After a cohesive performance against St Johnstone at Parkhead last weekend, Celtic took the lead in the Scottish Premiership standings.
James Forrest sealed another three crucial points in the context of the championship race with a typically clinical finish after Kyogo Furuhashi and Nicolas Kuhn put the Bhoys ahead.
There were plenty of good things to take away from an encouraging day on home ground, even though Connor Smith’s late goal for the visitors was the reply.
Kuhn was named Man of the Match for his heroics against the Saints, despite his originally rough start in Glasgow. He now appears to have totally recovered from his well-documented issues following dental surgery.
The 24-year-old made three crucial passes and created two excellent opportunities, earning a match rating of 9.1 according to Sofascore.
Players often take some time to adjust, but Kuhn is finally starting to settle in and is starting to live up to his £3 million price tag.
Brendan Rodgers, who expressed satisfaction at the former Rapid Vienna man’s recent turn of events, also gave the January arrival high marks.
He said, “He’s very quick and energetic.” I simply believe that you need to exercise patience and that it has taken him some time. He’s beginning to demonstrate why he was brought here, even though I know players are evaluated here based only on their first impression.
What has changed, according to Simon Donnelly, for Nicolas Kuhn at Celtic
Former Celtic player Simon Donnelly thinks Kuhn has started to turn a corner in his Parkhead career because he is used to the high standards placed on players at his old team.
Despite some early problems, the 49-year-old believes the former Germany Under-20 international has revitalized himself on the wing and that his confidence will only continue to increase.
According to Donnelly (Clyde 1 Superscoreboard), Kuhn arrived at Celtic and may have initially found it difficult to leave an impression. I am aware that he scored at Pittodrie, but until the Livingston game, it hadn’t really been a good thing.
“I thought he looked pretty sharp and built on that during the weekend. Perhaps some players simply take a little longer to get used to it.
Later, he said, “We just look at the boy when he steps onto the pitch and expect everything from him from the first minute. We’re humans.” He has acknowledged that he has had some difficulty getting settled in.
“As I mentioned earlier, Livingston contributed an assist in that match, popping up with a wonderful pass for Kyogo’s goal (against St Johnstone). He gets himself on the scoresheet, and it seems like he’s turned a small corner with his confidence as well.
With his tendency to cut inside and overcome his marker, Kuhn has unquestionably given the Celtic attack a little more vigor. Meanwhile, his combination with talisman Furuhashi should only become better in the upcoming weeks.
The Bhoys have scored 14 goals in their last three home games, which has coincided with an improvement in their attacking fortunes. This season, Celtic has struggled to penetrate from wide areas; but, we now appear to have options on either side.
As Rodgers hopes to bring home two pieces of silverware by late May, hopefully this is a harbinger of things to come following the international break.
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