Scott Brown is spot on about the performance of one Celtic player during Wednesday night's Premiership win over St Johnstone. Brown has backed Mika Baur after the midfielder dominated during a clash that the Bhoys failed to stamp any true authority on.
Martin O'Neill made five changes to his starting XI, and the changes showed, with Celtic looking a little disjointed, particularly going forward. Baur's second-half tap-in separated the two sides, but while Sam Johnstone had to make a smart first-half save, Celtic could have scored a few more on another day.
O'Neill will be relieved to have managed to rest some key players for Sunday's Old Firm with Rangers while still winning, but he also expressed some concern over the performance of his side, particularly in the final third.
One performance he won't be concerned with was that of Baur, who was head and shoulders the best Hoops player on the pitch, and he won the Man of the Match award in our player ratings for his efforts.
Aside from some smart positioning, the goal wasn't anything special, but Baur showed initiative all night, demanding the ball throughout and constantly setting the tone from midfield.
Given the issues the Hoops had in the final third, you worry what the Celtic attack would have looked like had Baur not been in the midfield.
“I think in the second-half Celtic had a lot more opportunities and they were a little bit more direct with their running power in behind as well," Celtic legend Scott Brown told Sky Sports.
“They caused a lot more problems and I thought Mika Baur was really good today. I thought that was probably his best game in a Celtic jersey. And for him to get a goal as well, that will give him a proper little bit of positivity going forward now.”
With Baur having more licence to push forward in more of a box-to-box role, Celtic are seeing the best of the midfielder. One would argue that the Bhoys do still have a midfield balance issue, getting caught with the defence exposed a little too often, but such issues are not uncommon early in a season.
O'Neill has tried Baur in a more disciplined holding role, which did not work, and it's clear the German has so much to offer in a box-to-box role that another position would be a waste of his abilities. Baur wants the ball in every moment of the game, and that is a great trait to have, especially when the team finds itself in difficult moments.
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