Former Celtic star Joe Miller has given his verdict on Celtic’s style of play under Ange Postecoglou and the need to branch out when they come up against extreme anti-football.
The club have only taken one point from six against Livingston so far this season, finding no answer to their all out defence.
The Hoops have all the possession and dictate the play but the whole final third area is condensed and very difficult to break down.
The team have found a way in some games this season, but it’s no surprise we’ve got more joy against teams like Hibernian and who want to have a go.
This is SPFL club’s way of trying to level the playing field and it’s likely to see more frustrating days like the Livingston tie.
Speaking to RecordSport, Miller believes Celtic need to find a new way to break down teams like Livingston.
Miller said : “I’ve been at the last two games against St Johnstone and Livingston where both sides parked the bus – and by the way their tactics would get the game stopped – but it’s up to Celtic to break that down.
“It seems to be the same way it’s been for the last two years.
“It’s too predictable.
“Possession football is fine but you can’t set up in the last third of the park to try and break teams down and put balls into the box when there’s 10 opponents in there.
“It might look good that they are dominating possession but there’s no space there to exploit. It’s difficult when you have wide players – Jota, Abada, Ralston all parked in the last third – it’s congested.
“They need to find a different way to play in those situations. It’s too repetitive.
“Some times you have to invite a team to come out. Other times you need to win a game ugly – if that means launching it up the park quickly, taking the opposition by surprise and allowing a different type of player to battle for things – then so be it.
“Giakoumakis is a good target man and was probably needed for Saturday because of the physicality of Livingston’s defence.
“I probably would have played Kyogo and him together from the start. Giakoumakis could have been that man to win knock downs for Kyogo to run onto when they wanted to mix it up.
“But they just seem to want to have tippy-tappy football round the box.
“The midfielders just want to play this passing game. But they are playing like robots.
“A team like Livingston taking four points off you in two games just isn’t good enough.”
Celtic have a tough away day in the Europa League on Thursday evening against Ferencvaros. They will face a side who will attack them during the 90 minutes. Hopefully the team can produce a victory.
The style of play bores me and will win no trophies. Passing the ball around our defence makes it easy to play against. The manager can’t change a game. Clueless. Bring back Brendan Rodgers who always found a way to win a game. He obviously won’t come back so we need to get someone of similar ilk. Ange is not the man for Celtic and I have suspected this from the first minute. Time will prove that he is incapable of winning 10 league games in a row, and every proper Celtic manager ought to be able to achieve that for it is the cornerstone of winning the domestic league.
Comments like this depress me and makes me wonder and suspect the credibility of being a supporter or fan.
So you want Ange sacked and we’ve only just begun November. The guy came into an absolute mess. He took up the mantra of Manager, Coach, DoF, Head of Scouting. We lost 15 players and brought in 12. No manager in the world has a 100% success rate in their signings and can only hope for more good ones than bad, which Ange has achieved. We’re 2nd in the league, in the semi final of the League Cup, still in the Europa Cup, but what does that matter. He lost 5 out of 6 points from Livingston, so throw him to the wolves.
One of the richest clubs in the world just lost at home to Crystal Palace 0-2 at the weekend. You would have City bullet Pep after that result.
There’s 26 games left to go in the league. The next round of games will see us play host to most of our harder fixtures, compared to the mob across the city who will have their more difficult fixtures away from home, including coming to Paradise.
We also have players coming back which will only make us stronger, as will the January window.
Sorry buddy, but if you’re looking to support a team who wins every game and does so with flair, style & extravagance, then maybe Celtic or football in general is not for you.
We have a song that’s sung at every game. “We are Celtic supporters, faithful through & through”. To most, these are not just words…
Bring back Brendan Rodgers ????
He had Celtic playing the same way passing side to side? Can you not remember bell end.
Early days to judge Ange too many fans jump to conclusions quickly. He will be judged at the end of the season not in early November. I myself think that we should be playing two upfront in most games at Celtic Park and varying our play more when playing these teams who park the bus. Ange like all managers will survive or fall depending on results.
200 % Big Joe , wish joe could have been in the dug out with Angie, EVERY word he.s said was absolutely spot on, specially the fact we re knocking our melt in , and the fek ten Sherman tanks in boots just spat the ball out 99% like the automatic tennis practice cannon and must be laughing their arses off watching hoops spraying the ball like a fekn pendulum across the 18 yard line with zero advance towards their Director ( keeper it said in the programme ? )..even the paltry crosses were plucked at shoulder height by the alleged keeper or walloped off the Tank Tops arses , no way I.ll be at next farce v the maginot line of Livingston, as I can plug in bill Murray.s GROUNDHOG DAY on Netflix
Best way to beat teams that defend, then try to score on the break, is get your wide men to come in narrow, and just chip the eight to nine in the box.
Simple mathematics tell you that big legged lummox cun7s can boot you, they can block you.They cannot jump and and your in.
Bobby Lennox, Bertie Auld, Jinky could face you then either get close and if they couldn’t get close, they would just chip the ball to any running players head, feet.Ergo GOALLLLLLLLLLLL
Anger has a style of player he chooses to play, they should be able to work it out.
Henrik Larrson could, Chris Sutton, Alan Thompson, Steve Guppy, Tosh McKinnley, Jackie McNamara, Bobby Murdock, John Clark, even John Hughes all could all move the ball at all angles around stubborn defences, for anyone in the position to shoot.
And make the opposition’s goalkeeper work.
Some supporters forget that because you should score, doesn’t always mean you do.
And don’t try to fix or modify a winning team.