Celtic captain Callum McGregor has acknowledged that his side needs to revisit their tactical approach in midfield following their disappointing 3-0 loss to Rangers at Ibrox.
The defeat, coupled with the league cup final, has exposed vulnerabilities in the Hoops’ once-dominant engine room.
For seasons, Celtic’s midfield was the envy of Scottish football, controlling games with precision and tempo. However, the last two encounters have seen a noticeable shift, with Rangers dictating the terms in the centre of the park.
Fans have often said whoever wins the midfield battle comes out on top, and that certainly rang true on Thursday.
McGregor found himself stifled as Rangers pressed aggressively, disrupting Celtic’s rhythm. He admitted: [RecordSport]
“Yeah, they were set up with the low block and we were finding it hard to get through. We need to look at that and we need to tweak it a little bit to give us a wee bit more comfort in the game and allow us to get the territory that will make us comfortable.
“So, there’s a couple of wee warning signs there and a lot of the big moments in the game have come from that, the sort of transition moment where they’ve managed to block a pass and then play forward from there.
“There are signs there that we have to fix it and try and fix it as quickly as we can.”
Celtic’s League Cup final win in November should have served as a warning. Despite lifting the trophy, Brendan Rodgers’ side struggled to break down Rangers, who pressed high and capitalised on mistakes in transition. Yet, the tactical adjustments many expected ahead of the Ibrox clash failed to materialise.
Celtic’s midfield trio of McGregor, Reo Hatate, and Paulo Bernardo was overrun. Hatate had a poor game, while Bernardo and McGregor were regularly caught out by the Rangers’ relentless pressing.
Rangers boss Philippe Clement appears to have found a formula to nullify Celtic’s strengths, particularly in midfield. By crowding key areas, setting up a disciplined low block, and hunting in packs, his side limited Celtic’s passing options and forced turnovers in dangerous positions.
You could’ve said that before the derby defeat though, so why hadn’t Rodgers changed things? The Hoops now need to put in a big performance at Celtic Park and show that they’ve made some tweaks.
