After a very rare defeat last Sunday, can Celtic track yet another treble?
Last time, Hoop was beaten to the bottom of the Scottish Premiership for the first time in 20 years, struggling to beat St. Johnston at McDear Mid Park, 1-0.
This actually means that Brendan Rodgers’s team lost three of the last six Premiership fixtures, only endured two defeats on his previous 46 league outings.
Nevertheless, this merely delays the party, and if Celtic could beat Kilmarnock on an early kick on Saturday, and then the Ranger was beaten 24 hours later, they could secure a record 55th Scotland’s top flight title this weekend.
While many players have been praised for their continued monopoly of Scottish silverware Bhoys, a hero with a name on it goes under the radar, reminiscent of last year’s fan favorites.
Aaron Mooy’s Celtic Career
Aaron Mooy only made 42 appearances for the Celtic during his one season in Glasgow, but he certainly left a lasting impression.
He arrived in July 2022 and was reunited with Ange Postecoglou, former manager of Socceros, but there were questions about the move, considering the Australians only appeared 31 times during their two-year spells at Shanghai Port. Chinese football has been heavily affected by the Covid-19 outbreak.
Celtic’s Eric Nott described the signature as “overwhelming” and added that the move “doesn’t work,” but Celtic Way’s Sean Martin didn’t believe the signature would make no sense.
On the contrary, Mooy has proven to be a very useful addition, registering 7 goals and 11 assists. This is an average goal involvement every 110 minutes.
Post-Coglo said he “doesn’t doubt” Mooy’s quality, but the midfielder announced his retirement from football after the manager set out for Tottenham, news boss Rodgers said he was “disappointed” despite “absolutely respecting.”
So, now, Celtic midfielders have had similar impacts, but do you want to carry them around for more than a season?
Celtic can now brew the next mooie
After Hibernian made four failed bids to sign him last summer, Celtic finally snapped Dundee midfielder Luke McCowan on the deadline day, paying his services an add-on in addition to £1 million.
Considering that Hoop just signed Arne Engles on club record fees alongside Callum McGregor, Leo Hutt and Paulo Bernardo, many have questioned how much the 27-year-old actually plays.
Well, so far, this has been well spent, with McCowan scoring six goals and accumulating seven assists in the hoops, and is currently ranked 14th in the joint in this season’s premiership for goal involvement.
His manager, Rogers, named McCowan “Fantastic,” adding that he is “absolutely first class,” and Celtic Michael Shearer praises his “outstanding performance” here.
So let’s take a look at how his statistics are compared to Mooy a few seasons ago.
Luke McCowan (24/25) vs Aaron (22/23) Comprison | ||
---|---|---|
statistics | Makowan | Mooy |
exterior | 42 | 42 |
Min | 1,983 | 1,987 |
the goal | 9 | 7 |
assist | 13 | 11 |
shot | 49 | 20 |
Shot accuracy % | 54.29% | 60% |
Possibility of being created | 35 | 36 |
Accuracy passing % | 83.78 | 85.39% |
Through the ball | 10 | zero |
The duel won | 81 | 49 |
Ball recovery | 103 | 95 |
touch | 1,320 | 1,245 |
Statistics provided by TransferMarkt, FBREF.com and Squawka |
In almost the same number of minutes so far, McCowan – praised by writer Kai Watson as “tensive” – is the top when compared to the majority of indicators Mooy.
The current Celtic star has registered more goals and support this season, but has earned higher numbers when it comes to defensive metrics like shots and touches and duel won and ball recovery.
Mooy created another chance and registered a slightly higher accuracy. Of course, there’s still time for McCowan to change it, but this all proves that the 27-year-old was an absolute bargain for just £1 million.
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