WINDOW STRESSING
»»January will make or break Celts’ spluttering title defence »»Bren looks ready to buy after admitting squad lacks depth »»Form of hitmen Griff and work-in-progress Ed is a concern »»Boyata could be lured away and Benkovic must be kept on
The title would have been done and dusted with a fit and firing Griffiths
EVERYONE was talking about how big an actionpacked December is going to be on the park in terms of the title race. But January is also going to be huge off it.
It was refreshing to hear Brendan Rodgers refusing to blame Kevin Clancy for Celtic dropping two points in the 1-1 draw with Motherwell at Fir Park.
The bottom line is it was the referee’s fault with Filip Benkovic’s disallowed goal just the latest in a string of recent blunders by officials.
But Brendan effectively said he can’t trust his squad having made seven changes from the Betfred Cup final starting XI, which certainly seemed excessive.
His post-match comments tell me there is a title race and I wonder if the Celtic manager is firing a shot across the bows of his board ahead of the transfer window, saying to them, ‘If we want to win another title then I might just need a bit of help.’
I think his side will win the league but I can’t say I’m 100 per cent certain. That’s down to the strength of the league and areas of concern in the Celtic team, particularly up front.
Kilmarnock have gone top and the fact they are in the mix shows the incredible job Steve Clarke has done. I don’t think they can win the league but everyone said that about Leicester.
Then you have Rangers who in Allan McGregor have the best keeper in the league and the best striker in Alfredo Morelos, although they have to keep both on the park to mount a serious title challenge.
The Colombian’s indiscipline is ridiculous. There must come a point, after his red card in the Dons defeat, where Steven Gerrard realises he can’t rely on him as he’s such a loose cannon.
It makes January very intriguing. It will be interesting to see if Brendan Rodgers has faith in Odsonne Edouard and Leigh Griffiths to see their team through. They need to up their game if Celtic are to win the title.
One of the biggest issues this season is neither of them have really fired. Edouard is still a work in progress. He’s erratic. He does some very good things and I was surprised he was left out at Fir Park. But I can understand why in terms of trying to get game time for Griffiths to get him back to some sort of form.
Edouard is a young man and needs patience. But Rodgers is in the habit of winning trophies and, while Edouard has been very good in patches, consistency isn’t there.
In that case Rodgers would have thought he could have relied on Griffiths – and he certainly has an obligation to get himself in better shape and firing like he can.
He hasn’t convinced me this season. I know it has been stop-start and there have been all sorts of issues but the title would have been done and dusted with a fit and firing Griffiths.
People might point to Edouard’s 12 goals and six for Griffiths but in terms of level of performance they wouldn’t have pass marks this season.
I sense the Celtic support are frustrated with Edouard and are willing Griffiths to come on and do well. But there are question marks over the way he lives his life.
He is a player I rate so highly but he needs to knuckle down. He will need games and time to get back in but he looks short of fitness.
It’s tricky for Rodgers to find the balance with the rotation but Ryan Christie is the shining example because he came in against Hearts in the Betfred Cup semi-final and turned Celtic’s season on its head. His running power and ability have taken the team to the next level.
The central defence will also be tested if someone comes in with a big offer for Dedryck Boyata and it’s key to keep Benkovic.
Celtic’s first XI looks all right but they will be tested in terms of squad depth and they don’t seem to have the strength.
Jozo Simunovic has made a couple of high-profile errors but he’s the best they’ve got in reserve and with Boyata injured ahead of an enormous European game against Salzburg on Thursday we’re looking at it and thinking, ‘Blimey, this won’t be easy.’
Steve Conroy took Craig Levein to task when the ex-referee claimed the Hearts gaffer’s attack was personal following the defeat to Rangers.
But Levein was absolutely right to let rip after Morelos scored from an offside position with the assistant referee in a position right in line that made it virtually impossible to get wrong. Levein’s attack wasn’t personal and it was idiotic of Conroy to say that.
Then there was Clancy in Celtic’s game at Fir Park. Some of his decisions were baffling. It came on the same night the Andrew Dallas soap opera continued with his St Johnstone penalty award coming after the ridiculous spot-kick he gave Celtic in the Betfred Cup Final.
BT Sport have offered to use VAR in their live games. People will point to the fact it won’t be in use at every game. That’s fair enough but it might impact in a positive way on the games we do.