Michael Stewart delivers verdict on Celtic system and Ange’s sticky spell

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Michael Stewart fears Celtic may not have the players capable of playing the style of football Ange Postecoglou wants.

The Bhoys are currently preparing for a tricky trip away to Aberdeen on Sunday after suffering a heavy defeat at the hands of Leverkusen in the Europa League.

Celtic were cut open far too easily by the Germans with players such as Anthony Ralston and Adam Montgomery notably out of position at critical moments.

Stewart still thinks the manager needs time to implement the changes he wants to but feels that Postecoglou simply may not have the right personnel for what he’s trying to do right now.

Writing in his Scottish Sun column, he said: “Everywhere he’s gone, there’s been short-term pain for long-term gain. At each place it has taken time for players to get used to his demands. Nothing has happened overnight. But eventually, and this is the key thing, it has clicked.

“Here, it seemed like Celtic were actually ahead of schedule, things looked to be progressing quickly. Now it almost feels like we’re back where we started. It’s one step forward and two steps back.

“Postecoglou said before Leverkusen that good football and good results are not mutually exclusive. He’s absolutely right. There’s no doubt about that. It takes time. You need to build things first.

“Ultimately the problem for Celtic at the moment is the players they have are not good enough. That has to be a concern and there’s certainly an argument for being just a little more pragmatic. I don’t think some of the players featuring every week right now can do what the manager wants them to.”

Stewart isn’t wrong with his comments. But I think regardless of what fans say and what media commentators opine, Ange isn’t going to change much with this Celtic team. This is what we’re going to get in terms of approach.

All we have to keep our fingers crossed for is that it does click and it does start to work more consistently than it has been. Everyone knows results matter most.

Injuries have been pointed to as a key reason for the problems of late, but with Kyogo and Callum McGregor back for Sunday’s match against Aberdeen there are no excuses.

The wins need to come!

In other news, Celtic boss Ange Postecoglou’s fiery Friday press comments.