Celtic stumbled to a 1-1 draw against Motherwell on Saturday afternoon as the Steelmen frustrated Brendan Rodgers’ table-toppers with a disciplined defensive performance. Despite being awarded two penalties on the day, the Hoops couldn’t walk away with all three points.
Whilst Celtic may not have seen their lead cut at the top of the table, the problems with the performance at the weekend will still need to be addressed.
It was hardly the best preparation for Rome, as Celtic face a must-win Champions League matchup against Lazio on Tuesday night, but it will be down to Rodgers to try and regain the momentum that the team were building up prior to the international break.
Joe Hart – 5
Fingers will be pointed towards the English stopper for conceding the late equaliser from Jon Obika as he completely misjudged the flight of the corner, leading to an embarrassing error. Hart earlier made a massive save to deny Harry Paton but there wasn’t much else to note from his performance.
Anthony Ralston – 6
A rare start for the Scotland international as he filled in for Alistair Johnston and turned in a steady display as he was always willing to get forward and contribute to Celtic’s attacking play.
Cameron Carter-Vickers – 7
It was a solid performance from the American on Saturday as he provided a magnificent last-gasp clearance to spare Joe Hart’s blushes.
Liam Scales – 7
Scales turned in a performance that we have come to expect from him this season, helping to control the game with his passing as he continued to take up positions further up the park. He was unlucky not to be on the scoresheet but was solid defensively, making a few good interceptions to prevent Motherwell attacks.
Greg Taylor – 6
Taylor put in a decent performance as he was constantly involved in Celtic’s play and was always willing to get forward, much like Ralston on the opposite flank.
Matt O’Riley – 6
The recently capped Danish international wasn’t able to control and influence the game as much as he would have liked and that clearly affected Celtic’s overall play. He came close to netting another late winner against Motherwell in the dying embers of the game but ultimately couldn’t provide the finishing touch.
Callum McGregor – 6
McGregor was trying his best to spark some life into the Celtic attack but couldn’t provide the necessary passes to carve open a defensively astute Motherwell defence.
Odin Thiago Holm – 5
The Norwegian was replaced at half-time as he failed to influence the game despite some neat touches.
Yang Hyun-jun – 5
Yang was unable to build upon his starring role in the win over Aberdeen as his influence was limited on the right wing. The South Korean came close to grabbing his second Celtic goal with a header that missed the mark and he was substituted after appearing to have pulled his hamstring.
Kyogo Furuhashi – 5
Kyogo struggled to get involved in the game against a compact and organised Motherwell defence. The Japanese forward seemed to come to life following the introduction of Oh, but that partnership only lasted 22 minutes.
Luis Palma – 5
Palma tried to cause problems with crosses into the Motherwell box, but these efforts were to no avail as the visitors’ defence dealt with them fairly comfortably. The standout moment from the Honduran’s performance was his penalty miss as he was denied from the spot by Liam Kelly.
Oh Hyeon-gyu – 5
The South Korean forward brought a different dynamic to the Celtic attack that caused some problems for the Motherwell defence but he passed up a gilt-edged chance late on to win the game.
Mikey Johnston – 5
Johnston made an impact from the bench as he won the penalty that was eventually converted by David Turnbull. He hasn’t been in the equation for most of the season, but if he can build upon his performances for Ireland he could force his way back into Brendan Rodgers’ squad more regularly.
David Turnbull – 6
Turnbull was a strong influence from the bench as he came on to convert the penalty that put Celtic ahead in the 86th minute. He has now scored in each of Celtic’s last four league fixtures and will be hoping that will be enough to earn himself a starting role on Tuesday night.
Marco Tilio – N/A
The Aussie was deployed late on as Celtic went in search of a winner but he couldn’t offer much on his Celtic debut.
JAMES MCKENZIE // Follow James HERE
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