How stopgap Celtic adapted to adversity for priceless three points in Perth

There were several changes to the starting XI with Joe Hart, Scott Bain, Greg Taylor, Callum McGregor and Anthony Ralston missing as well as longer-term casualties Albian Ajeti, James Forrest, Giorgos Giakoumakis, Jota, Christopher Jullien and David Turnbull.

Greek goalkeeper Vasilis Barkas was given his first start in five months, James McCarthy was in the team and Joey Dawson made his debut after an early injury to Kyogo Furuhashi while there was a slightly different shape on show in general.

Goals from Liel Abada and Nir Bitton, who captained the side in McGregor's absence, outweighed Chris Kane's consolation for Saints as Ange Postecoglou's side remain six points off the pace going into the winter break.

Here, The Celtic Way highlights some of the StatsBomb data from the game to give you a match report experience like no other.

Trendline and xG

The total xG for both teams was 0.18-2.56 in favour of Celtic, suggesting both sides slightly overperformed.

The trendline reflects a match that Ange Postecoglou’s men still managed to assert prolonged control over from an early stage despite all their missing parts.

In terms of chances created, Celtic would win this game 92 per cent of the time. 

Shot maps

Celtic managed 25 shots, with Abada taking 10 of them. Nine of their attempts were from outside the area.

Curiously, Abada's goalmouth scramble opener was rated as a better chance than his initial shot, which was free of defensive pressure and with only the goalkeeper to beat.

By contrast, St Johnstone could only muster five attempts. None of these were rated higher than 0.06 xG - in other words, their best chance would have been scored six times out of 100. Kane's goal scored 0.04.

Possession, passing and positions

The warm colours of almost all Celtic players reinforce a dominant performance in terms of passing while the average positions illustrate the slight change in shape to a back three. 

In this respect, coupled with their control of possession, Stephen Welsh and Carl Starfelt could afford to split wider into full-back areas both to cover and receive. 

Further ahead, Josip Juranovic in particular embraced the added freedom of playing as a wing-back for a dominant attacking side such as Celtic and his average position reflects that. 

Individually, with two assists Tom Rogic was unsurprisingly the most creative force in the game and he topped the xGChain helped by six key passes. Even more impressively, all of these were from open play. 

Pressing and defending

As tends to be the case, Celtic pressed more intensely on the left flank.

Nir Bitton, given slightly more licence to roam with the presence of James McCarthy behind him, registered a team-high 18 pressures with Rogic and debutant Joey Dawson next up on 16 apiece.

Nir Bitton's successful pressures v St Johnstone

Bitton also topped the charts for counter-pressures, alongside Liam Scales, while Dawson also performed well in that sense too.

From a rudimentary defensive standpoint, Welsh and Starfelt both clocked seven combined tackles and interceptions with a brace of clearances each into the bargain.