O'Neill backs McGregor's warning as Celtic hunt for their rhythm
Martin O'Neill says he is in full agreement with captain Callum McGregor about what has gone wrong at Celtic, and he insists the club will "sort it out". The manager's response came after a run of results that has left the Scottish champions short of the control they are used to.
Celtic have won three of their last nine games. They still lead the Scottish Premiership, with a four-point gap at the top before Sunday's match against Falkirk. They have lost only one league game this season, at home to Rangers. In the Europa League, the second tier of European club football below the Champions League, they have lost all three of their matches so far.
McGregor was blunt after the 2-2 draw with Dundee United. He said some moments in Celtic's games had been "a bit basketball", and that the team had not had the control they usually show. Defender Cameron Carter-Vickers used a similar word after the Glasgow derby defeat, saying the side had been "too random" in the way they played.
The captain also pointed to the way the team has been set up. He suggested that playing strikers Callum Osmand and Camilo Duran as wingers may be part of the problem. A winger usually plays wide on the touchline, while a centre forward is the main central goalscorer.
O'Neill agreed on both players. He said Osmand is essentially a centre forward, and would probably work best playing off a strong partner alongside him rather than leading the attack alone. "Playing off" means dropping deeper into the space behind the main striker to link the play. He also agreed that Duran is really a centre forward.
That is the heart of the debate. Celtic have plenty of talent in attack, but a striker asked to hug the touchline can lose the central role that makes a team's play flow. McGregor's point, backed by his manager, is that getting the shape right may matter as much as any single result.
For Celtic supporters, the next test is Sunday's game against Falkirk. A win would keep that four-point cushion at the top of the table intact, and it would give O'Neill a chance to show whether the club can find its rhythm again.
