Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain was part of a dismal Celtic performance during Sunday’s woeful defeat to Dundee United, and his distinct lack of urgency is becoming a major talking point.
The English midfielder looked miles off the pace at Tannadice, prompting Andy Halliday to deliver a brutal but completely accurate assessment.
Offering a harsh reality check on Oxlade-Chamberlain’s recent displays, the pundit bluntly stated: ‘I can’t believe how much he strolls since he has come up here.’
Halliday has a completely valid point.
Yes, the former Liverpool star enjoyed a dream start to his Celtic career, immediately endearing himself to the support with a crucial winning goal against Livingston.
However, that fleeting moment of quality proved absolutely nothing regarding his physical ability to dictate – or even survive – the relentless tempo of a Scottish Premiership match over a full 90 minutes.
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Is Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain ‘strolling’ in a Celtic shirt?
Now that Oxlade-Chamberlain is being asked to play significantly more minutes under Martin O’Neill, he looks less like a marquee solution and more like just another part of the squad’s overarching problem.
The 32-year-old was brought in on a short-term deal until the summer, with the club holding an option to extend his stay. Right now, whoever is in charge needs to seriously reconsider triggering that clause.
There is a clear reason why a player of his undeniable pedigree was without a club from the summer until Celtic finally called, and that severe lack of match sharpness is glaringly obvious every time he steps onto the pitch.
Come the end of the season, Celtic must simply say ‘thanks, but no thanks’, as Halliday briefly touched upon Oxlade-Chamberlain’s performances on Open Goal.
“Oxlade-Chamberlain is another one,” said Halliday. “I can’t believe how much he strolls since he has come up here.
“Granted, he hasn’t played a lot of football. I thought he was really poor against Dundee United.”
Oxlade-Chamberlain’s stats since joining Celtic
That’s seven games Oxlade-Chamberlain has locked in, and there isn’t much to shout about.
While Celtic’s broken midfield – and frankly, the broken team as a whole – does no favours for anyone stepping into the side, this is exactly why a player of Oxlade-Chamberlain’s vast experience was recruited. He was brought in to change their fortunes, and it simply isn’t happening.
- Games: 7
- Starts: 3
- Goals: 1
- Assists: 0
- Tackles per game: 1
- Interceptions per game: 0.3
- Fouls per game: 0.8
- Average passes: 28
- Passes %: 80.4
- Key Passes: 1.2
- Shots per game: 1.2
- Total minutes: 274
- WhoScored rating: 6.48
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