Rodgers must now drop Celtic’s awful 3/10 flop

Celtic were left frustrated on Sunday as they were beaten 3-2 in a dramatic match by their fierce Glasgow rivals in the Scottish Premiership at Parkhead.

The Hoops found themselves 2-0 down at half-time, thanks to goals from midfielders Nicolas Raskin and Mohamed Diomande, but Brendan Rodgers got a great reaction out of his side.

Daizen Maeda scored shortly after the start of the second half before Reo Hatate eventually equalised for the league leaders with a cute finish into the far corner to make it 2-2.

Unfortunately, though, all three points were claimed by the away team when Hamza Igamane unleashed a spectacular effort on the half-volley to beat Kasper Schmeichel in the 88th minute.

It was a deeply disappointing afternoon for the Hoops, who missed out on the chance to move 19 points clear at the top of the table, but there were some positives to take out of the game.

Auston Trusty and Liam Scales being unavailable for selection through injury provided Maik Nawrocki with a chance to show Rodgers what he is capable of, and the Polish titan stepped up with an impressive showing.

Maik Nawrocki’s performance against Rangers

It may seem strange to be praising a central defender off the back of 3-2 defeat at home to a rival.

However, the former Legia Warsaw man deserves great credit for his calm display in the storm of a poor team performance.

Nawrocki had only played 23 minutes across two appearances in the domestic cups this season, prior to kick-off on Sunday, and this meant that he came into the match without any confidence or match sharpness.

It is fair to say that Rodgers has not been too keen on the Polish centre-back this season, as the likes of Cameron Carter-Vickers, Trusty, and Scales have all been preferred ahead of him, but his performance against Rangers may change the manager’s thoughts on him.

Whilst others faltered and withered under the pressure from the away side, Nawrocki stood strong to win 70% (7/10) of his defensive duels and remained composed in possession to complete 93% of his attempted passes.

As you can see in the table above, he did not get dribbled past a single time in the entire match and read the game well to make four interceptions for his side.

There was also very little that he could have done about any of the three goals that were conceded, as Jeffrey Schlupp was beaten for the first, Carter-Vickers let the ball go over him for the second, and Alistair Johnston slipped and missed his challenge for the third.

Nawrocki outshone a number of his teammates, who have been regulars this season whilst he has watched on from the sidelines, and one of those was winger Nicolas Kuhn.

Nicolas Kuhn’s performance against Rangers

Rodgers opted to go with Kuhn on the right of the front three from the start against the Gers, with Maeda in the middle and Jota on the left flank.

Unfortunately, the German wizard was unable to showcase the best of his magical qualities at the top end of the pitch for the Hoops, as he was battled out of the game by Ridvan Yilmaz.

GlasgowWorld handed the forward a dismal player rating of 3/10 and wrote that ‘Yilmaz had him in his pocket’, which is backed up by his statistics. The former Rapid Vienna winger was far too weak in physical battles throughout the first half, losing five of his seven duels. He was also lapse in possession, losing the ball once every five minutes.

Speaking on the Sky Sports commentary, former Celtic forward Chris Sutton criticised Kuhn for “taking the easy option” too often when in possession, by passing the ball on instead of turning to run at Yilmaz or Leon Balogun to make something happen for the team.

Rodgers opted to haul the left-footed ace off at the break, replacing him with Adam Idah, and that allowed Jota to move over to the right side, where he made an almost instant impact.

As you can see in the clip above, Jota got his head down and beat Yilmaz for pace down the wing to deliver a brilliant cross for Maeda, rather than taking the ‘easy option’ as Kuhn did in the first 45.

Why Celtic should drop Nicolas Kuhn

With this performance in mind, Rodgers must ruthlessly bin the German sensation from the starting line-up when Hearts come to Parkhead in the Premiership on the other side of the international break.

Kuhn’s no-show against Rangers on Sunday should be enough to see him dropped from the side, because Jota offered more than him within minutes of switching into his position.

The 25-year-old star’s recent performances in domestic football have been concerning. He has only recorded one assist, having failed to score, in his last seven matches in the SFA Cup and Premiership combined, with his last league goal coming against Dundee at the start of February.

Therefore, Rodgers should look to take him out of the firing line after the international break to, hopefully, give him a kick to help him to get back to his best on the pitch for Celtic, because the Hoops know just how good the winger can be.

As you can see in the table above, Kuhn does have the quality to be a real difference-maker in the final third as both a scorer and a creator of goals when he is at his best.

Unfortunately, the Scottish giants have not seen him at his best in recent weeks in domestic action, and certainly not in the first-half against Rangers this weekend.

Now, Rodgers must bin the 3/10 dud from the starting XI for the clash with Hearts, moving Jota over to the right to replace him, and then hope that it will motivate Kuhn to bounce back and return to the best version of himself in a Celtic jersey before the end of the season.