Celtic extended their unbeaten run in the Champions League to three games, as they held Club Brugge to a 1-1 draw in Glasgow on Matchday Five.

Brendan Rodgers’ side were up against strong opposition, who dominated the ball early on in proceedings. Indeed, it would be Celtic who scored both goals in this one, as Cameron Carter-Vickers inexplicably passed the ball back into his own net, after failing to spot Kasper Schmeichel out of position.

After a poor first half, the home side improved, equalising through a piece of individual brilliance from Daizen Maeda, who spun and unleashed an unstoppable strike from distance past Simon Mignolet in the Brugge goal. Despite the away side scoring again, the goal was ruled out due to an offside in the lead-up, while Celtic pushed hard for a winner – albeit, to no avail.

Using StatsBomb data, analytics and metrics, The Celtic Way’s Ryan McGinlay brings you a match report unlike any other…

Stats + race chart

Despite many pundits and supporters alike singing the praises of Celtic’s opponent on the night, the home side got the better of their adversaries in multiple statistical gatherings. With 60 per cent possession, 729 passes attempted (89 per cent accuracy) and 190 pressures, Rodgers’ team were well in this game – despite not looking like it for large spells of the first half. 

The race chart underlines the closeness between the two sides concerning xG totals in this game. Indeed, there was not that much in terms of statistical difference, as Celtic ended up with 0.55 compared to Club Brugge’s 0.89 in cumulative xG. However, Brugge were given a 42 per cent chance of winning this contest, while Celtic were estimated at 21 per cent to come out on top. A draw – the result on the night – had a 37 per cent chance of occurring – this was closer than what many were projecting after the game.

Formation + passing

According to our data provider, Celtic operated in a 4-2-3-1 formation in this game – as did their opponents. Schmeichel remained in goals, while Greg Taylor was preferred to Alex Valle at left-back. Alistair Johnston operated on the right side, while Carter-Vickers and Auston Trusty were situated in the heart of defence. It was an unchanged midfield, as captain Callum McGregor was joined by Arne Engels and Reo Hatate in the engine room for Celtic, while Kyogo Furuhashi led the line – accompanied by Maeda and Nicolas Kuhn on the left and right respectively.

The passing now takes into account OBV totals (on-ball value) – it is clear to see that Trusty was effective in possession for Celtic, as shown by his warmer-coloured circle. A solid distributor of the ball, his teammates relied on him to start moves – a responsibility happily welcomed by the USA international. Judging by the diagram, he was the only one who stood out in this regard for Celtic – 0.17 total OBV for his 118 passes.

Despite not contributing a goal or an assist, Kuhn was Celtic’s most effective key passer with three – three times more than the likes of Paulo Bernardo, Valle, McGregor or Maeda, who had one.

Shooting

Celtic managed to get three out of their seven shots on target in this one, though their strike map is admittedly bare for a home match. Despite this, five of their seven chances occurred in the Club Brugge box, including Maeda’s goal…

Let’s talk about it. Maeda’s goal was an unbelievable finish – both to those witnessing it and in terms of statistics. Receiving the ball from Valle – who had just come on as a substitute – he spun towards goal, before letting rip from distance. The shot was a great one, clipping the far post before hitting the back of the net for Celtic. 

Using the word ‘unbelievable’ was not a typo or mistake, as StatsBomb cannot believe that this strike was converted by the Japan left-winger. Thanks to the position of both Joaquin Seys – Maeda’s marker – and the goalkeeper Mignolet – not to mention the forward’s angle – the original strike was given the lowest possible xG score of 0.01, before increasing in PSxG to 0.04. A sensational passage of play from Maeda, who was having a mixed game up to that point.

In terms of top shooters on the night for Celtic, Hatate had three, while Bernardo, Maeda, Kyogo and Engels all had one each.

Defending

As mentioned previously, Celtic outpressured Club Brugge on the night, despite having more possession of the ball, at a rate of 190-177 in the home side’s favour. Brugge regained the ball more from pressures, however, beating their opponents at a rate of 47-44.

In terms of individuals, Celtic’s Japanese duo of Kyogo and Maeda had 31 and 29 pressures respectively, while McGregor and Kuhn had 22 and 20 each. Maeda recorded the most counterpressures for Celtic with 10, with Bernardo managing seven, despite only playing for 30 minutes.

In spite of his error that led to the opening goal in proceedings, Carter-Vickers had the most combined tackles and interceptions for Celtic with six, while Trusty had five. This is a partnership that is growing in understanding with each passing game. The former also contributed four clearances and six aerial wins, four more than the latter, who had two to his name. 

Final thoughts

In truth, statistics only tell you at most 50 per cent of what has transpired in proceedings. While Celtic’s numbers are promising – especially in possession, pressing and passing – the ‘eye test’ would also tell you that they rode their luck in spells, too.

At half-time, many would have bit your hand off for a draw, yet the tinge of disappointment that Celtic could not find a winner on the night remains at the time of writing. Still, with eight points after five games, the club and their manager are in a promising position concerning qualification for the play-offs.

Again, the squad showed heart in the face of adversity, with their second-half performance worthy of a point at the very least. Dinamo Zagreb are up next, with the possibility of essentially securing qualification being a realistic aim for Rodgers and his men.

Matchday Six of Eight looks set to be a cracker in Croatia…