmarnock as the Ayrshire side have shown already this season that they have been a tough nut to crack.
In other news, Celtic ‘narrative’ rubbished as Neil Lennon points out a simple Rangers truth
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