Why Cameron Carter-Vickers was Celtic's ace in the hole against Hearts

Jenz got the nod over Carl Starfelt and had a steady home debut as the Hoops secured a 2-0 win at Parkhead, thanks to goals from Kyogo Furuhashi and Giorgos Giakoumakis.

Whether Jenz has now moved ahead of Starfelt, who is still playing catch-up with his fitness after missing pre-season, in the centre-back pecking order is still up for debate though.

What is not up so much is that it is one of either Jenz or Starfelt, rather than both, who will cement their position in the heart of Celtic’s defence this season.

That’s down to continued steady displays of Cameron Carter-Vickers. The USA international’s start of the season has gone under the radar somewhat, partly due to Jenz, Starfelt and Stephen Welsh all grabbing headlines for their goal-scoring exploits from centre-back in the first few games of the season.

However, the ever-consistent Carter-Vickers has picked up exactly where he left off last season.

An unflappable presence in Celtic’s backline, he remains Ange Postecoglou’s first-choice centre-back, leaving just that one spot for Jenz, Sarfelt and Welsh to battle for.

Carter-Vickers underlined that point on again Sunday with arguably his most accomplished display of the season so far, both on and off the ball.   

Here, we break down Carter-Vickers’ impressive contribution to Celtic’s build-up from the back, as well as some of his imperious defensive work, through several key moments at Parkhead on Sunday...

Pass to Kyogo (11 mins)

Carter-Vickers's passing game was excellent on Sunday with his 95 per cent pass completion the highest of any player on the pitch. In total, he attempted 79 passes, many of which were key in starting attacks for Celtic.

His contribution to Celtic’s build-up was underlined by his xG Chain, StatsBomb’s metric which measures possession chains, and the xG of shots that result from them, giving credit to players for the attacking contributions they make outside of shots and assists, which was 1.34, his joint highest in a match in the opening four games of the season.

Admittedly Hearts failed to put much pressure on either of Celtic’s centre-backs when they had possession, especially in the first half, with both Carter-Vickers and Jenz often allowed to carry the ball into the Edinburgh side’s half under little pressure.

Carter-Vickers made the most of being allowed time on the ball though. Positive and proactive, he drove into Hearts’ half on several occasions, breaking lines to find teammates with crisp passes.

Here we can see an example of this in the opening minutes. Able to step over the halfway line without too much resistance, Carter-Vickers fires an angled ball into the feet of Kyogo who has dropped deep in the middle of the pitch.

Kyogo was unable to find a team-mate with his first-time pass on this oaccaion, but it would be a similar line-breaking pass from Carter-Vickers that would start the move for Celtic’s opener just minutes later.

Pass to Turnbull (14 mins)

Receiving a square ball from his centre-back partner Jenz, Carter-Vickers again steps into midfield, carrying the ball vertically through the right channel.

Initially looking down the right side to pick a pass, he turns and moves into a more central area where another central passing lane opens up, this time thanks to some nice movement by David Turnbull off the back of Hearts midfielder Peter Haring.

Carter-Vickers spots the pass and punches the ball into Turnbull with a good bit of pace. Turnbull steps onto the ball and carries into right half-space where he releases Daizen Maeda down the right. The Japanese forward manages to get in behind left-back Alex Cochrane and crosses for Kyogo who finishes first time to break the deadlock. 

Pass to Taylor (29 mins)

Another example of Carter-Vickers’ incisive passing during Celtic’s build-up phase on Sunday can be seen above. On this occasion, he drives to the left side of the pitch to pick another vertical pass which finds Greg Taylor between the lines in that familiar inverted position.

Taylor, who was again very impressive himself, quickly turns to find Jota out wide, getting the Portuguese winger in a one-v-one situation with Hearts full-back Nathanial Atkinson in the final third.

Long-range pass to O’Riley (33 mins)

Carter-Vickers’ passing over longer distances was impressive at the weekend too. He completed six of his eight attempted long balls during the 90 minutes with one of those successful long-range passes, shown above, putting Matt O’Riley in behind the Hearts’ defence just after the half-hour mark.

This ability to go mix up the range of passing from deep will continue to be important throughout the season for Celtic, particularly when potentially struggling to break down low blocks domestically.

Interception (39 mins)

Carter-Vickers has played a leading role in Celtic’s solid early-season defensive record that has seen them concede just one goal with the 24-year-old at his usual dependable best again on Sunday.

The former Spurs man, as well as his German centre-back partner, were aggressive in their defending against Hearts, particularly in the first half, with their front-foot defensive actions key in helping Celtic maintain momentum and sustain pressure.  

Both made several interceptions high on the halfway line, especially in that first 45 minutes, which helped keep Robbie Neilson’s side penned in.

Here we can see an example of this from just before half-time. Hearts clear their lines by firing the ball up the right channel looking to find Josh Ginnelly, who had the thankless task of being Hearts' lone striker. Carter-Vickers reads the situation well though, stepping in front of Ginnelly to win possession back high by knocking the ball down to captain Callum McGregor who can quickly get Celtic on the attack again.

Blocked cross (52 mins)

Hearts did make a decent start to the second half and Celtic found themselves on the back foot for a period after the break. During that spell, Carter-Vickers made several key interventions to ensure the door to Joe Hart’s goal remained firmly shut.

One vital intervention was to block a dangerous cross from the right from Hearts’ Alan Forrest, a still of which can be seen above.

With both Ginnelly and Liam Boyce attacking the space in the six-yard box, Carter-Vickers was well-positioned to block out the cross from Forrest at the near post.

Defensively, across the full 90 minutes, Carter Vickers made three interceptions, had three clearances, and only committed one foul. He also won both of his ground duels and three of his four aerial duels.

Conclusion

Carter-Vickers’ start to the new season may be low-key but there is no doubt he remains Postecoglou’s first pick at centre-back.

His contribution on Sunday, in and out of possession, was important in helping Celtic pass what was a potentially tricky early season test.

Tougher tests lie in wait, with a Glasgow Derby and Champions League group stage games on the horizon.

To navigate those tests Celtic will likely need to rely more heavily on Carter-Vickers in the coming weeks.

However, given his early season showings, there is no reason to doubt that the American will be right up for the challenges ahead.