Gio#56
Well-Known Member
Taken from Daily Record
A plot showing the shots faced by Celtic this season
We've compared the shot plot of the first 14 games to last season and Neil Lennon's start as he made an unsuccessful attempt at 10 In A Row.
Fans began getting restless as the long winter nights drew in, culminating in an angry protest outside Celtic Park in November after a League Cup exit at the hands of Ross County.
It would take another three months, however, for the board to pull the trigger. By that point it was too late.
There's no doubt that Postecoglou's team can be far more potent going forward with several demolition jobs already this season and the impressive Kyogo Furuhashi leading the line - but that's so obviously at the expense of the back four.
Against Dundee United on Sunday afternoon the defence crumbled just moments after going ahead, letting Ian Harkes head home a leveller before Cameron Carter-Vickers arguably could have conceded a penalty.
Postecoglou has said many times already he won't ever abandon his principles, and that may have worked for him in his career so far.
But clearly this Hoops side has glaring defensive deficiencies and these diagrams prove it.
The first image shows every shot faced by the current Hoops side in their first 14 games.
A big red icon with a 'G' represents a goal, while the black circles are shots on target and the 'X' denotes blocked shots.
In all, there are 122 of them.
Postecoglou has had to deal with several problems regarding his defence during the summer months and beyond.
Neil Lennon's side gave up 35 fewer shots in the same period and nine fewer goals
First was Kris Ajer's plea to the board as he agitated for an exit, later being granted his wish with a switch to Brentford.
Then came a comically long chase for a right-back with missed targets like George Baldock and Aurelio Buta.
Josip Juranovic eventually rocked up in Glasgow but he was quickly shunted across to the left to fill in for Greg Taylor at left-back instead.
Postecoglou was even forced to play 18-year-old Dane Murray and 21-year-old Stephen Welsh in a key Champions League qualifier at centre-back while it was obvious neither Vasilis Barkas nor Scott Bain would cut it in goal for some while.
Compare and contrast to fig. 2 – the plot showing shots faced by Lennon's team.
Facing 87 strikes and conceding 24 goals, that's 35 total shots and nine goals fewer than Postecoglou's team.
The Aussie faces a choice.
He needs to get serious with the defence, try to pick a settled back line injuries notwithstanding, and be just a little more pragmatic.
If not, this run of two wins in eight could get worse before it gets better.
The shocking Celtic pictures that show Ange Postecoglou's side defends far worse than Neil Lennon's in botched 10 In A Row bid
Postecoglou's teams are noted for their attacking play but something is seriously wrong at the back.
A plot showing the shots faced by Celtic this season
We've compared the shot plot of the first 14 games to last season and Neil Lennon's start as he made an unsuccessful attempt at 10 In A Row.
Fans began getting restless as the long winter nights drew in, culminating in an angry protest outside Celtic Park in November after a League Cup exit at the hands of Ross County.
It would take another three months, however, for the board to pull the trigger. By that point it was too late.
There's no doubt that Postecoglou's team can be far more potent going forward with several demolition jobs already this season and the impressive Kyogo Furuhashi leading the line - but that's so obviously at the expense of the back four.
Against Dundee United on Sunday afternoon the defence crumbled just moments after going ahead, letting Ian Harkes head home a leveller before Cameron Carter-Vickers arguably could have conceded a penalty.
Postecoglou has said many times already he won't ever abandon his principles, and that may have worked for him in his career so far.
But clearly this Hoops side has glaring defensive deficiencies and these diagrams prove it.
The first image shows every shot faced by the current Hoops side in their first 14 games.
A big red icon with a 'G' represents a goal, while the black circles are shots on target and the 'X' denotes blocked shots.
In all, there are 122 of them.
Postecoglou has had to deal with several problems regarding his defence during the summer months and beyond.
Neil Lennon's side gave up 35 fewer shots in the same period and nine fewer goals
First was Kris Ajer's plea to the board as he agitated for an exit, later being granted his wish with a switch to Brentford.
Then came a comically long chase for a right-back with missed targets like George Baldock and Aurelio Buta.
Josip Juranovic eventually rocked up in Glasgow but he was quickly shunted across to the left to fill in for Greg Taylor at left-back instead.
Postecoglou was even forced to play 18-year-old Dane Murray and 21-year-old Stephen Welsh in a key Champions League qualifier at centre-back while it was obvious neither Vasilis Barkas nor Scott Bain would cut it in goal for some while.
Compare and contrast to fig. 2 – the plot showing shots faced by Lennon's team.
Facing 87 strikes and conceding 24 goals, that's 35 total shots and nine goals fewer than Postecoglou's team.
The Aussie faces a choice.
He needs to get serious with the defence, try to pick a settled back line injuries notwithstanding, and be just a little more pragmatic.
If not, this run of two wins in eight could get worse before it gets better.
