Former Celtic defender Alan Stubbs has questioned the quality of players in Brendan Rodgers’ first-team squad.
Speaking on PLZ Soccer, Stubbs said that there were at least five players on the bench against Kilmarnock who are not good enough to play for the Scottish champions:
“You only have to look at Celtic’s bench from Saturday; Oh [Hyeon-gyu], [Nicolas] Kuhn, [Paulo] Bernardo, [Alexandro] Bernabei, [Yang] Hyun [jun], that is what I am talking about the strength in depth. I am not sure that they are going to take Celtic to the next level.”
“I think this is the reason why this could bite Celtic on the backside in terms of their recruitment policy over the last 18 months, since Ange [Postecoglou] left, really.”
Stubbs makes a fair point
Bernabei was at fault for Kilmarnock’s equaliser on Saturday and the Argentine has struggled to make an impact since joining from Lanus last year.
In terms of the other four, you only have to look at their output in the final third to see that they are not producing the goods for the club.
Between them, they have contributed 10 goals (5 of which were scored by Oh), and 3 assists in all competitions since the start of the campaign.
Celtic’s squad will have to undergo an overhaul
Even if the Hoops do recover their position at the top of the Scottish Premiership table and win the title, fundamental weaknesses in the squad have been exposed in recent weeks.
Whether Rodgers stays in charge or another manager is brought in, a clearout of deadwood will be needed. Players like Bernabei, Oh and potentially Bernardo may not make the cut as Celtic look to inject more quality into the team.
