Chris Sutton’s verdict on Celtic’s night of frustration
Soccer Football - Champions League - Group F - Celtic v RB Leipzig - Celtic Park, Glasgow, Scotland, Britain - October 11, 2022 Celtic's Matt O'Riley and manager Ange Postecoglu look dejected after the match REUTERS/Russell Cheyne
Chris Sutton delivered a measured reaction to Celtic’ Champions League exit- mixing the frustration of defeat to RB Leipzig with pride at the way the side pushed and pushed before falling behind in the 72nd minute.
Last night’s defeat from RB Leipzig seemed to sum up the four matches of the campaign to date, playing well and threatening to score before eventually being picked open by experienced, street-wise opponents.
As the fans streamed out the ground there was a feeling of dejection but everyone inside the ground had witnessed a top class match that pushed Celtic to the edge without two of their most influential players in Callum McGregor and Jota.
The better team won. Celtic looked tired in the 2nd half and gave away too many chances. Leipzig eventually capitalised. So many missed opportunities the story of this season’s campaign. Got to stick with what this manager is trying to achieve though and trust the process?
— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) October 11, 2022
Ange Postecoglou has plenty to ponder after last night’s match but the one huge frustration is the inability to convert chances. Had Kyogo Furuhashi sent a first half header into the net rather than floating it over the crossbar it would have been an entirely different evening.
The faiulre to convert chances is putting extra pressure on the Celtic defence, eventually opponents like Liepzig are going to find the net, when that happens it becomes a mountain too high for Postecoglou’s side to overcome.