Brendan Rodgers Reveals Tactical Tweaks That Inspired Celtic’s Dominant Second-Half Display Against Hearts
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has credited his side’s impressive second-half performance against Hearts to a series of tactical adjustments made during the interval. The Hoops trailed 1-0 at halftime but stormed back to win 4-1, with goals from Kyogo, Nicolas Kuhn, and Adam Idah.
Rodgers acknowledged that Hearts had caught him out tactically in the first half, but he was pleased with the way his players adapted to the changes made at halftime. “It’s a very, very good win,” Rodgers told Sky Sports. “I think when you come here to Tynecastle and win 4-1, it’s an excellent performance, especially in the second half.”
The Celtic boss explained that Hearts had pressed his side effectively in the first half, using a different shape than he had anticipated. However, he made adjustments at halftime, and his players responded impressively. “I thought first-half they pressed us well and pressed in a different shape from what we anticipated having watched Neil and his team, so we didn’t quite play through how we wanted to,” Rodgers said.
“But once we figured that out and sorted it out at halftime, second-half we got through that pressure really well and we looked very, very good going forward. Obviously, we’re disappointed with the goal we concede, but to come here, such a difficult place, with the scoreline that convincing, I’m really pleased.”
Rodgers also praised his players for their ability to adjust to the changes made at halftime. “They’ve been pressing as a 4-4-2, and of course, that’s what we expected in the game, and we give credit to them in how they did that,” he said. “Our players, when we went through it at halftime, they adjusted really well, and we could play through with better numbers and make that press much better. Scored very good goals and kept going right till the very end, which is the mark of a good team.”
The Celtic manager was also delighted that his side had taken advantage of Rangers and Aberdeen dropping points in the title race. “Yeah, I thought we had good spells in the first half, but second-half we were just much better and much cleaner with our ball possession,” Rodgers said. “And like you say, if our nearest rivals drop points, you want to take advantage of that. Still very early in the season, but still, this early it’s good to get the win.”
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