It was literally a six-pointer when Celtic visited Ibrox to clash heads with bitter rivals Rangers in a crucial Premiership encounter. The Hoops, although regained some momentum of late with successive wins, had to extend the streak this afternoon to close the gap at the top of the standings. Neil Lennon’s men looked upbeat and purposeful from the very first whistle, but they lost the plot following Nir Bitton’s marching order and an own goal from Callum McGregor sealed the deal for the Bears.
Below are the Celtic players rated in their disappointing 1-0 defeat against Rangers.
Vasilis Barkas: 5.5
Was not tested as such but looked unconvincing at times while collecting crosses. Could have done little to stop the goal as it took a deflection of McGregor’s shoulder before ending up into the back of the net.
Jeremie Frimpong: 7
Excellent going forward with his tireless marauding runs but should have done a lot better with his crosses and long balls. His aggressive approach refrained Borna Barisic from operating in the advanced areas.
Nir Bitton: 5
Started in place of injured Christopher Jullien and was doing a decent job in terms of winning the duels. But a silly challenge on Alfredo Morelos resulted in a sending off around the hour mark. His dismissal turned things around in the Gers’ favour minutes later.
Kristoffer Ajer: 7.5
The Norwegian was strong with his presence at the heart of the backline. Kept on building the moves from the back, carried the ball forward with his impressive dribbling attributes, also dominated physically while winning duels and making recoveries.
Diego Laxalt: 6.5
His passes and crosses were not accurate enough to create something productive in the attacking third. Did well defensively on a number of occasions when the hosts were plotting counter-attacking moves via James Tavernier. Restricted Kemar Roofe from dictating the show and Steven Gerrard was forced to take the attacker off at half time.
Ismaila Soro: 6
Started the game brightly as he won a few challenges in the middle of the park and played his part in staging attacking threats. But he struggled to keep up the pace as the game progressed and ended up being replaced by veteran Scott Brown soon after conceding. Lost the most number of duels (13) during his time on the pitch (stats via fotmob).
Ryan Christie: 5
A disappointing display from the Scotsman as he kept on getting dispossessed and losing the ball in the pockets. Lacked the creative spark and offered little help at the back to cover an overlapping Frimpong. Made his way for Hatem Elhamed following McGregor’s own goal.
Callum McGregor: 6.5
Worked tirelessly all over the pitch and had his attempts from distance. But his efforts were off target and the movements became predictable soon after the break. The own goal he scored was utterly unfortunate. Was replaced by Tom Rogic for the final few minutes.
David Turnbull: 5.5
Not his best game in Celtic colours. Failed with the dribbling attempts, also kept on getting dispossessed. Could not test Allan McGregor’s resolve in Rangers goal and was taken off to be replaced by Mohamed Elyounoussi soon after Bitton’s marching order.
Odsonne Edouard: 6.5
Forced McGregor to make a save early on but was closely monitored by Connor Goldson, Leon Balogun and Steven Davis. Linked up well at times with Griffiths high up the pitch, however, was largely ineffective during the final half-hour of the contest.
Leigh Griffiths: 7.5
Was closest to find the target but his shot was denied spectacularly by McGregor. The veteran custodian tipped the ball onto the post which went behind for a corner. Had a frustrating second half and was forced to sacrifice his place to make way for Shane Duffy following Bitton’s red card.
Celtic Substitutes vs Rangers
Shane Duffy: 6.5
Spot on with his tackles and tactical fouls which helped the Hoops maintain the defensive shape.
Mohamed Elyounoussi: 5.5
Should have kept the effort on target and level the scoreline as he was under no pressure from the Gers backline.
Scott Brown: 6.5
Screened the defence and injected energy in the middle of the park after being down to ten men.
Hatem Elhamed: 6
Did not offer much in the attacking third despite a few runs and link-up play from the right-hand flank.
Tom Rogic: NA
Played too little to warrant a rating.
