Why Paulo Bernardo may have earned himself a European start

Goals from Kyogo, Nicolas Kuhn, and Adam Idah ensured the Hoops claimed their 11th league victory in 12 matches. The result also put daylight between Celtic and second-placed Aberdeen after they slipped up over the weekend, suffering their first league defeat of the season in a 2-1 loss at St Mirren.

A comfortable Celtic win in Gorgie did not exactly look on the cards in the opening period, though, with Brendan Rodgers’ side only managing two efforts at goal in the first 45 minutes. Hearts had their chances to punish the champions’ slow start to the first game after the final international break of the year as well – Blair Spittal and Lawrence Shankland both passing up decent openings as they racked up six first-half attempts on Kasper Schmeichel’s goal. 

However, two goals in the space of five minutes early in the second half from Kyogo and Kuhn took the game away from the capital side before Idah grabbed a double from the bench. Musa Drammeh did get on the scoresheet for the hosts in between Idah’s first and second strikes, the latter coming from the penalty spot in the closing minutes. 

Idah wasn’t the only Celtic player to make their mark from the bench in a much-improved second-half display. Wingers James Forrest and Yang Hyun-jun both made positive contributions, the former winning the penalty for Idah to complete the scoring in the closing stages. Midfielder Paulo Bernardo was another who caught the eye from the bench with an impressive half-hour display as Celtic started a hectic schedule of fixtures, which includes a Champions League tie with Club Brugge on Wednesday night.

Here, we pick out some of Bernardo’s best moments from another encouraging camo performance from the Portuguese under-21 captain as he looked to stake his claim for more minutes in the Celtic midfield….

Early touches 

Bernardo was introduced to proceedings for Belgian international Arne Engels on 67 minutes Saturday night. Engels had started both Belgian’s Nations League matches during the international break and looked a bit off the pace in Edinburgh, with the game largely passing him by.

Former Benfica prospect Bernardo didn’t take long to get involved, though. Energic and full of running, he produced several nice early touches following his introduction.

The first of which was to beat Shankland to a loose ball in midfield. Moving in quickly, Bernardo showed good anticipation and awareness to nip in first, laying the ball back to Callum McGregor to keep Celtic on the ball. 

A few minutes later, he combined brilliantly with the second goal scorer on the night, Kuhn. Receiving the ball from the German attacker, he produced a lovely, flicked back heel pass into the path of Kuhn, opening up space for the German attacker to deliver into the box.

Assist for Idah 

Bernardo’s best touches would come at the 77-minute mark with another delightful flick key in setting up Idah for the third Celtic goal. Receiving from Forrest, who drove inside well, Bernardo’s first-time touch with the outside of his boot found the Irish striker with his back to goal.

Idah then combined with Reo Hatate, the Japanese playmaker, another who produced an excellent performance in the second half at Tynecastle. With the ball then running loose, Bernardo brilliantly followed up the play to again get there first, his pass finding Idah to fire home past Craig Gordon. 

Pass to Hatate 

Bernardo was at the heart of things a few minutes later as Celtic continued to exploit the spaces that were opening up late on in the game. Demonstrating good movement, Bernardo again moved across to receive from fellow sub Yang on the right side.

Showing exceptional awareness and vision, he played another excellent first-time ball, this time around the corner and into the path of Hatate, who made a run behind him. 

This freed up Hatate in the right channel to cross into the box. The cross from the Japanese international, who was also starting to tire by this late stage, was cleared out by the Hearts defence on this occasion. 

StatsBomb data

StatsBomb data further underscores Bernardo's impact off the bench during Saturday night's match.

His one key pass, the assist for Idah’s first, carried an xG Assisted value of 0.53, statistically the ‘best’ chance of the game. In total, he made six open-play final-third passes in his half-hour display. Despite playing over twice as long, Engels only managed two more than this. 

The Portuguese midfielder registered a higher xG Chain value, too, 0.88 to Engels’ 0.68. As the below passing network shows, Bernardo was able to get in closer contact with Kuhn and tended to take his touches higher up the pitch than Engels.  

Bernardo made two counterpressures, the same as Engels, and six pressures, four less than the Belgian made in his 67 minutes on the pitch. Defensively, Bernardo also made one tackle and won the one aerial duel he contested. He was neither dribbled past nor dispossessed, Engels, by contrast, although not dribbled past once either, was dispossessed twice on Saturday – the second most in the Celtic team after Greg Taylor (3). 

All this comparison versus Engels needs the context of the ‘game state’, of course. Bernardo entered the game with Celtic two up against a tiring opponent who had put a lot into the game, especially in the first 45 minutes. In comparison, most of Engels’ minutes came when the opposition were at their strongest in the match.

Conclusion

Brendan Rodgers was effusive in his praise for Bernardo after the Tynecastle win, describing it as a ‘crime’ that he cannot give Bernardo - and Idah - more game time. 

The Portuguese playmaker’s creativity, composure, and tactical awareness were more than evident in his 30-minute cameo, offering a contrast to Engels’ more subdued performance earlier in the match.

While Bernardo benefitted from entering the game in a more favourable game state, his ability to link up with teammates like Kuhn and Hatate showcased his clear understanding of the attacking dynamics of the side. There were, by contrast again, a few occasions Engels wasn’t quite on the same wavelength as his teammates at Tynecastle. Bernardo’s assist for Idah was not just technically brilliant either, but a sign of his ability to be a decisive figure in crucial moments.

Looking ahead to the Champions League clash with Club Brugge, Rodgers faces a key decision. With Engels still adapting to Celtic’s system and Bernardo making a strong case for inclusion, many fans are calling for the Portuguese under-21 captain to start.

Even if he doesn’t make the starting eleven on Wednesday night at Celtic Park, the packed schedule ahead ensures Bernardo will have plenty of opportunities to leave his mark in the coming weeks.