The first goal conceded by Celtic in the 2-0 loss to Valencia on Thursday was the perfect example of how not to defend in Europe.
The Hoops attempted to play the high-line in defence, but Emilio Izaguirre was too slow and played his man onside.
Ruben Sobrino easily beat the offside trap and set up Denis Cheryshev for a simple goal. The goal knocked the wind out of the Hoops, who couldn’t recover.
The notion of playing a high-line at the back against Valencia was patently absurd. The Hoops defence just couldn’t cope with it.
It didn’t help when the midfield was constantly getting shut down and pressure was then put on the defence.
Brendan Rodgers must learn a lesson for next season – that he can’t play the high-line at the back again. The most intriguing thing about the defence for next season is that three of last night’s starters might not be at the club.
Izaguirre, Dedryck Boyata and loan signing Jeremy Toljan are all out of contract at the end of the season.
It would certainly be a bold move if the Hoops boss used a new defence to start to play in a new, pragmatic style ahead of next season’s Champions League qualifiers.
The chances of that happening seem remote, but at the very least the Hoops need to stop keeping the high-line.
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