When Kyogo Furuhashi was ruled out of action for a period of seven matches following the international break, you knew Celtic would be in trouble.
However, after Albian Ajeti found the net three times in the following two games, it looked as though they’d found their solution.
The Swiss was taking his chances and was finding himself in the right place at the right time.
Sadly, the £4.5m striker has now reverted to type in the last few weeks with some disappointing performances.
All of that has culminated in Celtic’s worst start to a season for 23 years. They lost to Livingston last week and seven days later, they were drawing at Parkhead against Dundee United 1-1.
Their away form under Ange Postecoglou has been disastrous. They are yet to win a game on the road in the league under his stewardship so their home displays were a saving grace.
Yet, after picking up a solitary point on Sunday, there was little to be positive about.
Ajeti was one of the worst in what was a dismal showing from the former West Ham attacker once again.
He spurned some simple opportunities to score versus Livi and the same eventuality occurred when they took on Dundee United. He’d find himself in valuable positions but was unable to find the net.
A glorious opportunity fell his way in the opening period but he somehow missed the target from just four yards out. Another chance was missed late in the second half when Ajeti headed wide from six yards.
The 24-year-old was isolated once again and offered little apart from appearing in the penalty area. It was a showing in stark contrast to Kyogo, someone who is willing to press and run in behind.
During the course of the match, Ajeti had just 17 touches of the ball, 28 fewer than goalkeeper Joe Hart, but he didn’t do a lot with possession once he had it.
In fact, he completed only 75% of his passes, making six in total during his 90 minutes on the field.
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That’s a number you’d traditionally expect from a centre-forward who’s been substituted at half time so to see it from someone who lasted a full game is dismal.
If things weren’t bad enough, his frustration shone through with a total of three fouls.
This was a horror show from Ajeti, a player who is likely to be immediately axed from the team once Kyogo and Giorgos Giakoumakis are back fit.