Celtic have finished their Japan tour on a high with a 1-0 win over J-League outfit Gamba Osaka.
Alexandro Bernabei was the goal hero, netting in the 85th minute after hassling the home side and forcing them out of possession in their own box, when it looked like the ball was lost.
Brendan Rodgers will be delighted with another strong workout against a team mid-season. The bonus is that the team can take confidence from a win on the road after a tough week far from home.
But what were the big talking points? Who played? Is there anything to take away from what is essentially a meaningless game? Here’s what we observed…
A tale of two Celtic XIs
Rodgers indicated before the match that this would effectively be two games from a Celtic perspective and that was delivered on. The Bhoys boss changed the entire team at half-time, Kyogo Furuhashi came out as captain and there was even a Huddle before the second 45 minutes.
The starting eleven was: Hart, Iwata, Starfelt, Welsh, Taylor, McGregor, Hatate, Turnbull, Forrest, Abada and Maeda.
In the second half, we got: Siegrist, McPherson, Lawal, Scales, Bernabei, O’Riley, Holm, Haksabanovic, Vata, Kyogo and Oh.
Despite finding the goal in the second half, the opening performance was more accomplished and fluid than after the interval, which is to be expected considering it is a strong and more experienced line-up.
Plenty of chances were created in that opening period and Celtic even should have had a goal after Maeda netted and it was wrongly ruled offside. McGregor and Turnbull looked sharp in the middle of the park. The forward passing was crisp and incisive.
Rodgers has also said that the upcoming friendlies against Wolves and Athletic Bilbao will be more about getting his core team up to peak fitness – so we’ll have more indications on line-up preferences and tactics over the next two weeks. Right now, it’s all about building their levels.
Still, it was a nice moment for Bernabei to get his big moment and come out of the match with growing confidence.
The first glimpse of Odin Thiago Holm
We haven’t seen any new signings in action this summer so it was pleasing to finally see a bit of Holm in the second-half team today. In truth, it’s hard to read too much into his performance – all of those judgements will come in time.
The Celtic midfield, in general, struggled to really get going and into a rhythm after half-time, so Holm’s contributions didn’t really add up to much. Rodgers was urging him to think more urgently and in an attacking fashion from the touchline at various points, but it’s easy to understand why he might have kept it safe early doors.
He also did get stuck in within his own box when the home side were threatening, showing he can get up and down the pitch with commitment.
From photos and videos published by the club, it seems Holm only really joined in team training this week, so this was a big 45 minutes for him just from a fitness and match sharpness perspective and hopefully that stands him in good stead moving forward.
Celtic pressing
The aggressive press continues under the new manager. A hallmark of the previous regime, Celtic continue to work hard, hassle and force mistakes in the opposition. That’s how the goal came about, too, with Bernabei just not giving up on the ball when it would have been easy to in another team.
In the first half, it looked well thought out and well timed, with players such as Daizen Maeda showing a bit more composure and care when charging at the other team. That bodes well as the team become more organised and structured over the next few weeks.
Maeda continues to provide evidence he can be an effective central option, with Rodgers recently making it clear that is the preferred position for him.
It’s exactly the kind of effort we need to see at this stage of the summer. These players look keen to impress, keen to build on what’s gone before and keen to ensure there is no drop in standards. That’s good enough before the competitive stuff kicks off.
In other news, Josip Juranovic convinces £4m man to sign for Celtic; medical set.
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