Celtic must unleash a 'fantastic young player' who could be Cohen 2.0

Sunday sees Scotland's first silverware of the season, as they are fierce rivals Celtic and Rangers Head to head at the National Stadium in the League Cup final.

Brendan Rodgers He has He never lost any of his 13 matches at Hampden As a coach, he has won three league cups so far, while he has… Best winning percentage of any manager In the company's ancient history (79%), Claiming victory from 15 out of his 19 overs He faced Rangers and lost only once.

The Hoops have won the last two League Cup finals between Glasgow's top two sides, most recently a 2-1 win in February 2023, thanks to a Kyogo Furuhashi double.

Now, significantly, Celtic and Rangers They both have 118 major honors to their nameWhich means that Bhoi's victory on Sunday will make them boast more titles than their fierce rivals For the first time since 1938.

Ahead of this huge clash, we reflect on the key selection decision Rodgers will have to make.

Celtic's dominance at home

Celtic qualified for their seventh League Cup final in just nine seasons, beating both Hibs And Falkirk are at Parkhead in the early rounds, although the current Championship leaders gave them some scare in September, going 2-1 up with just 20 minutes to play, although braces from Adam Idah and then Nicholas Cone secured victory.

But there are no such problems in the semi-finals. Facing an Aberdeen side who, at that stage, had never tasted defeat under Jimmy Thelen, the Celts thrashed the Dons, sealing a 6-0 win, leading 3-0 at half-time and five ahead after the hour mark. with Daizen Maeda Scoring Just the second hat-trick of his career In green and white.

Meanwhile, in Premier LeagueThe champions have collected 43 points out of a possible 45, leaving them nine points clear at the top and 11 better than Rangers, who appear to be on course for a 13th title in just 14 seasons.

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At the same time, they are also doing well in UEFA Champions Leaguewith Tuesday's goalless draw with Dinamo Zagreb leaving the Hoops team in 21st place in the giant table, knowing This is a victory when the BSC Young Boys have already been eliminated A visit to Glasgow next month will secure a place in the knockout stages.

Before that, attention returns to local affairs, with Celtic aiming to lift the 20th trophy out of 25 available, most recently winning the Scottish Cup in May, beating their neighbors from across the city in rather dramatic circumstances, she said. Moderately.

So, as Rodgers seeks another final win over Rangers, the question remains: who should he select in midfield?

Arne Engels case

the next Matt O'ReillyQ Selling for £25 million BrightonCeltic broke their own transfer record to replace him, He paid £11 million to Augsburg For services to Arne Engels.

This was an enormous expenditure given the context of the club The previous record fee was paid at £9 million To Paris Saint-Germain, turning Odsonne Édouard's loan deal into a permanent transfer six years ago.

Since swap German League For Glasgow, Ingles has it He became a full Belgian internationalAlthough he has not yet managed to secure a starting place at Celtic, He was introduced as a substitute in the second half In Zagreb on Tuesday, despite scoring against Hibernian last weekend.

Rodgers has four attacking midfielders at his disposal, with two of the four set to start alongside the captain Callum McGregor At the weekend, how does Engels compare to his peers?

As the table shows, Ingles ranks highly in all metrics, compared to his teammates who play in the same position.

for him Director recently stated “Arne is a fantastic young player,” and backs him to emulate winger Cohen, who struggled to make an immediate impact after his move from Rapid Vienna, but has been impressive this season. He scored 11 goals in all competitions.

Based on the above stats, Rodgers should start alongside Ingles Ryo hatatewith Paulo Bernardo missing from the start, due to their superior passing abilities, taking into account that Rangers are likely to defend deep, meaning Celtic will see a lot of the ball, After averaging 57% of ball possession over the last eight The Glasgow derby, only finishing below 50% once during this period.

Either way, the Hoops are favorites to win Sunday's final, and the Belgian is likely to feature prominently, should he indeed win.

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