With Georgios Giakoumakis collecting the most voguish of this season’s collection of Celtic injuries, the most sought-after hamstring pull, Celtic and Ange Postecoglou now have a wild card to play for the semi-final at Hampden and it’s one worth laying on the table from the outset on Sunday.
With familiarity not something required to breed contempt in such a fixture per se, the regular meeting of the teams do bring an acquaintanceship that could lead to two teams negating threats to the point of cancelling one another out.
At Celtic Park in February Celtic handed out a first half ‘skelping to theRangers as the Hoops gathered up the electricity from the home alone atmosphere emanating from the stands and drove at theRangers from the first whistle. By the time the referee blew the last whistle of the opening 45 minutes the game was done. Celtic had blitzed their opposition and theRangers decision to stand off, whether by tactical design or a freezing of the players under a first half barrage from Ange Postecoglou’s team and a crackling Paradise, backfired spectacularly.
In the days that followed a narrative grew arms and legs that theRangers improved in the second half, yet that was mere clutching at straws. Instead, Celtic simply saw out the game in a controlled manner with no need to gamble further but more than capable of going back through the gears had it been required. It wasn’t and they didn’t.
At Ibrox Giovanni van Bronckhorst showed lessons had been learned. From the outset Cameron Carter-Vickers and Joe Hart it was clear had been targeted by theRangers coaching staff and Ryan Kent set about following instructions and pressing incessantly. As the ball was played to Carl Starfelt to avoid the press and progress from the back Starfelt too found he was pressured, enough to cough up possession or meekly play the ball out the park in the opening exchanges as the passing lanes to Callum McGregor were closed off.
Although theRangers scored early Celtic dealt with the pressure better at Ibrox than theRangers had at Celtic Park when playing through the press, this in the main due to the inspired performance from Callum McGregor in carrying the ball from deep and setting up a quick-fire equaliser.
Yet theRangers had started the game in a similar fashion to Celtic in the February fixture and had Celtic not responded so quickly a second goal for the Ibrox side may well have led to a very different outcome. Instead, the equaliser momentarily re-surfaced insecurities from theRangers and it was enough of a pause for Celtic to gain a foothold in the match, to the point a winning goal arrived before half-time.
The second half was interesting in that Ange Postecoglou changed tact, and aware the damage theRangers press had caused could return, chose to do something he’s rarely done this season, lie deeper, force theRangers wide, accept crosses into the box and defend stoutly.
It was certainly a gamble given Celtic’s propensity to lose goals from cross balls and set pieces, but there was method to the approach. Celtic stopped playing through the press as often and instead took a more direct counter attacking approach, utilising Daizen Maeda’s acceleration on the break and introducing Liel Abada’s pace on the right.
The tactic may have caused heart palpitations as Celtic faced over 40 crosses into the box, surrendered far more possession than they had outside European football this season, and allowed progressive passes into the Celtic box at a rate the Hoops have never permitted in a domestic game all campaign, but it worked. Abada’s two clear opportunities to score in the second half produced a higher rate of expected goals than theRangers did in that second half despite being camped in the Celtic half for the majority of it.
Yet holding on to a lead and introducing such a tactic to negate theRangers Ibrox gameplan is one thing, to do that on Sunday as the scoreboard starts goalless – and expect it to work for 90 minutes – isn’t likely to be something Ange Postecoglou revisits unless Celtic score first.
On paper it seems both sides are learning more from each other the more they play one another, and with a 50/50 crowd at Hampden any advantage gained from the atmosphere both sides gained from their respective home fixtures will be as negated as each side’s tactics now appear to be.
Celtic possibly hold a psychological advantage in terms of winning both games, but tactically the Ibrox coaching staff will be buoyed by the way they’ll have perceived Postecoglou altering tactics and conceding possession at Ibrox as a sign progress was made, and will believe they are close to cracking the code.
Georgios Giakoumakis’ injury however could now be the key to Celtic gaining an upper hand. Daizen Maeda in theory is a player who could play through the middle to replace the Greek striker, yet Postecoglou will surely recognise the value Maeda brings to Celtic’s left side and with it an ability to badger James Tavernier’s influence to the point of frustration – it’s an advantage not to be given up lightly.
As such with Ange Postecoglou stating at yesterday’s Media conference that Kyogo Furuhashi is ‘ready to play’ you’d have to think the starting of the Japanese striker now has to enter the thoughts of the manager.
“I don’t think Kyogo is ready to play 90 or 120 minutes but he’s ready to play. It was great to get him some match minutes against St Johnstone he has had two solid weeks of training and he has done everything with the group.
“We train pretty hard and he has matched those levels. That means he’s ready to play. Can he see out 90 or 120? That’s unlikely because he has been out for so long but he’s ready to play and that’s the most important thing.”
Furuhashi may not have 90 minutes in him, but if he has 60 or more minutes in those legs it’s got to be a case of starting with Kyogo, particularly in a fixture where so often the first goal is crucial to the outcome of the game, rather than gamble on bringing him on late.
Furuhashi’s inclusion of course would lift teammates and fans alike, but it will also cause concern to theRangers players – Connor Goldson in particular – and theRangers coaching staff, who will perhaps think they are making progress in picking at Celtic’s gameplan and implementing their own.
Although Georgios Giakoumakis is a serious goal threat his involvement in the play outside the box is limited. He can hassle and physically bustle players around, but his movement isn’t on the level of Furuhashi. What the Japanese striker lacks in physicality he more than makes up with intelligent runs, the drawing of players from central positions and in turn an ability to create space for others. Goldson in particular struggles when pressed and is also easily sucked into following player and ball, something Furuhashi will gladly offer.
In a fixture where both sides are learning about each other’s strengths and weaknesses and finding ways to cope, Celtic have a wild card to play that theRangers simply don’t have. Using it, despite the risk attached, may mean a tactical and psychological advantage from the outset if Kyogo Furuhashi’s name is in the starting line-up.
As familiarity is bringing about a cancel culture in the Glasgow Derby, the introduction of Kyogo Furuhashi could be enough to swing the balance of the Scottish Cup Semi-Final in Celtic’s favour, but there really is little point in keeping the player in reserve, he simply has to start.
Niall J
