Celtic haven’t always made the most of what could be one of the team’s strengths this season. That is the team’s set-pieces. The Hoops have struggled with both free-kicks and corners so far.
That is a bit surprising when you consider that players with the ability of Callum McGregor and Ryan Christie are the players in charge of the set-pieces at the club.
However, a set-piece for the Hoops came good at just the right-time against Lazio. Celtic’s winning goal came from a corner taken by Christie, and Christopher Jullien headed the ball home to make it 2-1.
It helped that Lazio had left Jullien unmarked, but it was still a good ball from the Hoops attacker to find Jullien.
New dimension to the Hoops side
Hopefully that will be the start of Celtic scoring on a regular basis from set-pieces. It would add a new dimension to the Celtic team.
Jullien in almost every game for the Hoops has won a header in the opposition penalty box. If the free-kicks and corners improve he could easily score 10 goals before the end of the season.
It will be interesting to see who takes Celtic’s set-pieces against Aberdeen on Sunday when Ryan Christie is suspended.
Perhaps it will be Callum McGregor. He has taken set-pieces for the Hoops in the past. However, there is another choice, and perhaps an unlikely one that could be under consideration.
Could this player take Hoops set-pieces?
That player is Odsonne Edouard. It should not be forgotten that Edouard has scored some excellent free-kicks for the Hoops in the past.
Therefore, it could be a good move to have Edouard take both the corners and free-kicks against Aberdeen. Obviously that would mean that Edouard’s heading ability in the penalty box is missed.
However, the Hoops have plenty of other players – like Jullien – who can make up for that absence. It would be a gamble to have Edouard take the set-pieces, but for one game only it could pay off.
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