The proof Celtic's players have bought into Rodgers' style

One of the noticeable features of the Glasgow Derby victory for the victorious home side, in particular, was that both sides were set up to pressure their opponents. The so-called 'battle' of the two sides came to fruition on the day, as the home side and the visitors battled it out for both domestic supremacy and bragging rights.

This had the effect of making the game a bit of a mess to watch with possession often being disputed and changing hands frequently.

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But who made the most of their pressing and where were the advantages to be gained?

Pressing

Despite having the lead for much of the match (from the 25th minute onwards) Celtic had 54 per cent of the pressures applied during the game, indicating dominance when pressuring their opponents in the match.

Those extra 36 pressures came with a higher fail rate (17 to 12 per cent). Celtic also had significantly more counter pressures, which are pressures on the ball within five seconds of losing it.

The question is, where were those pressures being applied on the football pitch?

Rangers' youngest player Ross McCausland showed admirable youthful endeavour to top the pressures stats across both teams with 36. Also, on the right and behind him, his captain James Tavernier weighed in with 24. Even the cumbersome and maligned Cyriel Dessers put in a shift off the ball, despite missing a number of good chances in the game. Despite this, they could not change the outcome of the result on the day.

The disparity came on the other side where the pair of Ridvan Yilmaz (eight) and Abdallah Sima (17) were far less active off the ball. However, this may be explained by how little Celtic attacked down that side with both Alistair Johnston and particularly Daizen Maeda offering few attacking moments (Maeda contributed 0 expected scoring contributions and only received four pack passes). Both had poor games - despite their best efforts - with the latter subbed off in place of Mikey Johnston late on. The former was lucky to get away with a handball, though Sima was offside in the build-up.

What was more worrying for Rangers was the pressure comparison in the vital central midfield area. Here are Celtic’s equivalent numbers for pressures in the game:

Remember the numbers are influenced by the number of minutes players played. Matt O’Riley led the way for Celtic having completed the full 90 minutes and was second overall to McCausland with 34 pressures. When you add in Paulo Bernardo (31), Callum McGregor (25), and David Turnbull (six) then Celtic’s midfield three combined to pressure their opponents 96 times.

Whereas the Rangers midfield put in 63 across Todd Cantwell, John Lundstram, Dujon Sterling and Kieran Dowell. That, despite Celtic having most of the possession (55 per cent). It is even more stark if we combine this with the data for counter pressures.

The Celtic midfield outworked their opponents by a total of 28 to 8 in counterpressing. Bernardo is still developing and gaining confidence on the ball and contributing to the attacking final third. However, off the ball, he is almost a facsimile of O’Riley. His hard work and energy to pressure the opponent is paying off in games, along with the rest of the team's efforts in truth.

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In McGregor and O’Riley, Celtic had their “big” players contribute across the park, with Bernardo together completing 125 passes and three chances created. The Rangers three completed 89 passes and two chances. This indicates a good showing from the three players in the middle of the park, especially in such a big game like the Glasgow Derby.

In the crucial engine room, Celtic had the advantage both in quality and work rate. This certainly bodes well for the rest of the season, as the side takes a well-deserved break for a few weeks for the winter shutdown.