John Kennedy’s Celtic tenure began with a 1-0 win over Aberdeen last weekend but it wasn't entirely convincing.
That has been the story for the Hoops this term, a campaign which has been an arduous slog for all involved.
On the chalkboard
There have been very few constants at Celtic this term besides woeful inconsistency. That being said, if we are looking for one positive, it has to be the form of Odsonne Edouard.
Very rarely has the Frenchman let all the negative talk to get to him and that was evident when he fired home against Aberdeen last weekend.
Edouard now has 20 goals in 32 games to his name but there are still concerns over where his future lies. This week he was linked with an eye-catching move to Arsenal, while Leicester are also in the race to sign him in what could be a pretty measly £15m deal.
If he departs Parkhead, then Celtic could be in a lot of bother. Their striking options beyond the bullish forward are rather poor.
That was evident last weekend when Patryk Klimala was afforded a rare start. He was abysmal in all facets of his game and has demonstrated regularly that he won’t be the man to take on the mantle from Edouard if he leaves.
Drop him
Kennedy’s first starting XI as interim manager of the Bhoys was always going to be interesting and indeed, it provoked a talking point as soon as it was announced.
Klimala has only started three Premiership games this term, so to throw him in was incredibly surprising. The Polish attacker has found the net on just three occasions in 2020/21, the last of which came all the way back in early October.
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It was no surprise to see him struggle last weekend. He let Kennedy down and was relatively anonymous when leading the line. He made only five passes in the entire game, had fewer touches than Scott Bain and spurned a big opportunity in front of goal. That was a moment which had Hoops pundit Frank McAvennie perplexed.
“Strikers like Morelos and Defoe would eat up the deliveries that Jonjoe Kenny puts in the box,” he told Football Insider.
McAvennie continued: “We just do not have anyone like that apart from Griff, who is not playing. You would think Ajeti or Klimala would but they don’t and it is just one of them.
“It must be soul-destroying for the full-back to keep putting the ball into the box and look up to see nobody there.”
To be described as soul-destroying sums up Klimala’s Celtic career. He has never found a consistent rhythm and has found the net on just three occasions in 28 matches since signing last January.
As McAvennie has hinted, perhaps bringing Leigh Griffiths back into the fray would go down well. Albian Ajeti scored brilliantly against Kilmarnock a few weeks ago but is now goalless in his last three games again.
Kennedy could even go with Ryan Christie. The winger only has one strike to his name in his last 24 appearances but, at least during his shambolic outing against Ross County, was still in positions to score and trying to make things happen. The same cannot be said for Klimala.
Sufficient options are thin on the ground for Kennedy in forward areas but one player on whom he certainly can’t rely is the Polish striker. He needs to be axed from the starting XI on Sunday against Dundee United.