Celtic see best and worst of Boli Bolingoli in winning return - tactical and data match report against Motherwell

Jota and David Turnbull struck either side of half-time in a match the Hoops dominated without really being tested at the back.

But what do the statistics say? Here, The Celtic Way looks at the StatsBomb data from the Motherwell game to give you a match report experience like no other.

Goals and shots

Celtic started fairly brightly in attack although Jota’s opening goal prompted a flatlining of chances created for a 10-minute spell in which the only attacking contribution of note was a cross from the Portuguese winger.

After the break, the Hoops began in a positive manner again and grabbed a second goal thanks to David Turnbull’s screamer. While that goal wasn’t followed by quite the same period of inactivity as Jota’s opener, from around the 62nd minute the Celts flatlined again, offering little of note in attack as they saw out the rest of the match. In terms of xG, Celtic would have won this match 75 per cent of the time.

Motherwell, conversely, were blunt and devoid of creativity for most of the match – their xG race chart is largely made up for long periods of flatlining as Celtic limited them to five shots over the course of the match, none of which were on target.

Although they scored twice, Celtic’s 18 shots carried an xG value of just 1.57. Eleven attempts were in the box with Jota getting off the most ‘dangerous’ three (including his goal). The 22-year-old also tied Turnbull – whose long-range pearler carried a 0.02 xG value – for most shots overall with four.

Possession and passing

Celtic enjoyed 72 per cent possession – significantly up from the 60 per cent they garnered at Pittodrie in their last match. Likewise, they also bounced back from a domestic season-low passing accuracy of 83 in the north-east to register a healthy 88 per cent at Fir Park.

Callum McGregor was back at the base of midfield with Tom Rogic and Turnbull ahead of him and the Hoops skipper was at his influential best in Lanarkshire.

As the passing network shows, McGregor was the only player from either side to merit a deep red node – meaning he was the most involved player. The passing stats bear this out. McGregor not only took the most touches in the match but played the most key passes too as he topped the xGChain.

Elsewhere, Turnbull may have scored and attempted the second-most key passes but in general he was generally found wanting creatively at Fir Park. Indeed, half of his key passes were from set-pieces while his network node is the coolest of any Celtic midfielder.

Likewise, Kyogo’s average positioning reinforces a frustrating afternoon for the striker as he was restricted to just one attempt on goal and at various times visibly showed his frustration with a lack of service from his fellow attacking players.

Notably, Anthony Ralston spent most of the match in the Motherwell half while Boli Bolingoli (more on him later) was most often found in his own half.

Ralston and Abada, while far from their best, nonetheless linked up together to a greater extent than at Pittodrie. The former, in particular, made a fair nuisance of himself at Fir Park and racked up three key passes – all from open play – with a match-high xG assist value of 0.59.

Pressing and defending

As usual, Celtic’s most intense pressing was in the wide areas with Bolingoli the team’s most persistent presser. In a similar vein to the Aberdeen match, the Hoops’ pressing on the left took place higher up the pitch than the right while it is worth noting that the opening goal arrived after a successful Kyogo pressure regain deep in his own half. In terms of counter-pressures, Tom Rogic topped the Celtic charts with five.

While Motherwell were not particularly threatening – and the chances they did create were largely squandered – Celtic’s starting back four all chipped in with their fair share of tangible defensive contributions. Indeed, Ralston, Carter-Vickers, Starfelt and Bolingoli all registered between six and 10 combined tackles and interceptions.

Carter-Vickers was forced to make 11 clearances throughout the match too, while the American also won all nine of his aerial duels – by far the most of any player on the pitch. Contrastingly, Starfelt won only two (40 per cent) of his in an otherwise decent display.

Player focus: Boli Bolingoli

Another outing for the full-back after his surprise inclusion for the 1-0 loss to Livingston last month and one which showcased the best and worst of his game.

While Bolingoli was lucky to avoid being penalised for a rash, but ultimately instinctive, handball in the second half he was also deeply involved in the build-up to Turnbull’s goal. The Belgian playing it up the line before underlapping into the half-space for the return ball, allowing the Celtic number 14 to eventually creep into position for his long-range goal.

Statistically, the left-back showed he has something to offer were he to be handed additional game-time in Postecoglou’s system. While his crossing was a blot on his copybook – no successful completions from his three attempts and suspect decision-making when in crossing positions – his role in Celtic’s pressing game in particular provides reason to be positive about his return.

Bolingoli recorded a joint match-high 17 pressures but was out in front in pressure duration and topped by only Starfelt in duration per pressure. Likewise, his counter-pressing was effective with match-high numbers in duration and duration per pressure.

He was also generally an active participant in ensuring any Motherwell revival was quashed with match-highs in combined tackles and interceptions in a positive return to the first-team fold.