Former Celtic midfielder Murdo MacLeod has previewed Sunday’s Old Firm, as quoted by the Scottish Sun.
MacLeod, 60, played almost 300 league matches for the Hoops between 1978 and 1987 before joining German side Borussia Dortmund.
Yet, he isn’t blindly bigging up Celtic’s chances.
Instead, he recognises that they are going to be severely tested at Ibrox and questions whether their defence and an expensive new signing will be capable of standing up to the test.
Rangers can exploit Celtic’s defensive frailties
“Celtic look great going forward, but they have been poor at the back and they have got to look at that,” said MacLeod, as quoted by the Scottish Sun. “You need to get the balance of attacking and defence. They were all over the place at times against Cluj.”
“Jullien then came into the side, but the way he played against Dunfermline, he didn’t show he should be the first-choice centre-back. This game could have goals in it with the attacking options both teams have.”
Verdict
It’s bound to be encouraging for Rangers that even former Celtic players are concerned about Neil Lennon’s side’s issues at the back.
When the Hoops splashed out £7 million on Christopher Jullien [Scottish Sun] over the summer, he was expected to shore things up. Yet, he hasn’t played regularly and when he has featured, as MacLeod says, he’s looked off the pace.
Given Rangers have been in such good goalscoring form for the majority of the early part of the season, they are bound to fancy their chances. If Jullien struggled against Dunfermline, he’s not going to enjoy going up against Alfredo Morelos or Jermain Defoe at a raucous Ibrox.
Celtic have just one clean sheet in their last six matches and Steven Gerrard’s men will fancy their chances of adding to the nine goals they’ve netted in their opening three league fixtures, come Sunday.
