Celtic travelled to McDiarmid Park to take on St.Johnstone in the Scottish League Cup quarterfinal. The Hoops were coming on the back of a defeat against Kilmarnock, and Brendan Rodgers didn’t take any chances and named a very strong eleven against a side which lost heavily against Rangers in the league.
The Bhoys dominated the game in terms of possession but they lacked a bit of cutting edge in the first half hour. Leigh Griffiths and Callum McGregor should have scored from their chances in the first half. The Hoops upped the tempo in the second half, but they were being thwarted away by a determined St. Johnstone side who were putting everything on the line to defend. Leigh Griffiths finally got the goal in the 83rd minute after squandering some great chances. Celtic held on to a win, but they would be disappointed that they lost Dedryck Boyata in the dying minutes of the game due to a silly red card.
Here is how Rodgers’ men fared in this cup tie.
Scott Bain 5
He would be glad that he wasn’t punished in the late stages after he came out of his line needlessly to grab the ball. The new signing looked shaky in goal.
Kieran Tierney 7
Was his usual self down the left as he kept on driving forward and produced some excellent crosses.
Kristoffer Ajer 6
His night was cut short after he suffered an injury. For the time he was on the pitch, he wasn’t tested much defensively as Celtic enjoyed quite a lot of possession.
Dedryck Boyata 5
Was an assured performance overall as he gobbled up everything which was thrown at him. However, his night turned sour when he was given a late red card for showing dissent to the referee which would keep him out of the semifinals.
Mikael Lustig 6
Worked hard and always bombed forward at every opportunity. Defensively, he could have been better as he allowed his man to get some dangerous shots away.
Olivier Ntcham 5
The Frenchman blew hot and cold throughout the game. Opened up the defence on a few occasions but also made some poor judgement. Rodgers would expect a more complete performance from his talented midfielder.
Scott Brown 6
The captain was his usual self in midfield as he controlled the game and dictated the tempo by distributing the ball well.
James Forrest 6.5
The wide player drove on with intensity whenever he was on the ball. Looked sharp on most occasions but Rodgers would want him to have a bit more composure in the final third.
Callum McGregor 6
Missed an absolute sitter just before halftime. Overall a solid performance as he made some crucial passes and was always a threat in the attacking third whenever he had the ball.
Odsonne Edouard 6
The Frenchman put in a decent shift and played in behind Griffiths. Celtic’s big money signing has now gone seven games without scoring, and his confidence looks down at the moment.
Leigh Griffiths 6
Eventually scored the winner after wasting numerous opportunities. The game should have been in the bag if Griffiths had taken his earlier chances. Instead, the team laboured to a narrow 1-0 win. Was a smart finish from him for the goal.
Substitutes
Jack Hendry 6.5
Was called into action earlier than expected but he looked solid for the most parts in defence as he read the dangers well when St. Johnstone looked to attack on the counter.
Lewis Morgan 6
Rodgers trusted the young winger to take on Edouard’s place, and he did get into some good positions in the attacking areas. Wasn’t able to come up with the finished product.
Tom Rogic 7
Rodgers threw him on to give that cutting edge in the last 15 minutes. Looked threatening and was close to scoring.
