Celts put to the Sword || Motherwell v Celtic Match Analysis
- Ruaraidh Blackwood
- Jan 4
- 6 min read
After a ten-year wait, and countless valiant attempts, Motherwell finally ended their 35 game winless streak against Celtic with a lesson given to Wilfried Nancy's schoolBhoys.
The second game of an Old Firm double-header, Motherwell looked to get back to winning ways after a disappointing defeat at Ibrox at the weekend. For the visitors, they were looking to build on the recent success under their new boss, and grow more and more into the new system that he employs.
How They Lined Up...
Motherwell made three personnel changes to the team that narrowly missed out on points in Govan. Out went Longelo, Hendry, and Welsh - the latter being unable to play against his parent club - and in came O'Donnell, Priestman, and Slattery. Motherwell played without a 'proper' striker for the first time this season, and I would be lying if I said all of us at the Dispatch weren't scratching our heads at the choices. But boy were we wrong. Our shape, while still being listed as a 4-2-3-1 on the BBC Sport page, played more like a 4-1-3-2; with Priestman sitting deep as the pivot, Watt shifting into the CAM and Just playing as a second striker.
Motherwell were delightfully fluid with the ball at feet, despite enjoying less possession than the average so far this season. Higher xG than Celtic, more final third entries, more shots, more shots on target, more big chances. The Hoops just simply couldn't live with us. For all their pressure started to tell in the final moments, and it took a fantastic save from Ward to deny Nygren a late goal - and Celtic a lifeline - Motherwell looked to never have to overly exert themselves to cruise to victory, and the scoreline could have still been emphatic. Fadinger had multiple chances to add a league goal to his Motherwell plaudits this year, including a run through on goal and a rebound from Slattery's shot.
The Hoops also made some personnel changes since their win at the Spaghettihad, as well as a slight tweak to the system. Out went Engels, McCowan, and Kenny, and in came Bernardo, Scales, and Hatate. Having made a slight switch to two strikers with a 10 in behind, as opposed to the 2 inside forwards and a false 9 in their last game against Livingston (read more about that difference here), Celtic's play immediately becomes more focused in the centre of the park. I believe this was a massive part of their downfall when playing the Steelmen.
When breaking down Nancy's tactics (also available here), I mentioned how their play leaves them very vulnerable on the wings, with both wide centre-halves expected to give support to their wing-backs - since they're the only wide outlet. When playing a team with the protection of a double pivot, you will then run into the issues of always being outnumbered in wide areas, which is almost exactly how Stephen O'Donnell was afforded the time and space to find Ibrahim Said's head with pinpoint precision. Throughout the game, Celtic were forced long by being outnumbered almost everywhere on the park - in part due to the positioning of players in their own team, but also because of the marvellous pressing play of the Motherwell side.
On top of this, the choice of playing Liam Scales and Kieran Tierney down your left flank is almost asking for trouble in and of itself. The former is very much a combative centre half, one whose attributes do not lend themselves well to being the left-side of a back 3, and was very lucky to not end up sent off, with 6 fouls committed before his yellow finally came. The latter, while a fantastic player for the national side, is just not a wing back. Tierney lacks the pace and creative output to be able to get up and down the pitch unless he has someone else on the wing with him, and that showed in abundance with his positioning throughout the game.
I think the best way I can describe how out of their depth the Celtic defence was is the fact that all three of the starting centre-halves ended up in Kevin Clancy's book by the end of 90 minutes, and it can be argued that at least two of them could have been handed second yellows for their antics.
What The Stats Say...
Right, there's a lot to break down here, but bear with me.
As I mentioned before, Motherwell had more shots and more shots on target than Celtic, yielded a greater xG, and created the only 'big' chances of the game. All of this while enjoying far less possession than even against Rangers at the weekend (11% less).
To compound the point earlier about how little Celtic were able to deal with the Steelmen's barrage, Celtic committed double the amount of fouls and yielded four yellow cards to Motherwell's big fat donut. This piles even more pressure on Wilfried Nancy who - despite only having the hot seat for a number of weeks - must be feeling that he needs more to go his way, and sharpish. With the Old Firm derby on the horizon, although it is at Parkhead, I don't think it's unfair to say that the Bhoys have their work cut out for them, with Rangers coming off the back of two straight wins.
While Celtic did manage more possession, and started to make their pressure show in the latter stages of the game, it all seemed very toothless in attack, and incredibly disjointed. Misplaced passes all over the park, a lackadaisical approach to counter-pressing, and almost no ideas once they entered the final third are all hallmarks of a team severely lacking in identity, and once other teams cotton on (as we have) that it is as easy as it is to break them down then it could be troubling times ahead for the Hoops.
Ironically, we're now hoping our recent opponents now can get one over their city rivals so we have the chance to leapfrog them, but that's a story for another day.
Some Thoughts...
Once again, Motherwell have kept a clean sheet, and once again it's with another set of personnel. And, almost funnily, it's with a back four of four natural right backs. Therefore, once again, I find myself applauding the fact that JBA has managed to take what is and was a group of players who - individually - are not particularly gifted, and turn them into a team that is far greater than the sum of its parts. Quite marvellous.
Along with this, we are now faced with a tactical dilemma. With Said and Just playing up top, both of whom are not necessarily strikers, we created copious amounts of chances. If you add Tawanda back into the mix for the St Mirren game on Saturday, you do wonder how Askou squeezes him back into the side. Would Maswanhise become the solo striker in a 4-2-3-1, not dissimilarly to how he lined up in his start against South Africa? In which case, who do you drop? Every player, to a man, played their part fantastically against Celtic, and I do not envy the agony of choice we now possess. The strength in depth in our squad this season is nothing short of remarkable, considering how many players have been brought in this season, and how different the system being played has been for those who have been around for a while.
I know I sound like a broken record with this point, but week on week my amazement never wanes.
Onto The Next...
Up next for the Steelmen is a visit from the Auld Enemy, St Mirren. The first encounter between our sides since the semi. IT's fair to say we were nowhere near our best that day, and the Saints took full advantage of that, but the recently-crowned League Cup champions have been faltering in the league. Sitting in 10th, the Buddies' league form has been somewhat mixed, but that's a topic for another day.
For now, we focus on a delightful victory over fellow league-challengers Celtic, and hope that catapults into the New Year with more new-found vigour. And maybe even some tasty signings to keep us fans happy.
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