BBC NEWS; Unlike Idah and Bernardo, Rodgers must drop 6/10 Celtic player who “struggled”
Celtic advanced to the League Cup semi-finals after defeating Falkirk 5-2 at Parkhead on Sunday.
The Hoops will now face Aberdeen in the last four at Hampden Park for a spot in the final, despite the fact that an upset was predicted for much of the game.
Falkirk led 1-0 and 2-1 during the match, but Brendan Rodgers’ team responded with goals from Paulo Bernardo, Adam Idah (x2), and Nicolas Kuhn.
The manager made a few changes to his starting XI to give some of the squad’s periphery players an opportunity, and two individuals in particular stood out.
Paulo Bernardo and Adam Idah seized their chance.
Bernardo was given the opportunity to demonstrate his abilities after being put to the bench in favor of Arne Engels in the previous two games.
The Portugal U21 international made his impression on the game with a powerful volleyed goal from Alex Valle’s knockdown in the first half, drawing Celtic level at 1-1 and reminding Rodgers of his talent in the final third.
This season, Kyogo Furuhashi has only scored two goals and squandered nine ‘great opportunities’, leaving room for Idah to compete for a starting position.
The Ireland international scored twice in two minutes to lift Celtic from 2-1 down to 3-2 up in the second half, with the second goal a brilliant grab and finish by the former Norwich player.
Unlike Idah and Bernardo, right-back Anthony Ralston missed out on a chance to start in the Scottish Premiership moving ahead.
Anthony Ralston’s fight against Falkirk
The Scotland international, who has only been used as a substitute in the Premiership this season, was given a chance to impress against a second-tier team.
Unfortunately, he did not perform enough to convince Rodgers that Alistair Johnston’s position as Celtic’s regular starting right-back is in jeopardy.
According to Kheredine Idessane of BBC Scotland, the Hoops defense “struggled” to deal with Falkirk’s attacks, with Ralston contributing to that battle.
The 25-year-old dud, who was given a player rating of 6/10 by FootballScotland, let himself down with his defense for the second goal for the visitors. He was caught ball-watching and let Finn Yeats in acres of space at the back post to head past Kasper Schmeichel.
He did give a great pass to Kuhn for Idah’s first goal after briefly playing left-back, but his overall performance was insufficient to secure him a spot in the starting XI going forward.
As a result, Rodgers must mercilessly drop Ralston from the starting lineup for the Premiership match against St Johnstone next weekend, with Johnston returning to the club immediately.
Bernardo and Idah’s goals, on the other hand, may have given the Northern Irish head coach a decision to make when it comes to selecting his next starting eleven.
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