Chris Sutton Criticises “Naive” Celtic In Humiliating Defeat

Former Celtic striker Chris Sutton discussed where he felt it went wrong for the Hoops tonight against Borussia Dortmund at Signal Iduna Park.

Sutton believes that the Hoops’ style of play, although bold, was ultimately not suitable given the final scoreline and the early goal for the German giants.

Celtic wanted to go toe to toe… good to be positive but there comes a time when you have to be a bit streetwise and understand levels . Throwing lots of bodies forward when you’re 7-1 down seemed a bit naive… a bit like Madrid… way too open and ruthlessly exploited…

— Chris Sutton (@chris_sutton73) October 1, 2024

The Englishman is spot on; given the early traction of the Game, continuing to play in such an open way was criminal, as it was clear that Dortmund were going to create chances at will.

With Celtic’s high line and lack of defensive cover from midfield, the attacking 4-3-3 shape did not work well defensively.

Sutton points to Neil Lennon’s message during commentary, suggesting that Celtic needed to be more streetwise by playing the ball long more, into the channels and testing Dortmund in behind with Daizen Maeda and Kyogo Furuhashi.

However, since this is not exactly how Celtic play domestically at all times, it’s clear why they didn’t employ this style from the start.

Given the result, though, it appears that a new approach in Europe may be needed after such a humbling loss.

With lightning quick attackers a more counter-attacking style which soaks up defensive pressure may be more successful in the future.