Leigh Griffiths admits his excellent goal for Celtic at St Johnstone gives Neil Lennon a tough decision to make. And he doesn’t mind that dilemma one bit!
There’s always talk about Leigh Griffiths letting himself and people down. But there is one thing Celtic can rely on from him. Goals. He showed that on Sunday as he put the Hoops in front right at the end of the match. A second strike from Patryk Klimala secured the 2 goal win and put both strikers into the headlines despite starting from the bench.
Out of favour and fitness over the summer and hitting the news for a birthday party with too many people, there was plenty of thought that Griffiths had blown it this time. Many thought he’d not be back in a Celtic shirt again.
Yet here we are, relieved at his headed goal on Sunday which helped secure the win and 3 points. And for many, delighted to see his effort and goal pay off for the Hoops. It’s his first competitive appearance for the season and he took his chance very well to impress and show he is not to be overlooked or forgotten.
Griffiths was quoted by the Daily Record after the game. Obviously delighted to have returned so spectacularly with the goal, he was also keen to acknowledge the overall team effort:
"“Listen it’s not just about me, it’s about the team getting the three points.“We knew St Johnstone would be stuffy and we just had to keep working away and try and break them down and fortunately for us we got two in the last couple of minutes.“It’s frustrating sitting on the bench watching but we know what these types of games are going to be like. St Johnstone sit in a low block, are hard to break down and try and hit us on the counter. We had to be patient.“It’s about us keeping going. The game is 90 minutes long so it’s just about taking a chance as quickly as we can and unfortunately it didn’t come until the 90th minute but two goals again, a clean sheet and a win.”"
Griffiths also acknowledged the need to continue to work hard and improve his fitness if he is to continue his return to secure more first team appearances. That’s also where the dilemma for Neil Lennon comes up:
"“I will keep working hard and need to keep my fitness up. I’m delighted to be back involved and get minutes on the pitch again.“We have another couple of weeks before the big game so hopefully the fitness levels will improve in time.“With the amount of games a lot of boys need a break but for me it’s about getting fit as much as I can and trying to kick on from there.“The manager has a difficult decision because Albian has been on fire, Patryk has come on and scored. There are four good strikers competing for two places but that’s something you enjoy.”"
Celtic certainly need a strong goal threat across a range of strikers. Albian Ajeti’s injury and Odsonne Edouard in a form dip highlight why strong cover is essential. Griffiths showed he still can do what’s needed, score goals. He’s certainly given Lennon food for thought on what mix of strikers makes most sense for the critical game soon against the Rangers.