Celtic’s season continues to get better and better. Brendan Rodgers has transformed the club into a formidable outfit that now hasn’t been beaten in domestic competition for 24 matches.
They’ve made it through the first half of the league season unscathed and all the chatter is now about whether or not they can do the unthinkable and have an invincible campaign. No side looks like they can get close to besting Rodgers’ men over 90 minutes.
Despite that domestic form, there’s still improvements to be made in the Celtic squad and Brendan Rodgers knows that his side are far from the finished product. Improvement is needed in Europe after crashing out of the Champions League in the Group Stages and that’s where the most scope for progress under Rodgers lies.
What are the areas of the squad Rodgers needs to improve? What kind of player should they bring in?
Here are THREE glaring issues that Celtic must solve in January…
More competition in midfield
Celtic’s midfield has shown massive improvement in the last six months, mainly thanks to the resurgence of Scott Brown and Stuart Armstrong.
Both of them are enjoying some of the best form of their entire careers and look reborn in different roles than we saw under Ronny Deila.
Still, beyond those two, question marks remain. Callum McGregor looks good enough for domestic football but does he have the quality to impact the Champions League? Nir Bitton can be great on his day but is often too passive in the midfield to have any great effect.
The Bhoys need a quality first team midfielder to come in and shake things up, keeping Brown & Armstrong on their toes by providing more serious competition.
More depth needed at the back
Jozo Simunovic and Erik Sviatchenko are forming an excellent partnership in the Celtic backline. Simunovic, on the verge of leaving the club last summer, has emerged as a cool, consistent customer at the back for the Bhoys.
Beyond these two however, things get a little more ropey. Kolo Toure initially looked like a top performer but has fallen off slightly in the last 6 weeks. He came in to play against Motherwell and looked decidedly off the pace, perhaps his years finally catching up with him.
Efe Ambrose is a popular personality at Celtic but his performances can be shambolic when he’s not on top form. Dedryck Boyata has only played once for Rodgers and doesn’t look close to featuring at all for the Bhoys.
If the Bhoys can add one more quality centre-back into the squad, then they’ll immediately be a more solid outfit. Likewise, perhaps Rodgers can start to have more confidence in the three-at-the-back systems he’s been experimenting with at times over the last 6 months.
More danger needed in wide areas
Both James Forrest and Scott Sinclair are having excellent seasons in a Celtic shirt, offering genuine width and danger to the Celtic attack.
The problem, however, is the lack of depth in the wide areas should one or both of these players be ruled out of action.
James Forrest has a history of injury problems at the club and Scott Sinclair has already had a sideline spell this season. Being a winger in Scotland isn’t easy given the physical nature of the league and that can take its toll over 38 games.
The Bhoys definitely look out of sorts when both are missing and Gary Mackay-Steven hasn’t been able to come in and offer the same attacking output. Beyond Mackay-Steven there isn’t another natural winger in the first team squad – apart from Patrick Roberts who is returning to Man City in the summer.
This is another must-look-at priority for Rodgers and the Celtic money men in January.