Celtic Player Ratings v Livingston


Celtic suffered their second successive defeat this afternoon. Livingston were the victors at the Tony Macaroni as the Hoops slipped down to 6th in the Scottish Premiership table. Let’s get into the player ratings from another disappointing display. 

Joe Hart - 7/10

For the second time in a row, Joe Hart captained Celtic. The Englishman made some impressive saves and there was nothing he could do about Andrew Shinnie’s winner. 


Josip Juranovic - 6/10

The Croatian’s crossing was inconsistent. The 26 year old didn’t get forward as much as Boli Bolingoli did down the left hand side. Juranovic couldn’t follow up his goal on Thursday with another return this afternoon. 


Cameron Carter-Vickers - 7/10

Carter-Vickers was the standout in the Celtic defence today. The American won countless headers and played through some sublime threaded balls for Liel Abada down the right. Unfortunately, his strike towards the closing stages of the match flashed just wide of the post. 


Stephen Welsh - 6/10

Stephen Welsh replaced Carl Starfelt in the heart of Celtic’s defence today and picked up a booking for a mistimed tackle around the half way line. Andrew Shinnie managed to hold off the 21 year old for Livingston’s goal, an incident Welsh will be disappointed with. 


Boli Bolingoli - 7/10

The controversial Belgian made his first competitive Celtic appearance since August 2020 today. Bolingoli offered a different dynamic on the left to that Greg Taylor does and the 26 year old got forward and attempted several crosses. It was a positive display from Bolingoli this afternoon. 


James McCarthy - 5/10

Especially in the second half, a number of McCarthy’s passes went astray. The Irishman was satisfactory in the first half but his performance in the second 45 posed some question marks. He was replaced by Ismaila Soro on the 72nd minute. 


Tom Rogic - 6/10

Rogic made a number of omnipotent runs from deep although his decision making lacked at times. There were opportunities for the Australian to pull the trigger yet he passed them up. Mikey Johnston took Rogic’s place with 18 minutes to go. 


David Turnbull - 7/10

Turnbull was one of the most lively customers in midfield for Celtic today. Several of his attempts were saved by Livingston keeper Max Stryjek. Turnbull carried the ball and whipped a number of promising corners but his exploits weren’t enough for Celtic to take anything from the game. 


Liel Abada - 5/10

Abada was rarely seen, particularly in the second half. The Israeli didn’t have any standout moments except for when he unleashed a left footed shot from the corner of the box which was off target. Nonetheless, the 19 year old remains one of the most hopeful prospects at Celtic. 


Jota - 7/10

The Portuguese winger was lively and opened his box of tricks a couple of times but was unable to pose a real threat to the Livingston back line. The 22 year old linked up well with both David Turnbull and Mikey Johnston although he is still on the lookout for his first Celtic goal. 


Albian Ajeti - 6/10

Ajeti had just 15 touches of the ball according to FotMob, the least of any outfield player to play 90 minutes, despite having a few chances. The Swiss was buoyant in the penalty area and his most prominent chance was a precise effort destined for the bottom corner but goalkeeper Max Stryjek managed to get a hand to it and concede the corner. Notwithstanding Ajeti’s august performances, the introduction of Greek striker Giorgos Giakoumakis and eventual return of Kyogo Furuhashi will provide a much needed boost to Celtic’s frontline. 


Substitutes 


Nir Bitton - 6/10

As was the case with all of Celtic’s substitutes, Bitton was introduced on the 72nd minute. The Israeli replaced Stephen Welsh at centre back but had little impact on the game. 


Mikey Johnston - 5/10

Johnston returned from a lengthy injury lay off today but some eye catching junctures were contrasted with a few misplaced passes, especially at the death when he failed to find Nir Bitton with a what looked to be simple ball. In spite of this, Johnston’s recurrence is certainly a positive. 


Ismaila Soro - 6/10

Soro’s passing was crisp, to say the least. His ball which found Albian Ajeti was unlucky not to turn into an assist. The Ivorian replaced James McCarthy and brought more energy to the midfield than the Irishman did. 


Celtic’s next three games are at Celtic Park. The Hoops will play in three different completions against Raith Rovers in the League Cup, Dundee United in the league and Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League. Two of these are undoubtedly winnable and results other than victories against Raith Rovers and Dundee United will be concerning. 


Thank you for taking the time to read this article. If you have any opinions, leave a comment down below. I’d also be thankful if you gave me a follow on Twitter @Josh_Footblog where likes and re-tweets are greatly appreciated. 

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