Celtic failed to get their first win of the European season on the board when they were beaten 2-0 by Braga at Parkhead in the Europa League on Thursday night.
The Hoops were held to successive 0-0 draws, losing on penalties in the second leg, by Kairat in the Champions League qualifiers, before they were held to a 1-1 draw by Red Star Belgrade in their first match of the league phase in the Europa League last week.
Their 2-0 loss to Braga in front of their own supporters, who made their feelings clear at full-time, means that they have failed to win four successive matches in Europe this season.
Celtic may feel hard done by, though, as VAR ruled out Kelechi Iheanacho’s goal with a call that was described by Chris Sutton as “possibly the worst decision of all time”.
Celtic have been dominant domestically, with four successive league title wins, but they have not had much success on the European stage, in any competition, and it is a step up that even some of the club’s best players have struggled with.
Kyogo Furuhashi, for example, struggled in the Champions League last season as he came towards the end of his career with the Scottish giants.
Why Kyogo Furuhashi struggled for Celtic in Europe
Something that can be underestimated about European football is the step up in physicality as well as quality in comparison to some Scottish Premiership matches.
In terms of how players use their strength, how they use their speed, the intensity of their press, it can sometimes feel like a different game in Europe, which is why Kyogo, in particular, had some tough nights in European games.
The Japan international, who scored 85 goals for the Hoops, was never the most physical centre-forward for Celtic, but it appeared to effect his European form more than his domestic form, possibly due to the reasons listed above.
Appearances
6
7
Touches
14
13.1
Goals
2
1
Big chances missed
2
3
Duel success rate
33%
39%
Aerial duel success rate
0%
0%
Duels won per game
1.3
1.0
As you can see in the table above, Kyogo lost the majority of his duels, failing to win a single aerial battle in the Champions League in his last two seasons with the club, scoring three goals in 13 matches.
Because of how dominant opposition centre-backs were with the Japanese striker, the experienced marksman failed to provide regular quality at the top end of the pitch.
Moments like the one in the clip above against Atletico Madrid were far and far between, unfortunately, and the increased intensity and physicality of European football may be the reason behind that.
Now, another member of Ange Postecoglou’s treble-winning side appears to be suffering from similar issues in the current team for Brendan Rodgers.
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Callum McGregor captained the Scottish giants once again in the middle of the park, but turned in a worse performance than Benjamin Nygren for Celtic.
Why McGregor is on his way to becoming the next Kyogo
Like Kyogo, the Hoops captain is not the most physical player in terms of his mobility or intensity, which is understandable given that he is a tempo-setting number six in the Premiership.
His composed play on the ball, completing 94% of his passes in the Premiership (Sofascore), helps him to dictate and control matches for the Hoops in domestic action, but the increased physicality and intensity of European football has had an impact on his performances.
Celtic average 73.2% of the ball per game (WhoScored) in the Premiership, which illustrates their total dominance, but they only had 56% of the ball against Braga at Parkhead on Thursday night.
Because Braga had more intensity to their press than a lot of the teams that Celtic face domestically have, McGregor, Nygren, and Paulo Bernardo had more of a fight on their hands than they usually do in a Hoops shirt at Parkhead.
Nygren outperformed the captain with his play in and out of possession, showing greater physicality and intensity, winning three more duels and twice as many tackles in 23 fewer minutes on the pitch.
McGregor lost 80% of his duels on the night. That came after he won four of his nine duels, making one tackle, in 90 minutes against Red Star Belgrade last week, per Sofascore.
The Celtic veteran’s physical struggles in the Europa League should not come as a huge surprise, though, as he has also lost 53% of his ground duels in the Premiership, per Sofascore, which shows that he has been slightly off the pace in his battles on the deck in domestic action.
Kyogo’s exit did not result in an immediate replacement in January, as the Hoops felt that Adam Idah and Daizen Maeda offered enough cover in the centre-forward position, and a similar situation could arise with McGregor.
That is not to say that the left-footed star will be sold by the club he has spent his entire career at, but the Hoops could get to a point where the captain may find himself out of the team to play a more dynamic and physical midfield that is capable of scrapping it out in matches to win duels and fight for points.
Therefore, McGregor could be in danger of becoming the new Kyogo because of his struggles with the intensity and physicality of European football, based on recent evidence.
Rodgers will be hoping, though, that the 32-year-old star can learn from these last couple of matches and position himself better to avoid duels and take more control of the game in possession in the rest of the league phase.
