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The National (Scotland)
The National (Scotland)
National
Ewan Paton

Pundits point to obvious Kelechi Iheanacho Celtic solution

Kelechi Iheanacho is the answer to Celtic's current striking problem.

That's the consensus among three Hoops-minded pundits, who dismissed the notion that Daizen Maeda is capable of playing at No.9 on the European stage.

Brendan Rodgers' side were held to a 1-1 draw against Crvena zvezda in Belgrade last night as they opened their Europa League campaign.

Iheanacho gave Celtic the lead after coming off the bench at half-time, before Marko Arnautovic equalised later in the half.

The goalscorer was substituted on for Maeda, who struggled to make any sort of impact on the game in Serbia.

Rodgers told TNT Sports: "We needed someone centrally to hold the ball up.

"I felt that we arrived into the final third in the first half and we were either loose with the ball or didn't hold the ball up.

"That's one of Kels' greatest strengths, he can take the ball in and use his body well."

And Rodgers' personnel change was certainly something three pundits agreed with from a Celtic perspective, with the visitors too blunt in attack.

"Red Star haven't really done much to make it difficult for Celtic, it's just that Celtic are too lethargic," Stiliyan Petrov said at half-time during last night's coverage. "Lack of energy, no purpose and this is something that's really confusing because it seems like they are looking for somebody else to take opportunities to be the leader.

"Everything is so simple for Red Star. They put pressure on Celtic and get in the right areas and put crosses in the box.

"I feel sorry for Maeda. He looks confused. 'I don't know what to do. I come short, the ball don't come. I go long, the ball don't come. Then I stand still to see what's happening around me, but nothing is happening.'

"We talked about Celtic being fluent and creating chances - he's not getting chances.

"When you play as a winger, you get the ball all the time. When the team is in trouble, you've got the pace. Get him the ball and he's enjoying it. But when you're not involved, you're not impacting the game. His movement looked lost, he looks confused.

"Only eight touches. If I'm a striker, I'm frustrated. It seems like he kind of accepted it, he's got that culture of being here and doing his best.

"Sometimes you have to be vocal. He's been in the team long enough to say 'I want the ball, I want to be involved."

Johan Mjallby added: "We all know that Daizen Maeda is not the Celtic striker. He doesn't really have the movement or the understanding of that position.

"If you have a player like that, we need other players to go in behind and Celtic hasn't.

"Even if it's been a 50/50 tie and the tempo's been low, Celtic hardly created anything in the first half and that's a worry for Brendan Rodgers.

"Maybe he's not in the best shape of his career or he's lost a bit of form. But he's not a central striker. He's not that kind of player.

"He can play there if Celtic are going on the counter attack and there's going to be acres of space because of his running power.

"That's why for me, he's a winger. he showed last season he can compete against the best in Europe but centrally? No."

And Chris Sutton took to social media to throw in his thoughts.

He said: "Maeda off. If he’s not injured I feel for him. A guy who was a revelation playing wide shoehorned into playing a position he’s not comfortable in… surely playing him off the right would be better. 33 goals last season. A bit of a pickle Celtic are in...

"Draw about right. Celtic better with Iheanacho as centre forward as they have a focal point and someone to play off… need to utilise Maeda better… Donovan mature beyond his years."

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