In 2 ½ seasons, Rodgers has lost just 8 domestic matches. Half of them were in the initial part of this current season. There were none in his first 16 months of Scottish matches but 8 in the last 13 months. What can we learn from those defeats? Defeats A reminder of the domestic loses, … [continue reading]
Rodgers
Rodgers No Better Than Deila (If You Don’t Count The Trophies)
At the macro level the key performance requirements have been met: But looking purely at match results, the team is not improving. Pts% is calculated assigning 3 points for a win and 1 for a draw to assess every result. It is far more powerful than Win% which completely disregards draws. My data collection started … [continue reading]
Ringing The Changes
6 personnel changes at Kilmarnock and another disappointing display. Rodger’s stated on Tuesday that changes may not be helping team stability. Is he right? Making changes when playing over 60 matches in 4 (or 5!) competitions when competing continuously from July to May surely makes sense. Players need to recharge and get over niggles. Changes … [continue reading]
Delivery Failure
There can be no denying Celtic’s current form is poor compared to previous trophy-laden seasons. I will look at a range of key performance indicators to see where it might be going wrong. I have plotted each metric per game back to the start of last season (2017/18). I did not include the 2016/17 season … [continue reading]
The 300
Griffith’s dramatic winner against BK Rosenborg, the first winner Celtic have scored past the 80th minute since Rogic’s glorious treble winner against Aberdeen at Hampden, was also Rodger’s 300th goal as Celtic manager. It’s a numbers landmark. It’s a numbers site. What to do? Landmark Goals From the first to the 300th, here are the … [continue reading]
Celtic Adapt (Just) In Time
Celtic had to come from 0-1 down to Rosenborg. It is to Rodger’s credit he changed the Celtic attacking shape. But this had contributed to the Hoops deficit. Celtic set out with Forrest just behind Edouard to mimic the shape given by Edouard and Dembele against Alashkert. This meant Sinclair was high and wide on … [continue reading]
Half Term Report 1: No Hard Brexit Despite Performances
The “big picture” shows European football after the New Year. All macro objectives met. But our own eyes tell us Celtic’s performances have not always met the highs of last season. Celtic lost 5 matches all season in 16/17 and have lost 7 already this. To stand still is to inevitably go backwards. We seek … [continue reading]
The 12th Man
Brendan Rodgers was appointed Celtic manager on 23rd May 2016. The Deila reign had run out of momentum, increasingly characterised by sluggish performances in big games, and a one paced, predictable brand of football. My reaction to the appointment of Rodgers was one of curiosity. Not being overly familiar with Rodgers, and not considering “lifelong … [continue reading]
Deila vs Rodgers, by numbers
Overall Records The Deila era yielded 2 (expected?) league titles, 1 League Cup and 1 post New Year European run in the Europa League. Those, like me, who have followed Celtic for 40+ years do not take European football after the Bells lightly (1 post New Year appearance in my 1st 27 years of support). … [continue reading]
The Start of Something Beautiful?
Both Deila and Rodgers got their Celtic careers underway as winners with League Cup triumphs. CBN takes a comparative look at their respective campaigns. The 2014/15 and 2016/17 campaigns took place wholly in Glasgow for Celtic with 2 games at Paradise and 2 at Hampden. Celts played 3 Premier League teams and 1 lower league … [continue reading]