Confidence Boost for Celtic
Article by Tom ShanahanClick here to follow e-Celtic on Twitter!
It had been a testing week for Celtic and so a trip to Perth threatened to cause more problems for the Hoops and give the critics more ammunition to fire at the club.
Instead after a tepid first half, which Celtic controlled without any clear cut chances, the champions soon increased the tempo and St Johnstone failed to cope.
Although it was the Saints who had the first attempt of the second half as Lee Croft pulled the trigger from just outside the box, which brought a block from of van Dijk.
Celtic then pushed back against the wave of St Johnstone attacks and took the lead on 55 minutes through tenacious play from Commons.
His tackle on the edge of the Saints box won the ball which fell kindly for Stokes. The Irish hit man controlled the bobbling ball coolly, before rounding Mannus and slotting home with his right foot.
Celtic pressed on and went near again with a snap shot from McGregor but the winger’s effort went wide.
The home side were then left furious when referee John Beaton waved claims for a penalty away following a van Dijk challenge on Mackay. After replays it was clear van Dijk had caught the Saints captain and Celtic escaped.
Recent Celtic signing Jo Inge Berget then replaced Commons, shortly after Boerrigter had replaced a tiring Forrest, as Celtic went on the hunt for a second goal.
A terrific through pass from Izaguirre then sent the Dutchman through on goal. Dave Mackay seemed to nudge Boerrigter just as he was going to pull the trigger and the winger tumbled in the box. The referee did not hesitate to point to the spot and he duly sent off the defender.
Sky Sports pundit Neil McCann seemed infuriated by this decision after the final whistle, although the Celtic support need no reminding of the former Rangers’ player’s cheating on and off the pitch.
With no Stokes or Commons on the pitch Nir Bitton stepped up to the spot and calmly slotted the ball down the middle to put the Hoops 2-0 up.
Celtic took advantage of the extra man and stretched St Johnstone all over the pitch. The Hoops passed calmly and were then three goals up after good work on the edge of the box.
Good work from Berget and a clever pass from Adam Matthews set up McGregor who dropped his shoulder before hitting a low shot at Mannus. The ball slipped under the goal keeper and trickled over the line to make it 3-0 five minutes from the end.
After a slow start Deila should be encouraged with the second half performance. It was the manager’s philosophy on high pressing after all that led to the first goal. This could be a useful weapon in Celtic’s armoury especially in Scotland when trying to break down packed defences.
Deila should also take great credit in his substitutions during the match. It looked a risky strategy replacing Stokes and Commons with Berget and Kayal with Celtic only leading 1-0 however, the changes were inspired.
Kayal gave Celtic more dominance in midfield and Berget linked up well with wide men Boerrigter and McGregor. The Norwegian signing gave the Celtic fans a better idea of what he can bring to the team after his disastrous debut in Warsaw.
His strength in the air as well as his impressive touch and movement caused St Johnstone’s defence all kinds of problems.
The substitute’s performances should give the management food for thought with an important week ahead. It should also act as extra motivation to Anthony Stokes and Kris Commons who failed to impress apart from combining for the first goal.
Up next for the Hoops is Dundee United tomorrow and it is imperative that Celtic play with the same verve as was shown in the second half at McDiarmid Park. The Tannadice side are full of confidence with maximum points from their first two matches of the season and will provide the Champions with the perfect warm up for Maribor in midweek.
Let’s hope it is a flag day to remember at Paradise.
© e-Football 2014 All rights reserved no part of this document or this website may be reproduced without consent of e-Football
No comments: