The history between Celtic and Andy Halliday is well known. There is not much left to be said about that and it has created some highlight moments in the past. The former Rangers player currently finds himself playing for Hearts, who faced the Hoops twice in back-to-back games recently.
On both occasions, Celtic walked out victors. A 3-1 victory at Parkhead in the Premiership was followed by a 3-0 win away at Tynecastle Park in the Scottish Cup last 8.
Winning has become almost second nature to Celtic once again, since the arrival of Ange Postecoglou as manager in the summer of 2021. They have only lost one domestic game in the ongoing campaign. That is a remarkable run to say the least.
So much so that it has even left Halliday impressed and he was recently full of praise for Celtic. As reported by 67 Hail Hail, he said while speaking on Open Goal, when the topic of the difficult of marking Kyogo was raised:
"“I’ve told you why. He stands five yards offside. It’s so hard to mark.“It’s 100% what they work on. Playing against it last week, it’s so hard to deal with, honestly. If the ball is down the right-hand-side, you’ve got Kyogo ten yards offside [in the middle] and Maeda ten yards offside on the left.“As a back four or a back five, you don’t want to drop because it allows them more space to play.“What they do really well is they’re always threatening in behind. So it only takes that one movement when Kyogo peels off the shoulder.“The equaliser they got against us at Celtic Park. It’s just that one ball in behind and Maeda is 20 yards offside so you’re never getting back.“They’ve scored that kind of, without exaggerating, 25 times this season.”"
Halliday gives unexpected praise to Celtic
Halliday is not someone that Celtic fans expect to hear praise about the club from. But the Bhoys are just playing at that high of a level right now.
Even on days when they are not at their best, or are dealing with the absence of key players, Postecoglou’s side are finding ways to win games. That is impressive to say the very least.
They have been the best team in Scotland by a country mile this season. But they cannot afford to drop their focus now. There are still some very vital games to be played, and the Premiership and Scottish Cup are still up for grabs. Having already won the Scottish League Cup, even a treble is on the treble for Celtic but the important thing is that they finish this season strong. They cannot rest on their laurels for a second.