This has to go down as a huge disappointment. And yet it is hard to pinpoint just exactly where we went wrong. We certainly had our best available men on the park, but for some reason it did not come off. We failed to score early on, and when we lost the first goal, we were always chasing the game – and never quite caught up with it.
I think that, in spite of all the rhetoric, we did underestimate the opposition. They surprised us in two respects – one was their speed and fitness, and the other (less creditably) was their ability to waste time, particularly by faking injuries and by mocking our huddle. They were not a nice bunch of boys, I don’t think, but they were certainly streetwise and clearly know how to win games. They also had the luck that one needs as well, particularly with that deflection for the third goal, but then again the Bodo player had the opportunity to shoot which should have been denied him.
So what about Celtic? So many of our men decided to have a poor game. Tom Rogic had one of the poorest games I can remember him play. I had to ask myself if he was fit. Was he perhaps carrying an injury? Tom was rightly substituted, but there were others who did not come up to the mark. Abada and Jota both possibly played well enough, but never looked like matchwinners, as they have been in the past. The defence must really have a long hard look at itself – in every case in the three goals, the opponent was unwatched when he had the chance to shoot. This must never be allowed to happen, if you are going to do well in Europe. Sadly both full backs Juranovic and Taylor were a little under par as well.
In midfield McGregor and O’Riley get pass marks, but not a great deal more. Up front, Maeda always puts in a shift, and I love the way he keeps running even when the cause seems lost. He got a goal, but we will need a lot more next week.
Our chances are, frankly, not high. Had the third goal not gone in, and had the score stayed at 2-1, I would have said we had a reasonable chance but the deflected goal was a real sickener. It is not impossible, but we need two or three players to turn on a stellar performance, and to prove that they can produce the goods when we really need them to do it. The way that we played against Rangers in the first half on 2 February would be enough to beat anyone, but it remains to be seen whether we can up our game sufficiently to turn the tables.
It pains me yet again to have to mention words like “naivety” to describe Celtic in Europe. The personnel are all different from previous seasons, but there still remain the glaring deficiencies in marking and giving the ball away cheaply. You simply cannot afford to make any mistakes in Europe. There still remains the second leg next week. I repeat it is not impossible, but we will have to up our game in every respect. But let us not take our eye off the ball for Sunday against Mark McGhee’s Dundee. We must win that one as well.
Last night’s atmosphere was once again spine tingling, at least at the start. The Green Brigade tried to kick start the team on several occasion, but the team failed to respond. I would hate to think that this will be the last European night at Parkhead this season. The news from Germany was depressing, but maybe that one is not all over yet either. Sadly, though, I fear it might be.
David Potter
