Celtic great Chris Sutton has lauded the form of the Hoops without Kyogo Furuhashi and questioned whether Rangers could’ve coped without Alfredo Morelos.
Kyogo has been out since December, meaning Ange Postecoglou has had to negotiate a crucial period of the campaign without his top scorer.
Yet, incredibly, Celtic have managed to win 11 of their 12 domestic matches since then. The likes of Giorgos Giakoumakis and Daizen Maeda have stepped up to the plate whilst goalscorers have been popping up all over the place behind the frontmen.
And Sutton believes this is something that deserves to be highlighted and pointed out that Rangers would likely have suffered without Morelos for the same period. Speaking via his Daily Record column, Sutton said: “When you think of the job that Ange Postecoglou has done to get Celtic into position to win the title and possibly even a Treble with a Scottish Cup quarter-final looming against Dundee United on Monday, you have to be impressed. But not half as impressed as you are when you consider he’s actually done it all since the turn of the year without his best player.
“Also makes you wonder where Rangers would be if Alfredo Morelos, who has played 25 of his team’s 30 league games, had missed so many games? The Colombian’s got eight in his last 12 top-flight games to supplement big goals in Europe.
“Let’s put this into perspective. Leading up to the Premier Sports Cup Final against Hibs at Hampden six days before Christmas, the Celtic supporters were in a state of complete and utter panic at the prospect of Furuhashi not being available. To have that ripped out of a squad would have been hard enough for a seasoned group of players who were the finished article and fully gelled.
“To have turned that six-point deficit in the table to Rangers around to a three-point lead speaks volumes for the boss and also the guys who have stepped into the void.”
Chris Sutton bang on; 67HailHail have already made the same point
This is something the mainstream media have so far failed to address. It’s not a comparison they appear ready to make, but it shows exactly how reliant Celtic aren’t on their talismanic striker.
Could you honestly say the same for Rangers and Morelos? If he’d been out for 3 months, there’s a genuine argument there to say that the title-race may already be over. That’s how dependent they are on the Colombian.
This is an argument 67HailHail has already made. It’s great to see Sutton back us up by making the same point, because it’s certainly an important one.
Some may find it a touch trivial. There will be question marks over whether it actually matters. After all, Morelos has been fit and Kyogo has been out. Debating their respective impacts may not mean anything to many. However, it’s a brilliant sign for Celtic and a worrying one for our rivals.
Are Celtic better with Kyogo? Absolutely. That was proven during the first half of the season. But we don’t outright need him. That’s the difference. Our foes NEED Morelos. He’s the difference for them, and without him they lose much of the attacking threat that makes them what they are.
It makes you wonder what they’ll do if he goes in the summer.
In other news, The creative problem Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou has remedied
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