Raging Stiliyan Petrov slates ‘jogging’ Celtic man and doesn’t hold back on Braga goal

Add as preferred source on Google

Celtic’s starting eleven against Braga raised a few surprises.

With Reo Hatate and Anthony Ralston still battling for fitness, Brendan Rodgers had a few close calls to make as his fixture schedule intensifies.

Kelechi Iheanacho’s fitness is being spoken about a lot, as has which position Dazien Maeda should occupy in the frontline going forward.

Ultimately, Rodgers opted to give starts to Colby Donovan and Paulo Bernardo in his starting eleven, with the latter being handed a priceless opportunity to be in from the start.

And for one former Celtic midfielder, he didn’t take his opportunity by the scruff of the neck.

Stiliyan Petrov slates Celtic’s Paulo Bernardo

Celtic’s performance against Braga was underwhelming in several areas – when you look at the two goals, there are plenty of areas for criticism.

WATCH: Celtic 2-0 Braga… reaction

When reviewing the first Braga strike, it’s easy to aim your frustrations at Kasper Schmeichel, who really should’ve saved Ricardo Horta’s long-range effort.

But for former Celtic midfielder Stiliyan Petrov, Bernardo’s role in the goal was equally criminal – and he didn’t hold back with his criticism.

Petrov said: “It all starts with Schmeichel. You would think that when you want to be in possession and you dominate, you have to take care of the ball. That’s what you don’t want to do when you play that kind of opposition.

“It’s the first opportunity that Braga has, and this really frustrates me. As a midfielder, you should be aware of what’s happening around you. But this is what I don’t understand about Bernardo.

“Look at at the pace that he’s trying to close down at. You’ve been given the opportunity to start the game. To have the opportunity to show what you can do. And he’s just jogging. You have to break your legs!”

The Bulgarian certainly didn’t mince his words.

Celtic’s midfield situation

On paper, Celtic have six good midfielders in their squad. But football isn’t always that simple.

Arne Engels is out of form, and despite being handed plenty of minutes, Benjamin Nygren’s performances are splitting opinion.

Hoops fans know all too well that Reo Hatate’s quality comes with a caveat of inconsistency – and Callum McGregor’s performances are trending in the wrong direction.

Ironically, the man who has been subjected to the least criticism is Luke McCowan – and he was the only one who didn’t see any minutes in the Braga defeat.