Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou has explained why he brought Nir Bitton back into the starting line-up today as the Hoops overcame Livingston 3-1 in West Lothian.
Bitton has been regularly coming off the bench as a sub in Premiership matches for Celtic in 2022. However, his last league start came back in January against Dundee United – a game in which Nir was red-carded in.
He also started the 2-0 loss in Bodo/Glimt last month when Ange made a host of changes to his first XI. But his inclusion surprised many even if it did lead to a dominant midfield display against the Lions.
And Ange has explained post-match just what was running through his head when he made the decision. As quoted by the Scottish Sun, the Hoops boss said: “He has been playing for us the whole year. I know people sometimes measure 11 players from a starting perspective but I measure them from where they were when I started.
“He has been great for me. I thought he would be important today because they are a big physical team and he has that ability to dominate the space. He did really well.
“He broke lines and ran with the ball when he needed to.”
Nir Bitton instrumental to Celtic banishing their Livingston streak
It’s pleasing to see Bitton get a mention and an opportunity, especially given he’s generally been one of the lesser used players this season in terms of starts.
Ange has already made it clear that he sees the Israel international as more of a midfielder than a centre-back. It’s clear that Bitton thrives more in that role too given he has more license to get forward.
Celtic won at Livingston today because they had something they haven’t in the past – some physicality in the midfield. You could see whenever Nir picked up the ball that the Livingston players were just bouncing off of him.
He also thrived when it came to pressing forward with the ball. Ange said that he broke lines today and he’s absolutely spot on to pick up on that. He was happy to advance with possession and help to free up space to the more creative players simply by using his strength and technique to hold onto the ball.
His performance was a big reason why we left West Lothian with all 3 points. Without Nir int he middle of the park today, it could’ve been extremely complicated for us to get the result.
Truthfully, everyone was a hero today, but considering Nir came in for his first league start in over a month? He definitely deserves some individual acknowledgment.
In other news, Craig Levein the latest to join the Ange Postecoglou bandwagon after another big Celtic win
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