GLASGOW, SCOTLAND - APRIL 11: Celtic huddle ahead of kick off during the William Hill Premiership between Celtic and St. Mirren at Celtic Park on April 11, 2026 in Glasgow, Scotland. (Photo by WM Sport Media/Getty Images)
Callum McGregor has admitted that it is asking too much to expect Celtic strikers to turn it on as wingers in every game.
Despite the shortage of wingers at Celtic Martin O’Neill has insisted on sticking with the 4-3-3 formation reinforced by Ange Postecoglou in season 20/21.
On the right Postecoglou alternated between James Forrest and Liel Abada. On the other flank he had Jota and Daizen Maeda.
O’Neill has nothing like those options.
Haissem Hassan plays a very defined role on the right. He can get 40 yards up the park, he can beat defenders for fun but is goal-less so far in his Celtic career.
Beyond that Celtic have Jota on the comeback trail, playing a maximum of 45 minutes and left out of Celtic’s Europa League squad.
Callum Osmand started wide left against Hearts and scored twice in a 7-1 victory.
CELTIC- SQUARE PEGS INTO ROUND HOLES
Against Hibs and Dundee United O’Neill started with two strikers shoe-horned into the wide positions.
Clearly it didn’t work out.
McGregor has known the best of times at Celtic. And also the decline of the last two seasons.
Without lashing out he articulated the problems that the team and players are facing.
Discussing the problems that strikers have playing out wide, The Celtic Way reports McGregor saying:
I think probably what you’re seeing is a lot of that, it’s not really having a nailed down profile for each of the positions. The players behave like a winger, or they behave like a striker.
You can get away with it for a few games but if it’s a striker playing as a winger, you are going to get that behaviour a lot of the time. You’ve got enough quality so you can score goals and get away with it. But we have to try to get the team functioning the way it should.
Then that will alleviate all the other problems that we are encountering, where it becomes a bit [like] basketball, you lose control and spend the next 15 minutes trying to get possession back.
You waste energy at that point and then when you need to get a goal, you are coming down as opposed to up the way. There are a lot of wee bits to piece together and pull together, but there was a lot to like in the second half in terms of how we should look in the performance.
The basketball reference captured a lot of the headlines from McGregor’s interview.
Celtic spent £25m of their £32m summer spend on the striking positions.
Other than the win against Hearts this Celtic side has failed to impress or even properly function.
Until the wide positions are resolved it looks like more of the same as McGregor and his team-mates toil to find a competent system of play.
Next up for the makeshift Celtic squad is Falkirk away on Sunday.
On a plastic pitch in a three sided stadium O’Neill will attempt to find the answers with the January transfer window two months away.
@Housey__ To translate what he’s saying.
Stop putting Osmand and Duran on the wing, They are strikers.
If you want to play Nygren as a Midfielder play him as an Attacking Midfielder in a formation with 3 Centre Mids behind him.
— CelticFirst (@CELTlC67) October 30, 2026
