During Celtic’s 3-2 Derby win against The Rangers on Saturday, my main focus when watching was the number of poor passes from Celtic. This was certainly borne out by the overall passing data as Celtic completed 82% of all passes compared to 87% average for all games this season. That is actually the lowest of … [continue reading]
Pressing
Relentless, By Numbers
On this week’s Huddle Breakdown (please subscribe on whatever channel you consume your podcasts) @jucojames spelt out how some of Celtic’s key metrics have declined since the World Cup hiatus. And they are some core metrics, for sure. Looking at Scottish matches only, expected goals (xG) is down from 2.99 to 2.82. Celtic are having … [continue reading]
Lennon’s Pressing Concern?
Rodger’s Celtic were moulded to play in a high pressing style out of possession. He is heavily influenced by Guardiola whose Barcelona team were famously assertive in the press out of possession. Has Lennon changed Celtic’s defensive style? PPDA For a number of years Passes Per Defensive Action (PPDA) has been accepted as a useful … [continue reading]
The Lennon Press
Under Rodgers, Celtic’s pressing effectiveness deteriorated season by season. With more emphasis on possession, or perhaps cumulative fatigue allied to the sheer number of games, it was less evident by season three. Lennon has reinvigorated Celtic’s press. Attacking Threat The starkest evidence is Passes Attempted Per Tackle (PAPT). Last season, Celtic’s opponents attempted 13.24 passes … [continue reading]
Which Opponents Are ImPressing?
Last season Celtic scored 36 goals from fast breaks – 28% of all goals. Celtic’s 36 fast break goals came from 121 shots – 30% of fast break shots resulted in goals. Their opponents scored 15 from fast breaks, also 28% of goals conceded. 46 shots came from fast breaks meaning 33% of opponents fast … [continue reading]