Scotsman reporter explains away Celtic’s ‘penalty paranoia’

Andrew Smith of The Scotsman has explained that the speed of Celtic’s play and their one touch football is the reason for their lack of penalties in the SPFL!

In 22 matches this season the hoops have been awarded just two penalties, both away from home, while conceding five including in successive home matches against struggling Ross County and Dundee United.

Last night’s goals against St Mirren took Celtic’s tally for the season to 69 giving them a goal difference that is 23 better than their nearest rivals.

Over five or six matches any statistics can be transformed into a pattern to be taken down but 22 matches, playing every club home and away is a substantial amount of fixtures to iron out any quirks.

The Scotsman report:

Penalty quirk shouldn’t prompt paranoia

Celtic had a shout for a penalty when Liel Abada tumbled in the box in the opening minutes last night. If the award had been given, it would have been the first at home for Ange Postecoglou’s men in the top flight this season. Bizarrely, Celtic are one of only two clubs not to have won a spot-kick in their own environs in 2022-23…the other being bottom team Ross County.

Now, any cries of injustice or dodgy goings on are misplaced over how this could possibly be so. How can a team more on the front foot than any other in the country, and have plundered more goals on their own patch than any other over the first 12 league games, be on a level only with a County that have struggled mightily it happen in the final third?

In some ways, the answer could lie right there. As well as the alacrity with which Celtic pounce in their opponents’ penalty area. Postecoglou’s men are all about one-touch movement and one-touch punishment in their visitors’ area. No-one more so than the cinch Premiership’s top scorer Kyogo Furuhashi.

His two finishes to take his league tally to 17 – of an 18 season total – were of this variety; a first-time lob to open his account against the Paisley men a truly world-class goal. Celtic do not hesitate or hold on to the ball when crafting scoring opportunities in danger areas. Defenders don’t have moments to down them because they are rarely given opportunities to do so.

When the bottom club, Ross County have been awarded more penalties at Celtic Park than the Premiership leaders it surely merits further investigation.

The speed that Celtic play the ball at makes it more likely that defenders will bump into forwards in the penalty box with decent penalty shouts in virtually every home match.