Over the past 24 hours, Celtic’s victory over RB Leipzig has garnered a lot of media attention as Brendan Rodgers orchestrates yet another Champions League triumph this year.
The Parkhead supporters had some concerns about Rodgers’ Celtic starting lineup, but there was one obvious exclusion that caught their attention.
Due to Greg Taylor’s recent injury, Alex Valle took up the left-back position and has been playing well this season.
The Scotland fullback was expected to start on the bench against Leipzig after making a comeback for Celtic in their victory against Aberdeen at Hampden.
But Brendan Rodgers gave Taylor the go-ahead, and to his credit, he performed admirably for Celtic, who gave the German team a lesson in the Champions League.
Valle’s unexpected exclusion from Taylor vs. RB Leipzig is explained by Brendan Rodgers.
When questioned about the sole alteration he made to the Celtic squad that defeated Aberdeen prior to the game, Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers acknowledged that Taylor’s Champions League evenings experience made him the perfect choice to start against RB Leipzig.
“Every game is different, of course,” Rodgers said to TNT Sports. Playing against this kind of opponent, where you most likely end up with your left back coming in more and your right back staying out, makes me believe that the preseason work we’ve done Greg is more seasoned in that position.
“So, yeah, we look at the team we think can win every game, and he comes into that because he has a lot of experience with Champions League nights.”
Greg Taylor’s performance against RB Leipzig as a Celtic defender disproves his detractors.
On the day of the Champions League match against Leipzig, Taylor was celebrating his birthday, and it’s safe to assume that he offered Celtic and the supporters a gift of his own.
The statistics from Fotmob demonstrate why Rodgers was correct to start the 27-year-old from the first whistle because of his outstanding performance:
92% passing accuracy
Helps: 1
Chances generated: 1
Enters the latter third: 3
100% accuracy in crossing
Five duels were won.
Defensive measures: four
Taylor put up a strong all-around performance, and as his contract expires, the left-back has undoubtedly shown how important he is to the Celtic team both now and in the future.
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