Rodgers must ruthlessly drop Hatate to unleash Celtic’s “tenacious” star

Celtic were boosted by the return of their captain last weekend when Callum McGregor came into the side for the 3-0 win over Hearts at Parkhead in the Scottish Premiership, and they now prepare to face bottom-of-the-league St. Johnstone.

The former Scotland international had missed out on the defeat to Rangers before the international break through injury, and reminded the supporters of his quality and what the team lacked whilst he was out of the team.

As you can see in the table above, the left-footed metronome was almost perfect in possession, completing 99% of his attempted passes, and excelled defensively, as he was not dribbled past a single time.

The Hoops skipper has the ability to control matches with his use of the ball, dictating the tempo of matches with his incredibly efficient passing, and was a vital figure in the 3-0 win.

Arne Engels deputised for him in the number six role against Rangers before the break, but it is further forward where the Belgian’s talents are best suited.

Why Arne Engels has been worth the money for Celtic

The Hoops gambled when they splashed a club-record fee of £11m to sign the 21-year-old gem from Augsburg last summer, as he had only started 13 of his 32 matches in the Bundesliga last season.

Engels did not have a wealth of experience or a track record of excellent performances at a high level for Celtic to be sure of what they were getting when they signed him, which is why it was such a gamble to splash the cash on him.

The Belgium international’s performances for the Scottish giants since his move to Parkhead, however, have proven that he has been worth the money so far.

Engels has delivered at the top end of the pitch with a return of ten goals and 12 assists in 44 appearances in all competitions for the Hoops, making him only the second central midfielder – after Matt O’Riley in 2023/24 – to hit double figures for goals and assists for Celtic since the start of the 2020/21 season.

This shows that the Belgian whiz has surpassed expectations, given his lack of experience prior to joining the club, as he has joined an elite group of midfielders – with just him and O’Riley – over the past five years to achieve that record, whilst still having a couple of months left to add to his tally.

There was one Celtic midfielder, however, who did not have his best afternoon in the win over Hearts at Parkhead last weekend, as Reo Hatate struggled against the Jam Tarts.

Why Reo Hatate should be dropped

Rodgers must ruthlessly ditch the Japan international from the starting line-up for this clash with St. Johnstone after he failed to provide an impressive showing last time out.

Hatate was selected to line up alongside McGregor and Engels in midfield, but did not reward Rodgers’ faith in him with an excellent performance on the pitch.

As you can see in the table above, the Japanese midfielder offered next to nothing in the final third, and was a liability defensively, losing all of his duels and being dribbled past once.

This shows that Hatate was ineffective at both ends of the pitch, as he did not impact play enough offensively or protect his back four, and that is why Rodgers must drop him out of the starting line-up.

Chalkboard

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Celtic are against the team that is currently sat at the bottom of the table and that presents the league leaders with a chance to rotate and offer chances to lesser-seen players, including Portuguese ace Paulo Bernardo.

Why Paulo Bernardo should start against St. Johnstone

The former Benfica starlet made his first appearance since the 8th February when he came off the bench in the 3-0 win over Hearts last weekend, having been struggling with an ankle injury.

This clash with St. Johnstone, who are bottom of the table with 19 losses in 31 matches, could be the perfect opportunity to hand him his first start since returning from injury, against a team the Hoops can reasonably expect to boss the game against – given their respective positions in the division.

When he has been fit and available, Bernardo has proven his worth to the Scottish giants with some excellent displays in the middle of the park as one of the number eights ahead of McGregor.

The Portuguese whiz has scored two goals, created five ‘big chances’, and registered three assists in just 11 league starts, which shows that he can contribute offensively, but maybe not to the level that Engels can – meaning that the former Augsburg man can step up in that area.

One of those two goals came against St. Johnstone away from home back in September, as the central midfielder brilliantly found the bottom corner from the edge of the box with a sublime finish.

As well as being a threat in the final third, Bernardo is also a “tenacious” – as described by Rodgers – defender out of possession, constantly looking to win the ball back for his team.

The right-footed dynamo has averaged 4.0 tackles and interceptions combined per 90 in the Premiership, which illustrates his desire to get stuck in with challenges to help his team out defensively. Meanwhile, Hatate has averaged 1.5 tackles and interceptions per 90 and did not make any against Hearts.

This suggests that Bernardo would come into the team as an upgrade on the Japanese dud from a defensive perspective, which could help Celtic to cut out any counter attacks that St. Johnstone may have.

It also suggests that he would be ideal next to Engels in the team because he can provide the defensive edge to complement the Belgian’s brilliant offensive power.

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It is now down to Rodgers to drop Hatate from the starting XI to make room for the Portuguese talent to come back into the side this afternoon.