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James Forrest wouldn’t even be worried if some of the younger contenders had lived up to his expectations.
And while Nicolas Kuhn again showed signs that he could be offering a coherent response regardless, seeing his experienced substitute also score, with a fine goal, offered a positive and reassuring spectacle for Celtic. Forrest had his testimony last August and, with the various newcomers to the club, he had to settle for a supporting role.
Marco Tilio has signed from Australia. Hyunjun Yang from South Korea. Luis Palma arrived and Mikey Johnston returned from a loan spell in Portugal. With Daizen Maeda and Liel Abada already on the team, Forrest has moved down the pecking order. However, with 8 big games to come in the name of his career and potentially two more trips to Hampden to check out and win a Scottish Cup, Brendan Rodgers may still be reliant on him at key moments. Tillo, Johnston and Abada are gone. Palma and Yang have been inconsistent.
It turns out that Forrest has been around forever, but the truth is that he is only 32 years old and it is not the retirement age in football. At the end of the overseas break, there will be a flat race to the winning line and the young legs of Kuhn, Maeda, Palma and Yang will have to drive and produce.
But, with nerves still tense in the final stretch, wisdom and skill are also a valuable commodity. Managers appreciate having Americans within their organization who know what it takes to cross that winning line.
Kuhn, Palma and Yang have never taken those steps at Celtic, while no one within the building has done so more than Forrest. If he knows how to win medals, he’s the one who’s 22.
Forrest may not be in the foreground. Of course, those will be smaller cameos. After all, before his appearance in front of Livingston 8 days ago, he hadn’t been noticed since before Christmas.
However, there will be key moments between now and the end of May when we will have to lock ourselves in very tense scenarios. Celtic will then turn to Livi with 8 to play. Two years ago, there were nine left when Ange Postecoglou’s team put Tony Macaroni under great pressure and Forrest scored a big goal in a win.
He’s been there and he’s done it time and time again. If the Scotsman represents the old, Kuhn represents the new. It is the last extreme to arrive and has more and more voice and vote.
The German brilliantly scored a first goal for Kyogo Furuhashi and in the best place to finish off a Japanese cross at the decisive moment. There were nuances from the late Jota and Abada in the way he alerted and made his full-back more complex to get in the way. the sticks for a cross from the other side to finish with authority.
It is clear that Kuhn has a long way to go before he can be classified in the same group as the Portuguese or the Israeli and no one has enjoyed his brilliance more in two seasons than Kyopass. He hasn’t been the same player this season with them.
However, the sublime qualities of the Japanese turned against the Saints. Kyogo took advantage of a cross to put it into the net. Sent off for offside. Once again, a flag interrupted the celebrations.
In between, his captivating little circle around defender Ryan McGowan to find Kuhn’s cross for his header was a mischievous move. The maverick who terrorized defenders for most of his time in Scotland came back into vogue.
Kyogo hit another shot against the crossbar just after running before sending in that cross for Kuhn to score. Adam Idah had taken over the starting role for the three games leading up to the weekend, but performances like this mean Kyogo will keep him.
He’s a big player and this latest batch is as big as it gets. Cameron Carter-Vickers returned to defense and his confidence and ability to stifle things at the source allowed the champions to have a relaxed day.
Saints striker Adama Sidibeh had the American as his pace, but he was too wise and too strong. Carter-Vickers’ reading of the game removed the conditions at the source, meaning Celtic were able to regain ownership temporarily and keep their warring parties glued to their momentum.
He had a break with the game won and Celtic’s concession came when he was off the pitch and Tomoki Iwata in central defence before the Japanese returned to their initial rhythm in midfield. Iwata’s engine room demo is impressive, but misleading.
Replacing Callum McGregor is not an easy task and he does not have the captain’s brain and foot speed. You can see that when Kyago’s jerky move cut through the Saints’ defense, calling for a pass early in the first half to respond. to his career and his compatriot just didn’t notice.
Iwata opted to keep it undeniable and play cautiously at times, which slowed Celtic down on those occasions, but still had a shot off the line, a brilliantly stored half-volley and headed past a backward goalkeeper after superbly attempting to cut back the property and ignite the spark. Forrest’s goal.
Iwata has made an impact, he will most likely retire as soon as McGregor and Reo Hatate are fit. Forrest knows that feeling. He’s been in this movie all season, drifting away as newer faces liked and will necessarily be the same until the end.
However, having a player with winning skill and experience can be of great value in guiding unproven beginners under maximum pressure. No matter how it’s implemented, Forrest fits the bill perfectly.